NMSTU hosted the presentation of the Fulbright programs
- Published: Thursday, 13 May 2021 08:00
On the 13th of May NMSTU received a visit from Joel Ericson, Director of the Fulbright Program in Russia. The purpose of his visit was to present the largest scholarship program funded by the Government of the USA.
Joel Ericson, PhD in Political Science, one of leading world experts in education and innovation, Head of the Fulbright Program in Russia, Director of the Institute of International Education (IIE), visited Magnitogorsk at the invitation of Personal Corporate Training Center. As part of his visit, he held a meeting with postgraduate students, teachers and staff of NMSTU to present the well-known Fulbright program for Russian citizens.
The Fulbright program was set up to strengthen cultural and academic relations between citizens of the USA and other countries. It provides for grants for education, research, lecturing and internships as a result of an open competition. Program participants include postgraduate students or applicants for PhD, graduates, and teachers of universities, researchers and specialists of a specific qualification with no age limit.
“I believe that Fulbright would be very useful for Magnitogorsk; that is the reason why I am here. I am really surprised by this city, it is amazing! In my opinion, Magnitogorsk is an ideal place for introducing innovation and implementing new ideas, that is why we have many opportunities to collaborate under the program”, stated Dr. Ericson.
Fulbright was founded in 1946 by William Fulbright, a US senator. In 1973 the USSR joined the program, and as early as in 1986 Nikolay Panishev, PhD (Eng.), Associate Professor of the NMSTU Department of Metallurgy and Chemical Technologies, took part in the program and became its first participant from Magnitogorsk.
“As part of the program, I gave lectures on metallurgy at the University of Kentucky. At that time American laboratories had computers, and it was a great opportunity for my research. I published two research papers together with Dr. Fine: one of them was published in the USA, and the second one in Czechoslovakia. I met many interesting people and thanks to Dr. Fine I have even visited Chicago, New York and Minneapolis. I was happy to get such experience”, recalled from his memory Nikolay Panishev.
Now, Fulbright is well-known all over the world. Every year over 1000 Russian citizens participate in the program and about 70 US citizens visit Russia under the program. The university teachers keep taking an active part in the international academic exchange program. In 2020 the Fulbright program was completed by Maria Velichko, a senior lecturer of the NMSTU Department of Linguistics and Translation.
“The meaning of the program is not only to learn or teach English, but also to promote cultural exchange and act as an ambassador of your native culture. For example, my experience of teaching at Michigan State University opened a new view on Russia. It is an amazing opportunity and I am extremely thankful for it”, added Maria Velichko.
Now, Russian citizens may apply for the 2022-2023 academic year. Those who would like to participate in the program may submit their applications for the following Fulbright programs: the Visiting Graduate Student Program (VGS), the Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA), the Fulbright Faculty Development Program (FFDP), and the Visiting Scholars (VS) Program.
“It is essential for scientists and researchers to be in international environment. You cannot learn your country well, if you have not visited other countries. I participated in several cultural exchange programs, was on internship at Roane State Community College (Tennessee). Now I would like to invite a professor from the USA to our department under the Fulbright Specialist program for Russian universities,” said Tatiana Baklykova, an associate professor of the NMSTU Department of Linguistics and Translation.
As part of the visit, the Director of the Fulbright Program in Russia also met with the university top staff and visited a concert devoted to the 76th anniversary of World War II Victory Day. Mister Ericson expressed his intention to visit NMSTU again in 2023 together with representatives of community colleges.
