Digital Sign Summer Camp Scholarship Application Template Made Easy

Digital sign summer camp scholarship application template

either thanks so much for joining our webinar for today my name is Tara Hawley and I am their scholarships manager here at the Fulbright Commission now every day we get emails or phone calls or inquiries through our website that ask us how do I make my application stand out or what things should I be considering when putting together my Fulbright application so we thought we'd put together a short webinar today just to give you some tips and some advice about what the Fulbright selection committees are looking for and perhaps some tips on making sure that you've included these tips within your application now how our process works is that the Fulbright applications will close they first undergo a technical review by our office which just means we go through to make sure that all of the applications are valid and and all of the applicants are eligible so we check baseline things like are you have you got the correct citizenship have you attached all the right documents is your project statement there is your personal statement there is your CV attached just those kind of baseline things and then we pass all eligible and valid applications on to a discipline committee so a discipline committee will look at predominantly the project itself so it'll be someone that's within the same field as you that can assess if the project is strong if it is going to contribute to the discipline and they just really give us some feedback to let us know that the project itself is quite strong then all of our recommended candidates after that review go on to an interview committee now the interview committees made up of professionals and academics from all sorts of disciplines and from all sorts of institutions and they look at the applications as more broadly somewhere of a whole person approach to an application so they're not just looking at the project statement but they really look more in-depth at your personal statement your references where that you want to go and of course they take a look at the project as well when they really look at it just as more than just the project itself but they look for the other qualities that we're looking for and what they do is they do a paper-based assessment first they shortlist and then they interview the shortlisted candidates so I guess the big question is really what are each of these panels looking for aside from just a correct application so we might start by saying that a fulbright selection committee wants to know about you whether you're a student a researcher or a professional so they want to know about your track record what is it that you do what's your field they want to understand you in a professional sense which is like most grant programs they want to understand your background what your work history has been what sort of projects have you been working on they want to understand you and your trajectory professionally however they also want to understand you as a person so why is it that you're interested in this particular field or discipline or what are some key things that you attribute to your trajectory and there are some mechanisms built into the application where you can address some of these things so the first point about you as a student researcher or professional is really well what is it that you want to do and where does that fit into your career path but the about you as a person tells us why why do you want to do that and just gives us a little bit of insight into you as a person now as part of the about you we can see just a few key things which are key criteria for a selection committee so firstly it's about you as a conduit for bilateral collaboration now if you're not familiar with the history of the Fulbright Program I really strongly recommend that you take a look at even just the basics that we include on our website and I might just give a quick overview but I really encourage you to have a little bit further into it especially if you're considering US submitting an application so the Fulbright Program was born after World War Two where a senator in the u.s. called senator Fulbright had the idea or just the feeling that if people understood each other people to people culture to culture in person things like World War two would never happen again so he had this other brilliant idea or what if and he put this to the Senate and he said well what if we sell-off war surplus and we use those funds to create an exchange program and that's where Fulbright was born so it now operates in over 160 countries who all do these exchanges with the US so the Australian American Fulbright Commission both sends Australians to the US and we also receive Americans here in Australia so the whole idea of the program is about fostering these bilateral connections relationships and collaborations that don't just exist during a Fulbright Program you know whether that's for three or four months or for a year but really continues four years into the future and the other thing that we're really looking for which is really crucial to that history is about you as my ambassador so when we are sending an Australian to the US we think not only would they be a great ambassador for the Fulbright program itself but also would they be a great ambassador for Australia so how would they represent Australia in another country and it doesn't have it's it's nothing to do with being a formal ambassador and and you know not sharing your personal views or or anything like that but it's just how would you feel how would you respond to questions about your culture and you know really just being you know it's you always think about when you travel and you feel like you're the toy in Australian you know you might be the only Australian that someone has ever met how do you answer those questions about who you are and and what is some of Australia's history and what's representative of Australia so we look at all of those things to see if someone has their skill set there to be a great ambassador not only for you know the Fulbright Program or for their discipline or for their home university but also how would they cope situation where they could be seen as an ambassador for Australia but just to jump back to that first point about who you are as an academic or a professional or a student there are a few things that we use to assess that criteria the first the first thing is your university transcripts for example so all of our programs require at least an undergraduate degree and then of course depending on on the different levels of scholarship they require further study whether that's a masters or a PhD etc so especially for our post graduates we take a look at university transcripts now it's not to say that Fulbright scholarships are only available to those that get a high distinction or have a complete high distinction record because that certainly isn't the case many of our post graduates you know they were really concerned that perhaps in their first year or somewhere along there their undergraduate degree in particular they had a bad semester you know they might have failed a unit or got a couple of passes or a couple of credits and they just didn't maintain a really high GPA at the beginning that for us isn't a problem what we like to see when we're looking at that is it's understandable that that someone might have had a bad semester or something might have happened but what is really important to us is a trajectory so say for example if you didn't do so well in your first semester or in your first year but you really built that up over the following years or perhaps in your first degree you struggled a little bit but you can see in your postgraduate studies that you've really excelled so it's not about having a perfect record it's about a trajectory so where did you go from there how did things improve or what happened as you mature it or got a bit older or moved on to your next program so don't worry if your transcripts are not perfect I we're not worried about that but we certainly look at them just to get an idea of of at least where you've been and where you're headed something else that we look at is a resume which is required for all applications and this is particularly important for those that are applying under the scholar award category so you're looking to grow as a professional and even it's crucial for the academics so this is a great place where you can not only highlight your industry experience but if you're an academic of course you're teaching record it can show us your publications so just make sure that the CV that you upload is up-to-date and really highlights the things that you're most proud of whilst there might be little sections throughout the application to include some things this is just somewhere that we can look that includes your entire working or your academic history there so just include what's important there don't worry too much about including your education background maybe include just names and years but because we have your transcripts those things we can see in more detail elsewhere so use your page limits quite wisely the type thing I should note and we'll probably note again as we go through is on our website under the applicant resources so if you go Australian applicants you'll see that there are instructions for filling out an application so it's not so much tips in and what we're looking for as a selection committee like what this webinars discussing but it's more baseline put has to be included for the application to be valid so make sure you take a look at that because it'll tell you things like what are the page limits for things like a resume or can I upload you know mine on official university transcripts all of those sorts of questions are answered in the instruction so if it's more of those practical what needs to be included make sure you take a look at those instructions and we highly recommend it especially because our application system is used in 160 different countries so there are sections of the application that we in Australia might not need English testing is an example of that so there are other countries where Fulbright operates where English is not the first language so therefore English testing is required to make sure that students and researchers have and have enough of an English speaking background to be able to succeed in their program so that for example we don't need we also don't need financial verification and a few other things so make sure you look that document the application instructions just to ensure that you're following the guidelines of what we here in Australia need now with your CV I you can also highlight any award prizes grants reviews publications anywhere where you've had public recognition but it's important to note that whilst we look at this achievement and we look at your track record it's also excellence relative to means so there isn't an expectation that everyone has received a certain number of grants or prizes or awards or a strict number of publications that need to have been published it's it's nothing there's not a baseline where we tick boxes we just look at where you've been and what you've achieved and and that's how we really assess that so just make sure you include everything that you're really proud of and don't get too caught up in trying to meet some minimum number of anything or feeling like if you know if you're a postgraduate and you haven't if you don't have any publications don't worry about it because it's also relative to the category that you're applying for now in answering the question about who you are that's why we require a personal statement so there are total statements that you will submit as part of your application one is a project statement so that tells us about the research specifically so in your project statement you're covering things like well what is it that you want to do what is the did the timeline you know how feasible is this project why is it important why the us what are the outcomes so it's really project focused so that's where you can cover all of what is it exactly that you want to do in the US but the personal statement is something that is completely different so the personal statement is an opportunity for selection committees members to find out more about the person behind the research so it answers the WHO and the why behind the what so the what is the project statement what it is that you want to do but the personal statement is an opportunity to talk about yourself so what inspired your career trajectory why are you passionate about your area of study or research and my tip there at the bottom is this is a really great place to note examples of both your capacity to build long-term collaborations and your ambassadorial skills which is something we noticed we noted there on the first slide so this is a great opportunity to talk about a personal experience that you've had where you felt like you were an M for example where you were an ambassador whether that was for your home institution if it was when you traveled and you felt like the token Australian or something like that but give an example of yourself in that role but this is really the first point of assessment where we can look at those additional requirements of what we're looking for in a fulbrighter so not just is the research valid and important with strong impacts and outcomes but also who is the person behind it and and do they will they be a great representative for the Fulbright Program and for their country so whilst you can't go into too much detail with that it is it is a great idea to to put some of these examples of what we're looking for within the personal statement which shows that you really understand what Fulbright is looking for now just to jump back to the personal statement sorry is imagine saying that this is the hardest thing to write I think the research and the project what it is that you want to do is going to be a lot easier so the personal statement is a lot harder to write because it's solely about you so just make sure you're not Rieger just heading what it is that's in your project statement and why that's important but keep in mind is just strictly supposed to be about you and understanding why it is that you want to do this what got you interested why are you passionate about it and what are some skills that you think that you bring to the Fulbright Program now we talked about the project statement a little bit so again to reiterate that this is exactly what is it that you want to do so when we look at this of course the selection committee looks at the viability or the feasibility of the project so if you're applying for a four month grant they'll take a look and they'll say is what they've outlined possible to do with informants have they tried to do too much or are they are they trying to do too little they look at the packed and the outcomes of the proposed project they look at where you're hoping to go so for all of our scholarships with the exception of post graduates who are looking to do master's or coursework in the u.s. every single application requires a letter of invitation to be attached to the application and without it unfortunately an application is ineligible so it wouldn't make it for past that first stage of assessment so in that letter it not only says that if you were successful for with your Fulbright application that they'd be happy to host you but it also it might talk about ways that they're hoping to engage with you so of course we look at the where you're hoping to go and you know is that going to be a suitable place for you to go do we feel that you're going to achieve what you want to in that particular setting how are they hoping to engage with you we just want to make sure that if you went somewhere and they simply provided you with desk space whilst yeah you might get your work done but are you really going to get that cultural exchange are you really going to meet the people that you need to do and really maximize this experience so we do look at that letter and we look at the project in terms of its relevance to or its impact on the bilateral relations so of course remembering that that's a key focus of the program so it might be that there's really clear capacity for a long-term collaboration or a linkage whether that's with you personally but the people that you work with or it could be institution to institution that you that you know you really see that there's an opportunity there to be doing long term work there so we're looking for a future slash enduring collaborative research or partnerships and we want them to be dynamic innovative now as mentioned earlier it's something really important that we look for is those ambassadorial skills so again the ability to represent the Fulbright Program and the Australian and US government's while abroad so it's not so much about agreeing with or being an official representative of either government but it's about being a representative of your country so we're looking for people that are flexible open to new ideas experiences and cultures and they're willing to share expertise and give back to the community so because this program is both about having an academic exchange and a cultural one it's about we look at sending someone who can go and really soak up American culture really be interested and want to experience it but also be willing to give back and share some of that you know your personal knowledge of Australian culture to leave your colleagues and friends with a little bit more of an understanding about what Australia and Australian culture is all about and of course we're looking for great communication skills so that these are both sartorial skills can really shine through and as I mentioned that personal statement that we discussed is a really great place if you want to highlight a personal example or a personal experience of yourself in a similar role so just to jump back so the Fulbright selection committees are looking for a few things in terms of their requirements for their assessment so they want to know about you whether that's as a student researcher or a professional so they want to understand I you know your your academic background they want to understand your professional background they want to understand what is it exactly that you want to do when you're in the u.s. so really project and professionally focused but on the flip side of that they also want to know about you personally why you're interested not only in the Fulbright Program but why are you interested in going to the US and what will that do for you personally and why are you interested in the in the area that you are what makes you passionate about it and they of course when I assess whether they believe that you would be a conduit for bilateral collaboration and they want to know about you and your capacity to be an ambassador for a Fulbright for your country and for your own dream institution so just some final tips and tricks to leave you with so whilst I mentioned that your project will be assessed by a discipline committee so a legal proposal would be assessed by a lawyer just remember that was its assessed by that person in in in one of the first instances it's also going to be read and assessed by someone who might not be within your area so don't rely on technical language or academic jargon an example of this is an application I read many years ago that was for a mathematician but a majority of that project statement was mathematical formulas and whilst but that would have made perfect sense to someone that was in the same discipline someone who was not and doesn't have that same expertise couldn't understand what the specifics of the project was about so make sure you use layman terms and my best tip would be after you finished your project statement don't only allow others that are in the same field as you read it but give it to someone who's in a completely different field than you and you want them to come away and be able to understand exactly what the project is for why it's important why the u.s. is important for you you know why do you need to go and why not just be able to say in Australia what are the outcomes or potential impacts and you really want them to get a good clear understanding about what it is and why it's important so again make sure you not only give it to someone who's within your field but give it to someone give it to a couple of people who are outside of your field and make sure that it's nice and clear to them my second tip there is use your personal statement as an opportunity to sell yourself and round out your application so it's an opportunity to give the selection committees a better understanding about you outside of your work or your project statement or why you want to go to the u.s. you want them to understand you a little bit better so really use this not only as an opportunity to continue to sell why your project is important but instead focus on giving them an understanding about why you're interested in this area why you're passionate why you would be a great ambassador for the program so use that as a real opportunity there not as something that's an add-on but view it as something that's equally as important as your project statement my next tip is as part of the application you will include details for three referees now what will happen is you will enter their name and their email into the system and then the system will send them and a link so that they can go on and fill out your reference confidentially so you will not see what they submit you'll be able to tell if they have submitted but you can't access or view that reference so a few tips there in terms of picking your referees you can have three you need at least two to have submitted but you can have up to three references now whilst it could be useful to have three people that are all from say for example your department think about what it is exactly that they're going to say about you and if you think that they're all going to share similar thoughts or you know be able to reflect on similar skillsets you might want to think about mixing up your referees a little bit so for example you might get the Dean of your discipline to submit a reference you might get someone that you've worked with you might get someone that you've collaborated with internationally or from a different institution so where possible try and mix it up a little bit and think about how these people are giving at the selection committee examples of who you are but if they can build a great picture of you from different angles that can only be helpful now when choosing them you know I've noted that it's important to think about what they're going to say about you but also be confident that they're going to write positive things all right people laugh when I say that but it does happen every now and again where someone's put a referee and unfortunately they've not been to blowing in their reference so make sure you're confident in what it is that they're going to say about you secondly make sure you contact them early so in 2018 the applications will close on the 15th of July you don't want to only give them a weeks notice you want to let them know well in advance particularly if they're in high levels of academia or in their profession if they're busy people it can easily get forgotten so make sure you contact them early and you've let them know that that link is coming through now keep in mind that because the link that gets sent through is a bit of an auto email from our system it means that sometimes the linking or the email can get caught in spam especially for university emails so once you've entered that information follow up with your referees to ensure that they've received the link and if they haven't kept them to check their spam folder if you have entered their details and they still haven't received the link they can't find it in their junk email let the Commission know asap so we can follow this up the worst possible thing that can happen is for the deadline to pass and you've put all of this work into your application but because a couple of your referees didn't come through for you on time that the application becomes ineligible and unfortunately we can't accept any late referees so please ensure that you select carefully so try and pick a few different people that can talk about you from different experiences secondly be confident that they're going to speak well of you and thirdly make sure you contact them nice and early and for fourthly and lastly follow-up make sure that they've submitted so you can see when you log into your application if they had to submit it but keep following up until they do now our next tip there is about your letter of invitation so remember this is for all applications except for students who are applying to do masters or coursework in the US so if you're a PhD researcher a postdoc an academic or a professional you need this letter of invitation that comes from your potential host institution that tells us that if you were successful that they'd be happy to host you but it really does help the committee if there's some enthusiasm in that letter about how they are hoping to collaborate with you and work with you so again not just giving you office space which of course is really helpful but do they have any other plans for you do they want to introduce you to other experts in the field or or have you assist with what they're teaching in their courses or do they want to run some events for you give you some opportunities to give some public lectures so that sort of thing so anything that's outside of the specifics of allowing you to come into their institution but how is it that they want to engage with you so this can be really helpful especially for this election committee if in all other aspects two applications are considered equal to really see that a host institution is committed to the applicant can be really helpful now if you get through those those three stages of more so paper based assessment so again that's the first stage which is where our office just checks to make sure the applications are valid and eligible if it then gets through the discipline committees and where they look at the projects then they will go to the interview committees who are doing a short listing then of course you'd be invited to come and give an interview now the great thing about an interview of course is you get to put a face to a paper application so really use this as an opportunity to be honest and genuine Turing the interview don't try and tell the selection committees what you think that they want to hear but just be really honest about who you are on what you're doing now you might hear if you've spoken to some Fulbright alumni that sometimes the selection committee will throw you a really random question that's outside of the you know the specifics of your application but you know try and take it in your you know try and take it in your stride be honest you know don't be too nervous they just really want to get to know you and see if you'd be a great fit for the program and obviously they already think that that there's great potential there if they're interviewing you and what else can I tell you about the interview it'll only go for about twenty minutes there'll be a short there will be a small panel there that are experts again from academia and industry but it's a good mix who may not be within your specific field and if you want to see who we've had on past election committees you can jump on in view one of our past annual reports it's not to say that the same people will be on the committee's again but it might give enough to give you a bit of an understanding on what the makeup could be and again speaking layman's terms when talking about your project and what you want to do and just don't assume that they have that the same sort of expertise as you do so I think they are all my tips and tricks but the biggest one which written there but I've noted it throughout this webinar is that those instructions that we have provided on the Australian applicants page are really crucial to submitting an application that's valid and eligible so ensure you take a look at it and if it says that you need to submit a particular document or if you don't need to fill out a particular section just ensure that you're following those instructions to a tee we really just tried to make them nice and clear and really accessible just to ensure that you have everything you need to submit a great application and my final final tip for today is try and as an Australian you can apply for multiple awards within one application so when you jump on our website on the Australian applicants page it'll help you assess which category of scholarship that you fit into but within our category or across categories if you are eligible for more than one opportunity apply for all of the ones that you're suitable for and keep in mind that some different scholarships require an additional document or they have an additional selection criteria item something that they're looking for specifically so for example we've just launched the full bright future scholarships program which applications opened in February of 2018 and that program is across all levels but it's it's really looking for applications that display really strong potential for impact so to apply for that scholarship not only would you mention on your application under special awards that you're applying for it but a requirement of that scholarship is to also submit an impact statement so submitting a half a page that talks about really specifically what your potential impacts could be when you return to Australia so take a look across all of the different opportunities take note of what if you do feel that you're eligible for them if you fit the criteria and if you're within that field or discipline take note of that but also note if they require something additional to be included it can be really difficult for the selection committee if someone has laid out that they want to be considered for 10 Awards but there actually only eligible for two of them so take a good read see what they're looking for but if you are eligible for multiple Awards make sure you include that it it doesn't dilute your application in any sense to be considered for more than one it's actually really helpful for us in trying to find the right spot for you so take a look apply I throw your hat in as many rings as possible and of course they're Fulbright office is here to assist so if you have any questions about any of these bits of eligibility and things at the Fulbright selection committee are looking for whilst we cannot review your application but if you have a specific question you can contact us our contact email is Fulbright at Fulbright or got a U and we respond Monday to Friday within 24 hours of you sending an email so make sure you start your application nice and early take a look at the instructions take a look at the different scholarships and start compiling it and if it's possible to have others that are outside of your discipline or within take a look at it if any feedback is good feedback but take a look make sure it's nice and clear and try not to be one of those applicants that submits two minutes before the application deadline so again applications in 2018 closed at 11:59 p.m. on Sunday the 15th of July so take a look now and please again be in touch if there's anything that we can assist with thanks so much for your time and I look forward to reading your application