Dear Colleagues,
 
My purpose in writing you today is to share a few experiences and ideas that I have had in publicizing the Fulbright opportunities, guiding students through the entire process, and getting and keeping faculty involved.
 
My comments are based on personal experiences that have evolved in some 35+ years as the campus Fulbright representative.  I cannot claim originality to the points that follow, but I do know that the techniques I have suggested do work, at least in my milieu.
 
In May when the new competition opens and I have received the books and application forms for the following year, I send a notice to all faculties, outlining the qualifications, requirements, opportunities and limitations of the Fulbright program.  It is relatively easy, since PLU (Pacific Lutheran University) is not a mega university, and with a student enrollment of some 3500 students, I do have a personal acquaintance of many of the faculty.  I encourage my colleagues to assist me in identifying their promising students who might be interested in applying.  I also stress the absolute value in starting before the fall semester begins.  Typically ten to twelve students will make the first step at that time.
 
I repeat the notice in early September, once again urging them to assist me; this memo will generally yield an additional twenty potential candidates.
 
I have submitted articles to the campus newspaper, that may or may not be printed, I have made posters for the dormitories and classroom buildings, and I have used the announcements provided by IIE, and I have found over time that they all have a very limited value.  That would suggest that our best resource is the personal contact provided by the individual faculty member.  I also know from experience which professors and which departments will recommend the highest number.
 
In addition to the aforementioned possibilities, when the students are ready for the campus interview, I ask them for their recommendations for the campus review committee.  Usually they will be the professors who have written references for the candidates, and naturally they are extremely interested in their students' progress.  Also when the campus interview takes place, students must come dressed in their Sunday best.  I make this requirement, because one's appearance has a direct correlation on one's language and therefore on one's performance in the interview. 
 
A final thought on the process has to do with the representative on each campus.  His/Her personal interest in the program and in students in general is often decisive.  If there is a constant turnover of campus representatives, there will not be the same degree of continuity, and the association of one person with the Fulbright program will be diminished.  It is difficult, if not impossible, to guarantee that kind of long-term association, but it is significant.  
 
Dr. Rodney Swenson
Professor Emeritus
Department of Languages and Literatures
Pacific Lutheran University
Tacoma, WA 98447