Wednesday, September 4, 2013

The Beginning of My Fulbright Journey


The idea of being selected for the Fulbright program has always been the spark that set my academic zeal aflame. No words can so faithfully describe my happiness when I was admitted into this program, and I was equally glad to have the opportunity to take part in a pre-academic program at Virginia Polytechnic Institute before joining my host university, the University of Indiana-Bloomington. The three-week program in Blacksburg, Virginia was just a preview of the future academic experiences that are ahead for me.. The program at Virginia Polytechnic was a once-in-a-lifetime experience – moments with that will be indelibly etched in my memory, as I came to meet people from all over the world and from countries that I had never thought existed before! True, we were different; however, we all cherished a single dream – the dream of excelling academically and professionally, and we all shared the same goal: expanding cultural connections and expressing willingness to accept others, for all the differences that might exist between us. And like all farewells, ours was heartrending, but as the saying goes, “Never be sad that it ended, be happy that it happened.” We will go on our journey, forever carrying each other in our hearts, and hoping that our paths will cross again.

Ikram Hili is a Tunisian Fulbright Grantee conducting research for her PhD at University of Indiana-Bloomington.


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