She is in 3rd semester of Master's Degree in English Language and Literature, Selected as the Fulbright Grantee of the US.
She will receive US government grants of 40,000 USD per year, and she will study in the US without paying anything.
[September 27, 2012]
A YU graduate school student was selected as a 'Fulbright Grantee', a very rare and coveted grant.
Hwang, Young (23, 3rd semester of Master's Degree program), who is currently enrolled in the Graduate School of English Language and Literature and first entered the school in 2007, won the Fulbright Grant. She was recently selected for the US government scholarship program, which is world renowned, and will be studying in the US on a full grant.
The Fulbright Grant program is the top scholarship program for Korean university students that is funded by the US Department of State and operated by the Korean-American Educational Commission. It offers round-trip airfare, as well as tuition, lodging expenses, allowances and insurance for 2 years, so it also has the highest competition.
It is also famous for its strict screening criteria. It requires an official English proficiency test grade (TOFEL IBT 100 or IELTS 7 or higher), GPA (75% or higher out of 100%), essay or thesis related to major, three separate letters of recommendations that can verify the student's academic excellence, cover letter, a detailed study plan, etc. After checking the applications for about two months, those who are chosen preliminarily have to face an interview in English with ten different interviewers.
It is especially difficult for students not in the Seoul area, and so most of the Fulbright Grantees selected during the past decade are from 'SKY' (Seoul National, Korea, and Yonsei) Universities. Only one student attending university not in the Seoul area was chosen for the grant.
Despite these difficulties, Hwang, Young boldly listed her name on the list of grantees. She said, "It was possible because of the systematic instructions and full-hearted support of not only my advising professor, but all my professors." She added, "If you have a dream and continue to prepare for it, the opportunity will come and you will be able to seize that opportunity."
In fact, while most graduate school students begin to prepare for their thesis in their 3rd or 4th semester, she began preparing for her thesis upon being admitted to the graduate school program and has also published a thesis as a co-author with her advising professor in the academic journal, 'The Phonology Morphology Circle of Korea'. Thus, she was a step ahead compared to other students in terms of research and this played a decisive role in her being selected as a Fulbright Grantee.
Professor Shin, Seung-hoon (45, Department of English Language and Literature) who advised Hwang on her paper, said proudly, "I am very happy that such good results came to my student who showed no fear in taking on difficult assignments and worked hard to learn. Thanks to her I'm really happy these days."
She is currently majoring in English at the YU graduate school and she says her dream is to teach 'English for communication'. She says she plans to earn her doctorates majoring in English phonology and morphology in the US and return to Korea and join in on English education in Korea.
She said, "I am happy that I can concentrate on studying since I will not have to worry about money because the US government grant guarantees an annual 40,000 USD for 2 years." She added, "I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my professors who helped me grow so much when I only started with a vague interest in English, as well as the 'Yeungnam American Center' (director - Professor Lee, Hae-young, Department of Public Administration) who provided full administrative support from my application to my selection for this scholarship program. If this was possible for a person as imperfect as I am, then it will be possible for any other student as well. If there is something you want to do, I hope you take on the challenge and seize your opportunity."
