Blog #10 Fulbright Student from Afghanistan Resolves to Apply Skills Back Home

Ahmad Shoaib is a 27 year old from Afghanistan who received his master's degree in engineering management at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. He got the opportunity to study in the United States along with 47 other Afghans through the Fulbright Program. The U.S. State Department is rebuilding academic ties with Afghanistan after being absent for almost a quarter-century. When the Soviet army invaded Afghanistan in 1979, the Fulbright Program in the country was suspended. It was reinstated in 2003 and has been steadily growing and sending more students to study abroad each year. While at Duke University, Shoaib sought to clear up misperceptions about life in Afghanistan. He emphasized that despite the insurgency and the violence, there's a burgeoning private sector, and that most Afghans are not so different from Americans. "People understand the security situation is complicated," he says, "but people also know that behind the noise which is shown in the media there are millions of people living their lives on a daily basis. They are continuing to work and earn a living." When Shoaib gets home, he plans to work to improve the country's infrastructure and electrical grid and helping to cut down on blackouts. "If I'm not doing that, I'm not doing this program justice," he says. "And I don't think I'd be doing myself justice."

I think that this is a great program for everyone involved. The students Ahmad went to school with at Duke learned about the realities of Afghanistan instead of only what the media covers. Ahmad’s community is benefiting from his knowledge and his commitment to help improve the conditions people live with. Ahmad got an experience of a lifetime and feels pride in himself that he is able to honor his country and the Fulbright Program because of his hard work. I believe the US government needs to offer more programs like this to foreign students so that more countries and students can get these lifelong lessons.

http://chronicle.com/article/Fulbright-Student-From/129492/