Neil Eelman, BS-Computer Engineering '20, has been selected as an alternate for the Fulbright Award/Research Grant to the Netherlands for the 2020-21 academic year. With an extremely large applicant pool competing for just 12 grants annually, the alternate status is itself an impressive accomplishment.
"I was honored to be selected as an Alternate for the Fulbright U.S. Student Program," said Eelman. "I hope to complete my Masters in Computer Engineering at the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands with the support of the Fulbright Program, should I be selected as a Finalist."
Below is the statement from Drexel University's Center for Scholar Development within the Pennoni Honors College.
Neil Eelman, a senior undergraduate majoring in computer engineering at Drexel University’s College of Engineering, is an alternate for a Fulbright U.S. Student Program grant to the Netherlands from the U.S. Department of State and the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board.
If Eelman ultimately receives the award, he will pursue a master’s degree in computer engineering at the Delft University of Technology, as one of over 2,100 U.S. citizens awarded grants to teach, study, conduct research and provide expertise abroad for the 2020-21 academic year through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. Recipients of Fulbright awards are selected on the basis of academic and professional achievement, as well as record of service and demonstrated leadership in their respective fields.
The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to build relations between the people of the United States and the people of other countries that are needed to solve global challenges. The Fulbright Program is funded through an annual appropriation made by the U.S. Congress to the U.S. Department of State. Participating governments and host institutions, corporations, and foundations around the world also provide direct and indirect support to the Program, which operates in over 160 countries worldwide.
Since the Fulbright Program’s establishment in 1946 under legislation introduced by U.S. Senator J. William Fulbright of Arkansas, the program has given more than 360,000 students, scholars, teachers, artists, and scientists the opportunity to study, teach and conduct research, exchange ideas, and contribute to finding solutions to shared international concerns.
Fulbright grantees address critical global challenges – from sustainable energy and climate change to public health and food security – in all areas, while building relationships, knowledge, and leadership in support of the long-term interests of the United States and the world. Fulbright alumni have achieved distinction in many fields, including 54 who have been awarded the Nobel Prize, 82 who have received Pulitzer Prizes, and 33 who have served as a head of state or government.
Fulbright recipients are among over 50,000 individuals participating in U.S. Department of State exchange programs each year. The Fulbright U.S. Student Program is administered by the Institute of International Education.