AZUSA, Calif. — Each year, hundreds of students compete for the prestigious Fulbright Scholarship, but only a select few receive the award. This year, recent Azusa Pacific University graduate and Deer Lodge, Mont. resident Joelle Baker was one of four APU students to receive a Fulbright Award.
Baker graduated from APU May 8 with a B.A. in Liberal Studies. Through the Fulbright Program, she will teach English in South Korea for 12 months beginning July 2.
After a semester abroad in Oxford, Baker discovered a passion for immersing in a new culture. "I remembered some people talking about the Fulbright my freshman year and decided to research the program. The more I learned, the more I realized that this was something that I wanted to pursue," she said.
When researching locations, South Korea stood out to Baker as it offered her the opportunity to teach at the elementary school level. The South Korea English Teaching Assistant (ETA) program also provides homestay for Fulbright Fellows, an important factor for Baker who knows the quickest way to learn and language and culture is to completely immerse oneself in the community.
"My first six weeks will be spent in an intensive language/teaching/culture training at the end of which I will be placed in a specific school," said Baker. "I am excited for a variety of aspects of the program. I can't wait to meet my homestay family, try Korean food, work with other Fulbright Fellows in the country, and meet the students. At the end of my undergraduate education, this is the door that God has opened, and I am excited to see what lies on the other side."
Baker joins 14 APU alumni who have studied abroad with a Fulbright Grant, who have taught in countries like, Bangladesh, Belgium, China, Indonesia, Korea, Macau, Romania, Slovakia, Tunisia, and Turkey. Most received ETA scholarships or research and study grants to Asian countries, the experience is one that is valuable and has a great impact on the participants.
"The Fulbright Award offers students a wonderful opportunity to live and study abroad for an academic year and be immersed in another culture. They bring back many experiences that prepare them for further graduate study or employment and enables them to be a bridge between the American culture and their host country," said Diane Guido, Ph.D., vice provost for undergraduate programs.
The ETA program places U.S. students as English teaching assistants in schools or universities overseas, serving two purposes: improving foreign students' English language abilities and knowledge of the United States and increasing the Fulbright student's understanding of the host country's culture and language.
The Fulbright U.S. Student Program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and offers scholarship opportunities for recent graduates, postgraduate candidates, and developing professionals and artists to conduct career-launching study and research abroad. Each year, Fulbright offers more than 1,200 American grantees the ability to study abroad. Established in 1946, the Fulbright Program aims to increase mutual understanding between the peoples of the United States and other countries, through the exchange of persons, knowledge, and skills.
