USC produces 22 Fulbright scholars for 2017-18 year


The U.S. State Department of Educational and Cultural Affairs announced Sunday that USC was one of the top producers of Fulbright scholars for the 2017-18 year.

According to Erica Lovano McCann, the  director of Academic Honors and Fellowships in the Office of Undergraduate Programs, this is the sixth year that USC has received this title.

With 22 Fulbright students, USC has the most Fulbright participants out of any institution on the West Coast, according to the data released by The Chronicle of Higher Education.

In comparison, only seven other colleges in the United States have contributed more students than USC has.

“USC is ranked 8th of all research institutions nationally, and the highest ranked west-coast school,” McCann said in an email sent to the Daily Trojan. “With 22 recipients, this was USC’s largest award year to date … More so, USC has one of the highest yields among other top producing institutions.”

The high number of Fulbright scholars at USC is a display of student achievement at all educational levels, from undergraduate students to faculty members, according to McCann.

“Trojans are not only talented academically but they are globally aware and invested,” McCann said. “They are seeking to find ways, through research, study, or teaching, to make the world a better place and to promote cultural exchange to a greater degree.”

According to a State Department press release, the Fulbright Program has selected more than 380,000 students for their academic merit and leadership skills. These participants have been given the chance to apply their knowledge by exchanging and creating solutions to international issues.

“The Fulbright U.S. Student Program encourages bilateral relationships that support mutual understanding and cultural exchange,” McCann said. “USC students have the opportunity to fully immerse themselves in a research, study or teaching setting entirely different from their experience at USC or in the U.S. In turn, they share their own experiences and introduce U.S. culture to those who may be entirely unfamiliar with it.”

In addition to the opportunities that the program provides for students, they also grant awards to U.S. students, teachers and faculty to start individual research and to lecture abroad.