International Teaching And Research Opportunities Sponsored By Fulbright Scholar Program

Abstract

The Fulbright program was established by the US Congress to ‘‘enable the government of the United States to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.’’ The Core Fulbright Scholar Program sends more than 800 US faculty and administrators to 125 countries to lecture or conduct research around the world each year. Unfortunately, only 28 faculty members from the US veterinary colleges have used Fulbright Scholar opportunities in the last 20 years (1989–2009). Considering recent worldwide events, such as the global dispersion of the Asian strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza and pandemic H1N1 affecting human and animal species, the importance of awareness and education of veterinarians to such global issues is obviously urgent. Therefore, Fulbright scholarships represent an important opportunity to gain experience and bring this time-critical information back to fellow veterinarians and veterinary students. Veterinarians who wish to contribute to internationalization of the curricula and their campuses should consider applying for Fulbright Scholar support to launch their career in this pivotal direction. For details about the Fulbright Scholar Program, eligibility, and application procedures, please see the following reference for the web link.