Fulbright Scholar Awarded Completion Certificate

Regional PAO Doug Morris presents Tara Chetty with her completion certificate

The American Embassy in Suva today presented Fiji National, Tara Chetty, with a certificate in recognition of her completion of the Fulbright Scholarship Programme.

Chetty was awarded the Fulbright Scholarship in 2009 to pursue a two-year Masters in Gender Studies at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey.

Her interest in gender studies and feminist analysis made Rutgers Chetty’s first choice of schools, as it houses the Centre for Women’s Global Leadership – an organization with some of the most renowned activist feminist scholars.

Regional Public Diplomacy Officer Doug Morris noted the Fulbright programme offers study opportunities at many of the finest institutions of higher learning in the United States, and congratulated Chetty on her achievement and experience.

Chetty said doing a Masters was very useful and it gave her a particular way of approaching work and analyzing information, which she deemed as important skills to have.

“The Fulbright Programme offers many other opportunities for development and exposure such as enrichment seminars and trips to the UN offices in New York,” said Chetty. “It allows you to interact and meet Fulbright Scholarship recipients from other parts of the world, which provides a different perspective to your world view.”

“Being a Fulbright Scholar also carries a lot of weight locally and internationally, as the Fulbright programme is recognized worldwide,” she added.

Living in the United States was an interesting experience for Chetty who enjoyed spending her time in New York City, which is less than an hour’s train ride from the Rutgers New Brunswick university campus.

In the future Chetty hopes to be working on developing programmes and policies that focus on gender.

The Fulbright Foreign Student Program brings citizens of other countries to the United States for study at U.S. universities or other appropriate institutions and offers program participants insight into U.S. society and values.

Fulbright Scholarship recipients for the 2012-2013 academic year will be announced in May 2012. Call for applications for the 2013-2014 academic year will also be made in early 2012.