• 12 November 2024: Applications open

• 3 February 2025: Applications close

• Mid-March 2025: Shortlisted candidates are notified.

• 17 March 2025: Webinar: Preparing for your Fulbright Interview

• 20 March - 2 April 2025: Interviews

• 29 April 2025: Finalists announced 

Read the webpage for the programme to which you intend to apply, including the Terms and Conditions and other recommended items such as these FAQs

A strong personal statement can set you apart from other applicants and give you an opportunity to showcase what you as an individual can bring to the programme. The selection committee want to know as much as they can about you. As there is no set structure for writing a personal statement, you can use your personal statement as a marketing tool - be imaginative and make yourself stand out.

At least one of your references should be from a recent professor or teacher. References will not be accepted from family members or friends. You should ask people who know you very well: teachers, professors, careers counsellors, coaches, youth group leaders, employers etc. Once you have selected your two referees, you should inform them of the deadlines for submission. It is your responsibility as the applicant to check in with your referees regularly about their progress and the timely and accurate submission of their letter

To submit your reference information, fill out the details on page 3 of the application form, then select "Save my progress and resume later." This will automatically send an email to your referees with instructions on how to complete their references. Please do this as early as possible to ensure your referees have enough time to submit before the deadline. Your referee will receive an email confirmation when their reference has been successfully submitted.

We recommend saving your application when you begin. To save your application and continue later, click “Save my progress and resume later.” You will be prompted to enter your email and create a password. You will then be emailed a link that allows you to return to your saved application at any time. Alternatively, you can return to the original application link and click "Resume a previously saved form" to recover your progress.

Being a first-gen student means that your parent(s) did not complete a 4-year college or university degree, regardless of other family member's level of education. 

No, interview dates are fixed. The timeline for interviews is published online in advance of the application deadlines.

Interviews last for approximately 20 minutes. We have a list of questions we ask all final candidates and generally do not discuss the application itself, except to seek clarification if something is not clear or perhaps has not been considered. It is also an opportunity to review the articulation of the candidates. As Fulbright summer programme participants are cultural ambassadors and future leaders in their fields, they must have strong communication skills.

It is the policy not to give to individual applicants, to others inquiring on their behalf, or to the public generally, the specific reasons for selection or non-selection of applicants for awards.

Preference will be given to strong applicants who do not have extensive experience outside the US. Applicants who have spent more than four weeks outside of the US/North America in the last five years would not be eligible. Exceptions are being made for refugees and/or students from a different cultural background who have spent time abroad due to family emergencies. Candidates who have never left the US and are unlikely to without support will be prioritised. 

Yes, veterans who were deployed abroad are eligible to apply. We encourage them to provide details about their deployment, including any limitations on cultural exposure due to their service. For example, if they were primarily on base or deployed during the pandemic with limited interaction with the local culture, they should explain this in the section of the application where applicants list their experience abroad.

We require all applicants for our UK Summer Institutes Programme to be U.S. citizens. Unfortunately, if you do not currently hold U.S. citizenship, you would not be eligible to participate in this programme.

No, unfortunately this programme is only open to candidates who are at least 18 years of age at the start of the programme and are currently freshmen or sophomores in college/university. 

Yes, applicants who study at community colleges are eligible to apply. However, you must have at least two years of undergraduate study left to complete after returning from the institute to be eligible to apply. If not at your Community College, then please state in your application that you intend to transfer to a university and if possible name the institution you are transferring to. 

No, applicants must have two years of undergraduate study left to complete to participate in this programme. As you only have one year of undergraduate study remaining after the Institute finishes, you are ineligible for this award.

We are interested in evidence of leadership qualities and initiative, academic ability, character, adaptability, and ambassadorial qualities, as well as an interest in the UK and its culture. We explicitly prioritise applicants who have never left the US and are unlikely to without our support: many of our participants are low income and/or first-generation students.

We are looking for a diverse range of backgrounds. The Fulbright Commission aims to select a diverse cohort. Therefore, we are looking for students who are willing to respectfully engage with fellow participants representing different backgrounds and different points of views. Participants should be comfortable with living either on or off campus, prepared to share living accommodations, and be willing to adjust to cultural and social and academic practices different from those in the US. 

No, you may only apply for one of the Summer Institutes. You should decide based on the programme outlines of each institute and decide which institute best suits your academic and personal interests.

If you would have two years left of undergraduate education when you return to the US after the Institutes, then you are eligible to apply regardless of the amount of credits you have.

The Fulbright Commission and the Institute host institutions work in partnership to provide the following:

- Round-trip airfare
- Transfer from the arrival airport in the UK to the accommodation 
- Tuition and fees at the host institution
- Accommodation and some meals
- Social and cultural programme with free activities
- Small daily meal allowance offered at Summer Institutes where meals are not provided

Participants are expected to pay for their own travel, health, and accident insurance.

No, participants must arrange their own health insurance that covers the UK. This expense is NOT covered by the Fulbright Commission. 

No. The dates for the programmes are set by the host universities and candidates must be willing to participate in the institute in full to be eligible to apply. 

Participants also are not allowed to travel prior or after the programmes; return tickets with arrival and departure dates centred around Institute dates are booked and cannot be altered.

No, family members, partners and/or friends may not accompany or join participants for any part of the programme.

It is possible to receive academic credit on most of the summer programmes. If you participate in an institute, the university contact will be the best person to help you with details of receiving credits.

We aim to award this opportunity to students who otherwise would not be able to participate in a study abroad programme in the Summer of 2025. Therefore, Fulbright will not arrange for flights from a different destination other than the US. 

Yes, the Summer Institutes are designed in such a way with the hope that participants will come back to the UK at postgraduate or postdoctoral level as a Fulbright Student or Scholar.