UCI’s mascot, Peter, the Anteater, University of California, Irvine.

The last months have been an equally busy and exciting period in my studies at Jacobs University Bremen. In addition to writing my Bachelor’s thesis and finishing my last semester of coursework, the planning of my future academic career as commanded much of my time and attention. Selecting and applying to graduate schools has been a cumbersome but inspiring endeavor. I have by now received positive replies from nearly all institutions I had applied to and I am delighted to be faced with many promising choices.

Because of some initial uncertainty concerning my Fulbright Fellowship, I decided to apply both to schools in the US and the United Kingdom as well as two schools in Germany.

In the United Kingdom, I have applied to and by now received unconditional offers for admission into their respective MSc programs in Sociology from the London School of Economics, the University of Oxford and the University of Manchester. I have furthermore received a generous 1-year stipend for my graduate studies in the UK from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD).

Additionally to my applications to Sociology programs, I have applied to a program in Public Policy and a program in Law. I have received an unconditional offer for their MPP program from the Hertie School of Governance in Berlin and still hold a offer from 2004 for a LLM with the Bucerius Law School in Hamburg, both of which I am considering to pursue at a later stage, should I decide for a professional rather than academic career.

In the United States, I had applied to Northeastern University, Boston (accepted), the University of Texas at Austin (which was unsuccessful) as well as the University of California, Irvine. 

I have today gladly accepted the offer for a 1-year Master of Arts in Demographic and Social Analyses from UC Irvine, which was complemented by a very generous fellowship and teaching assistantship. I have since my admission been in intense contact with the Faculty of UC Irvine and I look forward to spending my Fulbright year in Orange County, California.

While the choice of UCI’s mascot and logo (an anteater) seems obscure to me now, I am excited to join this aspiring university for a year of studies this coming fall.

I have today received confirmation that my application for a Fulbright fellowship was successful. I am honored by this distinction and I look forward to spending the 2007/2008 academic year in the United States. I am particularly curious about the enrichment opportunities and seminars that are part of the Fulbright fellowship program.

I am greatly indebted to Jacobs University Bremen for my nomination and to my teachers and academic advisors for their support and letters of recommendation, without whom this application would not have been possible. Special thanks also go to Antonia Gohr, Director of Academic Affairs at Jacobs, who has done an excellent preparing me for the application procedure.

I am now waiting for responses from American graduate schools, including Northeastern University, Boston, the University of Texas at Austin and the University of California, Irvine as well as Berkeley, where I have applied for admission to graduate programs in sociology.

No matter at which of the above institutions I will resume my studies after the summer, I am sure that their aspiring programs will greatly benefit my academic education – and I can not wait for my transatlantic experience to begin!