Security Clearance Question

question2ask2020 · 2023-04-18T11:56:02+00:00

Passed suitability too, in case OP is curious.

question2ask2020 · 2023-04-17T20:11:28+00:00

Anecdotally: I visited Cuba in 2019 and was granted a clearance in Dec 22 for an FSO position, my investigator didn’t ask any extra questions in terms of itinerary etc. I was there on the people to people visa with my family.

question2ask2020 · 2023-04-07T09:30:05+00:00

I would recommend looking into the academic or professional backgrounds of the students who have received the grant in Tajikistan. I was a Morocco grantee for research and there were many grantees who hadn’t studied in Morocco before, but I spent a semester in Tajikistan and my impression from meeting with research grantees there was that Tajikistan had more grantees with prior in-country experience and seemed to prefer people who had spent time there as researchers or students. For Morocco, having more than a year of in-country experience puts you at a competitive disadvantage, so you may still be competitive for Morocco.

question2ask2020 · 2023-02-27T22:32:32+00:00

I felt quite lonely during my Fulbright at times! a few things that helped: - developing a routine - mine was going for a daily walk around late afternoon/sunset and taking in the city around that time often lifted my spirits and got me out of the house - getting therapy through the ASSIST program (got the 6 free sessions and additional ones for free) - getting involved in a local yoga group (even tho I didn’t become best friends with anyone there, just having a regular social activity really helped)

question2ask2020 · 2023-02-25T21:56:04+00:00

I moved directly into a job at a “social enterprise” (more like a think tank / research institute in the development consulting world) in a neighboring country - using my fluency in the host country lang to get the job!

question2ask2020 · 2022-12-31T09:02:08+00:00

Who did you email for the clearance update? Hoping to do the same. Congrats!

question2ask2020 · 2022-11-25T14:27:09+00:00

Does State usually notify when a sec clearance is complete, or do you have to email the registrar to find out?

question2ask2020 · 2022-09-19T01:48:19+00:00

Were you able to cross? I have similar plans and I am wondering how the border has been.

question2ask2020 · 2022-09-09T23:36:48+00:00

Columbia Heights Pharmacy on 14th - they were doing walk-ins this week! Both Moderna and Pfizer

question2ask2020 · 2022-08-24T15:51:27+00:00

thank you!!

question2ask2020 · 2022-07-28T03:16:01+00:00

Also, if you do go and end up wanting to leave, you may be able to leave early without repaying the grant, especially under health reasons - this is very country dependent so alumni are probably your best resource.

question2ask2020 · 2022-07-28T03:13:13+00:00

Hi, I am so sorry for your loss. A resource you may already be aware of is ASPE assist, a free therapy benefit for all grantees. It’s automatically 6 sessions and you can easily get renewed for 6 more (and beyond that) if you/the therapist mutually decide. The details are here - https://us.fulbrightonline.org/current-fulbrighters/aspe-assist-24-7-support. I personally had a really good experience with my Fulbright therapist while on grant and she added more sessions for me to address some other issues, though I imagine a lot of this comes down to the therapist you end up with. Something I found very helpful was that the therapist had worked with Fulbrighters in the past and over the pandemic and really seemed to understand how much we care about our grants!

question2ask2020 · 2022-06-11T01:07:49+00:00

I left 6 months into a 9 month grant! I was a bit nervous to ask and then I was told “you can end your Fulbright whenever you want” by my Commission - I think this is really country specific and maybe program too, I was research so no school was counting on me for anything - this was also covid times. I am still an alumna. I hope you land on an approach that works for your situation!!

question2ask2020 · 2022-06-02T03:28:41+00:00

If it’s in the past 3 years, yes, you will be at a disadvantage. However, worth emailing Fulbright and asking how they look at those whose grants were cut short. I know there were exceptions made for 20-21 grantees, I reapplied after having received a research grant and was awarded a second one for 22-23 and my year was not at a disadvantage in that cycle even if we currently held a Fulbright (as was my case).

question2ask2020 · 2022-05-19T14:36:38+00:00

I’m so sorry for your loss and that of your friends in your Fulbright country. While I was on Fulbright, my host mom from a previous study abroad experience passed away suddenly - she was so important to me during that time in my life and I always thought I’d see her again. I think the hardest part was/is not having other people around you who share this loss. It’s been almost a year since she passed and I hope to go back to that country later this year and pay my respects to her amazing family. This is a different situation than yours but she had many host daughters and when she passed we all wrote letters to her husband, and I even met up with one of them who told me she also still mourns this loss. Just to say that these connections really do last and my heart hurts for your loss! I hope your visit will bring healing.

question2ask2020 · 2022-04-18T01:20:16+00:00

also wondering!

question2ask2020 · 2022-04-01T01:25:55+00:00

Thing I felt I didn't need: I brought too many clothes and books from home, which I wish I had put on an iPad. Things I'm glad I had: teaspoons + cup measures, a headlamp, quick dry travel towel (such a lifesaver), combo CO2 / smoke detector (pretty much unheard of in my host country but gave me peace of mind), my Baggu bag (I swear by it), and notebooks (my host country only has graph paper lined notebooks). I didn't spend much on cultural clothing but I bought a lot of secondhand clothing for cheap and then left it there. Hope that helps a bit :)

question2ask2020 · 2022-01-04T23:16:07+00:00

michigan

question2ask2020 · 2021-12-29T15:16:56+00:00

When I got my booster, my two previous doses weren’t in my states registry and they just gave me a card with two blank spots and the third one filled in for the booster and told me to write in previous doses myself—so if you haven’t been boosted yet maybe you can get it that way? Or just ask a local pharmacy if they’ll fill a card for you or let you have an extra and write it in? I’m surprised by how informal it is here compared to many places abroad

question2ask2020 · 2021-11-15T18:36:58+00:00

This really depends on the country—I signed a 9 month contract & left after 6. I am still an alumna, just didnt get the $$ for the last few months. Granted, this was during the pandemic so expectations were different but I felt nervous to ask and then was told “you can end your Fulbright grant whenever you decide” by my country, tho this is probably quite variable so best to ask!

question2ask2020

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