Feb 13 2017

5 things I have learned in the U.S.

Merle van Berkum (left) at her first college football game together with two of her international friends

Some of the Fulbright travel grantees just returned from the U.S.: Merle van Berkum (20), a linguistics student from the University of Bonn who spent the fall term at the University of Florida in Gainesville, sums up five things she learned during her first month in the U.S:

Merle (right) and her American mentor and good friend Christen (left) together with Albert, the University of Florida Mascot
  1. Getting lost will help you find yourself.
  2. Stripping off unnecessary baggage helps you see your future goals more clearly.
  3. People don’t care about you as much as you think (They’re too busy thinking about what other people think about them). Now…isn’t that liberating?
  4. If you ever need a helping hand, it’s at the end of your arm!
  5. Feeling at home does not always mean the same…

Merle explains what that means on her travel blog merlesscrapbook.


The Fulbright travel grant supports German students, who participate in a bilateral exchange program between their German home institution and a U.S. partner institution. It offers 2000 Euro towards international travel, visa fees and health insurance as well an orientation meeting with access to the Fulbright Network.

The program is advertised annually with an application deadline in Mid-January. Scholarships are available for a four to nine months long stay in the U.S. as a full time student beginning with the fall term.

Please refer to our website for further information on the Fulbright travel grant.


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