Fulbright Ice Cream Social in Washington, DC

The Institute of International Education (IIE) thought of the wonderful idea to kick off the academic year with delicious ice cream for new and returning Fulbrighters in the Washington, DC area. Luckily some AMIDEAST staff were able to sneak away from their desks (with supervisory approval, of course!) to spend some quality time with some of our students. It was great to change up the work routine and enjoy some dessert with some of our students in the area!

Pictured from left to right: 

Dominique DeAngelo, Fulbright Program Assistant at AMIDEAST

Rasha Musleh (West Bank): Georgetown University, MPS/Public Relations and Corporate Communications

Mohamed Hmouma (Libya): Howard University, MA/Political Science

Matthew Guckenberg, Fulbright Program Assistant at AMIDEAST

Sharon Meged, Fulbright Program Assistant at AMIDEAST

Samya Abudheer, Fulbright Finance Assistant at AMIDEAST

Asia Lachir (Morocco): performing graduate research at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center


Spending time with our Fulbrighters is truly a highlight of the work that we do. Thanks to IIE for hosting us!

My Fulbright Experience

“What lies behinds us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” This quotation echoed in my mind in May 2014 when I finished my Master of Engineering Management from Duke University as a Fulbright scholar and headed to start my one-year academic training at a pharmaceutical company in New Jersey. I knew that the memories, experiences, and influences of this year would be different from the mysterious future. However, I thought that as long as I had my “lighthouse principles,” a concept that was discussed in a management class based on a reading by Stephen Covey, I would be fine.

The story started years ago when I dreamed as a child of receiving a scholarship and studying abroad. I did not know about Fulbright then. All I knew was that my father received a scholarship and studied in the U.S. back in the sixties, and that was my role model story. I promised myself that I would do the same. Now, as I look back, I think it is the “sincere will” of a young child mixed with hard work that made this dream come true.

It was a cold and rainy day when I attended a career fair held back in Jordan for students interested in studying in the U.S.. I asked at an AMIDEAST booth about the steps needed to start my applications for applying to U.S. universities. The staff advised me to attend a session held every week to answer questions of students like me. I attended that session, and at the end of it, I heard for the first time about the Fulbright scholarship. While it looked so far away from me then, I realized that life offered me information at the right time. It took me two and a half years after that session to prepare, apply, and receive the scholarship and to finally join Duke University in August 2013.

One of the most exciting parts of my Fulbright experience was the seminars that I participated in throughout my studies with other Fulbright students, sometimes from sixty countries around the world. The first of these seminars was my Fulbright Gateway Orientation at Dickinson College in Pennsylvania. During that seminar, I became more aware of the privilege of being a Fulbrighter: you become part of a network of hundreds of thousands of students, each one having their own story and their own dream. You are not alone and a lot is expected from you. I also learned about the academic culture, American history, and, most importantly, I learned about myself through some character tests. The second seminar was during my winter break, an enrichment seminar in New Orleans, Louisiana. The theme of the seminar was climate change. We heard live jazz, ate delicious desserts, and discovered the rich culture of New Orleans. At the end of my experience, I went to Washington D.C. for the departure seminar to wrap-up my experience. The last seminar was dedicated to helping us continue our journeys successfully when we reach our countries.

In two of these seminars, I asked myself what the Fulbright team would schedule for this fine mix of students. The answer was not only lectures, but also community service and interacting with the community. In my gateway seminar in Pennsylvania, we worked at the warehouse of project SHARE, a food distribution effort for needy families founded by a lady who believes in sharing love with people who are in need and lonely. In the enrichment seminar in New Orleans, we worked with the St. Bernard project on rebuilding houses struck by Hurricane Katrina. After our team finished our building tasks, we saw appreciation and positivity in the eyes of the neighborhood locals. Deep inside through both experiences, I felt satisfied, as I was part of a slight encouragement to the society who is supporting my education. These two experiences, although short in time, inspired me to use my time not only to work hard for my own goals, but also to slow down and search for someone who is in need of help, without asking for anything in return. Return happens eventually, especially when we grow as a result of experiences. Being part of the Middle East region, I look forward to the value that I will bring home when I return.

My Master of Engineering Management cohort at Duke University was a mix of over 120 students from all over the world. One of the highlights of the program was the weekly seminar in which a student presented his/her country and then shared his/her home country’s food with the students. I felt honored to dress in “Al- Toab” and talk about Jordan’s history, culture, people and attractions. I shared some kebab, hummus, and tabbouleh. In the program, students were always looking forward to learning from each other about global issues and to ask a myriad of questions without feeling judged or afraid. We carved pumpkins for Halloween, danced like we were in Bollywood at the Spring Formal, celebrated the Holi festival, danced Salsa, and tasted food cooked by students from all over the world.

Being a Blue Devil, Duke University’s mascot, I enjoyed being part of the school’s spirit and cheering for my university’s basketball team: “let’s go Duke” in Cameron stadium. We would dress in “the correct shade of blue,” head to the stadium, and then wait in the walk-in line of graduate students. Sometimes we would head back home without getting in because the game was sold out. It was a lot of fun.

During my studies at Duke, I attended Catholic mass on Sundays and Friday prayers at the Duke Chapel, the same place! As part of that environment, I talked with Christian friends about Easter, received a Bible as a gift, and also taught my Christian friends prayer and concepts in Islam. Sometimes I would talk with my Pakistani and Turkish friends about their efforts to learn Arabic in order to understand Islam, which left me thinking about how they are trying to learn what’s natural to me.

After residing in the U.S., I know that it is not filing taxes, getting my driver’s license, or speaking English that makes you feel part of the society. It is, however, small details that enter your life subconsciously. Saying “awesome” every second, gaining weight and then realizing that you should eat healthy, getting lost and trusting that your GPS will get you back home, trying Mexican food, celebrating Halloween and Thanksgiving, talking with different people, shopping on Black Friday, and trusting a new person to cut your hair. Most importantly, I learned from Americans that I am never too old to work hard and that I should always work to create opportunities.

Last but not least, I feel honored and blessed to be a Fulbrighter. It was a dream come true and a chance that changed my life. There is nothing better than working hard on what we want, and then trusting that life will lead us to where we can make an influence. Giving back is the harvest of my Fulbright. May we never lose our passion for our dreams, confidence in our abilities and empathy to our global world.










Amal Said is a Jordanian Fulbright alum who graduated from Duke University with a Master’s in Engineering Management.

Dare to Dream: My Fulbright Story

 My passion for science sprouted in me at a very tender age. Since my father is an endocrinologist and my mother is a pharmacist, I can say I was born into the field. As I grew up, my fascination with scientific research matured, owing to the fact that I saw my brother and sister earn their Master’s degrees in dentistry and another brother in cardiology. I was inspired by my family and I decided to pursue a career in pharmacy. This inspiration resulted in my graduation with honors from Cairo University, School of Pharmacy, which is one of the oldest and most prestigious programs in the Middle East. I was eventually appointed to a pharmacist job in Cairo. This early experience was very rewarding. 

However, I soon found myself interested in clinical research and accepted a job as a research assistant in the Egyptian Atomic Energy Authority. In this new position I dealt with the preparation of radiopharmaceuticals and with quality control. This was my first encounter with patient oriented research. Moving to the National Research Center was definitely the very best next step in my research career. In this environment I used and mastered state of the art research tools. Keeping patient and clinical research in mind, I designed a study for my Master’s thesis project which I secured from Cairo University.

All of these successes led me to apply for a Fulbright grant and ensured that I had the opportunity to pursue further studies in the United States. Dramatic changes in my life arose early on in my path to becoming a Fulbright scholar and this gave me the impulse to write about my time in the United States. I found that this blog offered some of the most revealing insights into the benefits that can be derived from participating in the program.

 Although this isn't my first time being in the States, I am viewing my stay here with a Fulbright eye. This privilege has required me to adapt to a life with more independence and the responsibility to be a good representative of the Fulbright Program. I am very proud of the fact that I am doing my Ph.D. in Molecular, Cellular and Biochemical Pharmacology at the University of Cincinnati, ranked third in the U.S. among other medical schools. The local children’s hospital is number one in America in treating cancer and hematology and it is the target for many people from all around the world to study here. These things have also made it a challenge to enter my program because it is multidisciplinary; it requires excellent knowledge of different areas, as if you are taking four majors. Also, the fact that the former chair of the department was an Egyptian Fulbrighter, Dr. Malak Kotb, an acclaimed scientist who embodies collaborative and interdisciplinary research, further raises expectations and the demands of researchers.

I had many privileges in my country and now here I am in the challenge of facing a new life, discovering a new culture, learning how to deal with different types of people, and engaging with this society. I arrived in the U.S. four weeks late after my program started due to visa problems, but I was lucky to get the visa to come here at all! I traveled directly from the airport to the university to find that I missed some exams and assignments and it was really hard to catch up, especially since I had to take ongoing exams with my colleagues while taking other makeup exams alone.

In my first hectic day in school, one professor looked at me and said: it will be hard for you to go on in this course because it is really tough, it is better for you to drop the course.

I didn’t have a social security number or a home for the first month. Still, my desire to represent the Fulbright name and to prove my ability as a good researcher was worth more to me than feeling tired or even complaining about sleep deprivation. Eventually I got an A in the tough first semester course I had been encouraged to drop. Hence, this same professor came to congratulate me as I was one of his top students and he said, “No wonder that you are a Fulbrighter!” His words satisfied me and I felt that it was worth it to study hard in order to get noticed.

December 12th-15th, 2013 are special dates I will always remember. That is when I participated in the most amazing and unforgettable experience of my life at the 2013 Fulbright Enrichment seminar in New Orleans. The seminar focused on climate change and the environment. More than 150 Fulbrighters came from all over the world to share their ideas and live the joy of being Fulbrighters. It was fantastic to meet so many people who spoke different languages, with many colors of skin, came from a variety of cultures, and had diverse religious backgrounds. We seemed to all love each other even before seeing each other. Even with such diversity, we all shared one thing; the love of the Fulbright program. I gained many new friends from so many different countries. Even countries I didn’t know about before like Papua New Guinea. Now that I am older I realize the beauty of these types of friends. It is important to help others when someone is in need. For example, on our Facebook page, a German journalist and Fulbright friend posted that he had to write an article in a newspaper about the situation in Egypt in order to graduate. He needed to do some interviews with Egyptians, so I helped, and I was very happy to do so. Another friend posted that she needed to collect data about veterans and she didn’t know where to go. My program director’s office is in a VA (Veterans Administration) hospital, so I was able to help another Fulbrighter friend. 

While we were in New Orleans we enjoyed Louisiana’s shrimp during an authentic dinner of Jambalaya in the Musée Conti Wax Museum. We visited the Barataria Nature Preserve too. The most memorable experience was when we worked together to renovate houses and schools that had been destroyed by hurricane Katrina. We created lasting memories during the time that we served the community. This made us one family. Thanks to the St. Bernard project for allowing us to share in these services and to see the smiles on desperate faces.

I believe that when you insist on something you will certainly do it. As Walt Disney said, “Just think about it; dream it and you will do it.” Do you know that Walt Disney was considered a failed man because he wasn't creative and he was kicked out of his work? Michael Jordan was kicked off his school basketball team, but look where they ended up. They are both big names in their fields. So when you read about failures imagine that you will eventually become successful. Michael Jordan and Walt Disney succeeded where others failed because they were persistent; they dared to dream, put their minds to it, and had the courage to excel. So believe in yourself and your ability and you will do the unimaginable. For me, if I hadn’t held onto the dream that I would study in the U.S. one day, I wouldn’t be writing this now. If I hadn’t been persistent to get an A instead of just a passing grade I would have been kicked out of my program. So, if you aim high and put in the time, including a few sleepless nights, you set yourself up for success. ”Don’t look at the failures. Instead work hard, trust yourself, and you will do the impossible.”

Thanks to the Fulbright Program. The opportunity of being a Fulbright scholar will always be appreciated. 

Shaimaa Ibrahim is an Egyptian Fulbrighter studying at the University of Cincinnati.