<p>Wow, I never realized these Fulbright things are given out like Halloween candy. I always assumed a Fulbright was something pretty impressive and a slight step below a Rhodes or a Marshall, but it appears that these things are decidedly unprestigious. I guess I never thought about it, nor have I seen these numbers before. Based on both the raw number of people selected and the winners-applicants ratio, it's much less selective to get one of these than to get into any top graduate program.</p>
<p>I'm speaking relative to getting into a top graduate program or getting a competitive job or whatever other options graduates of good colleges might consider.</p>
<p>Yes, Rhodes and Marshalls are much more competitive.</p>
<p>For example, considering hundreds of applicants across the Ivy League this past year, Yale was the only Ivy that produced more than 1 Rhodes or more than 2 Marshalls (Yale had 3 Rhodes and 4 Marshall winners, about as many as the rest of the Ivy League, combined).</p>
<p>It depends where you're going. A Fulbright to the UK or France is actually more competitive than the Marshall/Rhodes, but applicants to places like Kazakhstan have a fairly streamlined, easy process, it seems. </p>
<p>Much of our recent scholarship success can be attributed to the installation of Dean Pippenger as fellowships advisor. He was the Fulbright chair for the Oceania/Pacific region for several years and has a lot of experience at the other end of the process. He's been extremely helpful with my Marshall preparation and has increased applications for fellowships fourfold since last year.</p>
<p>Columbia2007 -- That's great to hear. (Yale students apply in greater numbers, which is one of the reasons for their success. Columbia seems a place where it has been harder to get information.) May I ask whether you sought out the fellowship office or whether they send out info? Did you start your process as a junior or as a senior?</p>
<p>They sent out very, very limited info hidden in class and advisory emails- they are not at all well-advertised. The fact that the fellowships and scholarships offices were separated last year (to answer your question, I started at the very end of junior year) made the process even more confusing; I only managed to find the new dean by going to the wrong office and personally obtaining contact info. Compare this to Harvard and Yale, where House and college deans seek and engage students and prep them for fellowships from day one of their freshman year. Perhaps the process will be more transparent next year now that people have settled in. I was actually just invited to a reception for all this year's fellowship applicants and recommenders...they've definitely begun to reach out/solicit participation more.</p>
<p>Good for you for being so proactive. Yes, I noticed that the scholarship office seems to be defunct. I just hope the fellowship office finds a way to get out some information besides the advisory e-mails no one reads.</p>