Fulbright Scholars Announced for Exchange to US

Fulbright Scholars Announced for Exchange to US

Fulbright New Zealand last night announced 22 New Zealand students who have been granted Fulbright scholarships to undertake postgraduate study or research in the United States of America in the next academic year. The announcement was made at the annual Fulbright awards ceremony at parliament, which was hosted by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hon Murray McCully, and attended by 250 alumni and supporters of the Fulbright exchange programme.

Fulbright awards are for New Zealanders and Americans to study, research, teach and present their work in each other’s countries. Grantees are selected for academic excellence, leadership potential and ambassadorial qualities. Commenting on these attributes at last night’s ceremony, Hon David Huebner, US Ambassador to New Zealand, said that “[The programme’s founder] Senator J. William Fulbright believed, as I do, that people-to-people exchanges are the best forms of diplomacy, that the best way of building mutual respect and understanding is to send people abroad to form their own conclusions, and that if we just put enough smart, open-minded young people together the world would become a better place.”

The 22 newly announced recipients of Fulbright New Zealand Graduate Awards include students who will study or research in fields as diverse as mechatronics engineering, infectious disease epidemiology, water resource valuation, indigenous law, pharmaceutical policy, film production and operatic directing. Also recognised at the awards ceremony were 39 recipients of various Fulbright Scholar Awards for more advanced academics, artists and professionals, and five participants in likeminded NZ-US exchange fellowship programmes administered by Fulbright New Zealand – the Ian Axford (New Zealand) Fellowships in Public Policy and the Harkness Fellowships in Health Care Policy and Practice.

Applications for next year’s Fulbright New Zealand Graduate Awards close on 1 August 2011, and the various awards in the Fulbright Scholar Programme close at different dates throughout the year. See www.fulbright.org.nz for details of how to apply.

2011 Fulbright New Zealand Graduate Award quick facts

The recipients of this year’s 22 Fulbright New Zealand Graduate Awards include:

• Students from Auckland, Whakatane, Palmerston North, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin.

• Seven graduates of the University of Auckland;

• Four graduates of Massey University (including one graduate of the New Zealand School of Music);

• Seven graduates of Victoria University of Wellington (including one graduate of the New Zealand School of Music);

• Two graduates of the University of Canterbury;

• Seven graduates of the University of Otago.

• Seven students who have been accepted into Harvard University – the most popular university of choice for this year’s students.

• Five medical doctors.

• The inaugural Young New Zealander of the Year, Divya Dhar from Auckland, who received the award in 2010 (the year in which Ray Avery was named New Zealander of the Year).

For more information about this year’s Fulbright grantees see our 2011 Fulbright New Zealand Grantees Booklet

http://img.scoop.co.nz/media/pdfs/1106/Fulbright New Zealand Grantees Booklet 2011.pdf

ENDS

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