Each year, the Fulbright Program offers opportunities for American students to conduct research, teach English or pursue graduate study abroad. One of the most prestigious international exchange programs in the world, the Fulbright mission is rooted in international knowledge exchange and global collaboration. This year, seven outstanding UCF students and alums have been selected for Fulbright awards, representing a range of academic fields and international destinations. Here are a few of their stories and how the Fulbright Grant will support their personal and professional journeys.
Angelouise De La Cruz
Fulbright Location: Spain
Fulbright Role: English Teaching Assistant (ETA)
UCF Degree: Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences
Future Goals: International University Educator
Angelouise De La Cruz’s love of Spanish traditions and language began with food and has led her to an incredible cascade of cultural opportunities. Growing up in a Filipino Spanish household, she watched her grandmother prepare escabeche and paella, recipes that were passed down from her great-grandfather who emigrated from Madrid. That family story became a powerful motivation for De La Cruz to explore the Spanish traditions that was part of her history more deeply.
“My journey with the Spanish language and [traditions] is not only driven by … curiosity but also feels deeply familial,” she says.
In 2022, this reverence took her to Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona through UCF’s Barcelona International Summer School program, where she took courses that explored the European Union’s social policy as well as Spanish history from the Moorish period to the modern era. Taking part in these critical discussions and in the traditions-based experiences she had outside the classroom broadened her sense of global citizenship. They also inspired her to act as a ambassador who could move between languages and communities with empathy and curiosity. She additionally took part in a clinical internship in Sydney, Australia, which also further deepened her global perspective. It also reminded her just how much she admired Spain’s language. Upon attending a Spanish festival in Australia, she found herself deeply missing the Spanish traditions and food she had already experienced in Spain.
At UCF, De La Cruz majored in health sciences with a focus on kinesiology, blending her scientific interests with a passion for education and international service. As a supplemental physics instructor during the pandemic, she honed her teaching skills by designing lessons that met students where they were academically and personally, a strategy she plans to take with her to her classroom in Spain. On her Fulbright mission, De La Cruz says that “it is now [her] turn to give back and aid students in Spain in developing a connection with the English language.” She is most excited to deepen her relationship with Spanish traditions, empower students through language and grow as an educator through her experiences with the Fulbright Grant.
Advice to Future Applicants: “Be honest and authentic. Make sure to highlight your unique personal experiences to let the writing flow naturally,” De La Cruz says. “This may mean taking time to self-reflect and think about how all of your experiences shape you and your mission. Reflect on how you’ve already impacted your communities and how you intend to do so in the future.”
Francisco Del Prado
Fulbright Location: Poland
Fulbright Role: English Teaching Assistant
UCF Degree: Master of Arts in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)
Future Goals: Doctoral Candidate and University-level Educator
Francisco Del Prado first heard about the Fulbright ETA grant while earning his certificate in teaching English as a foreign language when professors and guest speakers described their own experiences abroad. By the time he began his master’s in TESOL at UCF, he was set on a career in English language teaching and began to narrow his focus. He realized his strongest interest was in working with adults, students who bring their own professional and cultural perspectives into the classroom. That led him to Poland, where ETAs can teach at the university level and work closely with faculty and students in an academic setting.
His teaching experience covers a range of ages, settings and geographic contexts. At UCF, he taught undergraduate courses in applied linguistics and sociolinguistics, helping students explore the relationship between language theory and real-world teaching. In Dublin, he taught English to teenagers from across the globe, leading conversation clubs that encouraged students to share their own traditionss while learning about Irish life. In Orlando, he worked with adult learners pursuing academic degrees or advancing their careers, designing lessons and workshops that reflected their specific goals. He approaches each classroom with an awareness of how a student’s first language shapes their learning, noting that even small differences, like the way Polish speakers hear certain English vowel sounds, can open opportunities for clearer communication.
In September, Del Prado will join the Faculty of Philology at the University of Białystok. He plans to incorporate interactive activities, such as American game shows adapted for language learning and traditionalexchanges that invite students to explore both English and American life. He sees the Fulbright as an opportunity not only to deepen his teaching skills, but also to connect with a communitythat already feels familiar through past encounters with Polish friends and family connections. Del Prado says that the program is a way to continue the kind of cultural exchange that first inspired him to teach.
“Participating in the Fulbright Program in Poland will give me invaluable experience on the path to achieving my academic career goals,” he says.
After the grant, he plans to pursue a doctorate in applied linguistics and teach at the university level, sharing his Fulbright experiences with future educators.
Advice to Future Applicants: “Build genuine relationships with professors, mentors and supervisors who can speak to your work,” Del Prado says. “And expect the process to take time. There can be long stretches between application and results, so keep yourself busy with classes or work while you wait.”
Julia Going
Fulbright Location: South Korea
Fulbright Role: U.S.-Korea Presidential STEM Initiative Award at Yonsei University
UCF Degree: Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering, Burnett Honors Scholar
Future Goals: Global Researcher and Collaborator
Julia Going’s path to Fulbright began in her hometown of Cedarburg, Wisconsin. Growing up there, she was exposed to the environmental consequences on waterways were impacted by industrial sources. As a teenager, she attended U.S. Environmental Protection Agency meetings and shadowed cleanup workers at one of the town’s Superfund sites. This experience reshaped how she saw her community and inspired her to pursue environmental engineering. She says that it “forever altered the way [she] saw [her] hometown and gave [her] the confidence to believe [she] could make an impact.”
At UCF and as a Burnett Honors Scholar, she brings that passion into focus as a student researcher working on environmental sensing technologies. She’s also a Division I rowing coxswain. Both of these roles have taught her discipline, resilience and the value of collective purpose.
Going’s time in South Korea will not be her first time abroad. This past summer, she traveled to Busan, South Korea, to conduct NSF-funded research at Dong-A University, where she worked on optimizing nanomaterials for energy applications. Alongside master’s and doctoral students in South Korea, she worked on optimizing nanowire fabrication for use in supercapacitors. She immersed herself in both lab practices and daily life. She spent her evenings exploring Busan, riding the subway and bonding with colleagues over street food. These experiences deepened her appreciation for the intersection of science and traditions. They sparked her Fulbright mission to return to South Korea and contribute to hydrogen energy innovation through advanced materials research.
The Fulbright Grant is more than just a research opportunity for Julia. She sees Fulbright as a bridge between the U.S. and South Korea, but also between lab work and practical experience.
“I hope that my experience in South Korea will not only help me hone my research skills and make strides in materials for green energy but also provide a network of academic colleagues to collaborate with and a wider understanding of the global scientific community,” she says.
After completing her grant, she plans to pursue a master’s in materials science and engineering at Stanford, with the goal of returning to South Korea for postdoctoral work and building long-term collaborations in green energy innovation.
Advice to Future Applicants: “Start the application early, especially when it comes to securing a letter of affiliation,” Going says. “Identify a potential university and professor in advance. Sometimes, it helps to reach out to professors at your home institution, as they may have international connections who can help facilitate this process.”
Oscar Lopez
Fulbright Location: Spain
Fulbright Role: English teaching assistant
UCF Degree: Master of Arts in Spanish
Future Goals: Doctoral Candidate and Educator
Oscar Lopez’s path to Fulbright began with his graduate studies in Spanish at UCF, where his research and coursework centered on Peninsular literature from the Medieval period to the 18th century. As he reached the final stages of his program, Lopez says he saw living and teaching in Spain as “a unique culmination to [his] intense study of the literature coming out of Spain.” For him, the experience will allow him to engage directly with the traditions and history that have shaped his field of study. Teaching English at the university level in Spain felt like a natural next step for both his professional growth and his own curiosity.
Lopez’s teaching experience spans a variety of roles, from tutoring undergraduate Spanish students at UCF to serving as instructor of record for multiple elementary-level Spanish courses. These roles strengthened his ability to connect with students through literature, history and cultural analysis. His academic background is paired with a strong commitment to communication, both as a discipline, through his undergraduate degree in communication studies and as a skill, cultivated through years of public-facing work. He also draws from his Cuban and Puerto Rican heritage, which deepens his interest in how language and identity intersect, especially in multicultural classrooms.
In September, Lopez will travel to Spain to join a university community where he plans to create opportunities for dialogue inside and outside the classroom. He says he hopes to design lessons that highlight “the different components of language and [traditions that] come from Spain,” while also encouraging students to explore American literature, film and traditions. He sees the Fulbright year as a chance to reflect on his own path, gain new perspectives on life in Europe and consider the kind of educator and leader he wants to become. After the grant, he plans to pursue a doctorate in educational leadership and continue teaching at the high school or university level, with a focus on empowering students to embrace their heritage and step outside their comfort zones.
Advice to Future Applicants: “Gather as much information as possible! Befriend people on social media, look at other Fulbright grantees’ LinkedIn accounts and reach out,” Lopez says. “You will be shocked by the warmth and willingness that people have to guide and support in whatever way they can.”
Zaima Aline
Fulbright Location: Singapore
Fulbright Role: Open Study/Research Award
UCF Degree: Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Sciences, Burnett Honors Scholar
Future Goals: Global Physician-Scientist
Raised in Bangladesh, where access to advanced healthcare isn’t always accessible, Burnett Honors Scholar Zaima Aline experienced firsthand how geography and circumstance can shape the course of a medical crisis. In 2019, her cousin was diagnosed with a rare cancer. Her family turned to Singapore for his treatment because his condition was so uncommon and local options were limited. Aline says that the exposure this experience gave her to the complexities of cancer and the limitations of existing treatments “sparked the path that would eventually lead [her] toward medicine and research.” It also drew her to study in Singapore because of its cutting-edge biomedical research environment and strong government-university-industry collaboration, particularly in cancer research.
Her proposed Fulbright project focuses on developing a 3D in vitro model of glioblastoma integrated with a blood-brain barrier system using hydrogels, which will help study drug delivery and therapy resistance within the tumor microenvironment. Her research interest stems from her prior projects at the Mayo Clinic, where she worked on two major research projects focused on brain cancer. For Aline, these experiences built technical skills, developed a practical, working interest in therapy resistance and positioned her to take on more advanced 3D modeling work.
Aline hopes her Fulbright experience will allow her to learn more from international research systems like Singapore’s, where she says “academic institutions and biotech industries work together in ways that accelerate discovery and translation.”
She says she sees this kind of global perspective as essential to the physician-scientist she aims to grow into. Her long-term goal is to contribute to medicine, specifically cancer treatment, on a global scale. She views her coming Fulbright experience as a critical cultural step on that path.
Advice to Future Applicants: “Tell your story honestly and ensure your project clearly aligns with program requirements and the Fulbright mission,” Aline says. “Make sure to show why you’re the right fit for both the research and ambassadorship. After you submit your application, let go of the outcome in your head and trust yourself through the waiting process.”
Additional Selections
Astrid Faulkner was selected for a Fulbright ETA award in Germany.
Darya Sulkouskaya (Burnett Honors Scholar) was selected for a Fulbright ETA award in Spain.
If you have any questions about the Fulbright U.S. Student Program or other scholarships and awards, please reach out to the UCF Office of Prestigious Awards by emailing opa@ucf.edu
