USC was named a top producer of Fulbright students for the second year in a row, after 19 students and alumni were awarded Fulbright United States Student Program grants on Feb. 3.

The Fulbright program began in 1946 with the goal of promoting “peaceful relations between the people of the United States and the people of other countries,” according to its website. The program is funded by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs; grants are given to 2,200 individuals annually to either conduct research or teach abroad for one year.

This year, the Fulbright program awarded USC students and alumni funding to pursue projects in 16 countries and in a variety of subjects.

Laura Findlay, who graduated in May 2024 with a master’s in visual anthropology, will be researching and documenting community archaeology projects in Jordan, while Sara Mendoza, who graduated in May 2025 with a Bachelor of Science in neuroscience, Bachelor of Art in art history and Master of Science in global medicine, will be researching rhythmic musical interventions to promote prosocial behavior via neural synchrony in Denmark.

“Our Fulbright scholars demonstrate the best of USC’s culture of academic excellence,” wrote Provost Andrew Guzman in a statement. “By taking their skills, enthusiasm and intellectual curiosity with them to destinations around the world, these top students and alumni are not only having great impact, they are also global ambassadors demonstrating the value of a USC education.”

Joseph Douglass, who received his doctorate in musical arts from the Thornton School of Music in 2025, said part of what inspired this research was his experience working with a variety of departments at USC. While he did his doctorate at Thornton, Douglass said he also worked with the Viterbi School of Engineering and the School of Cinematic Arts as part of his research.

“I was sort of affiliated across three different schools [at USC], primarily the music school. But I was taking design classes, programming classes,” Douglass said. “In the process of doing that, I noticed that programming was easier for me because of music … And so I came up with this neuroscience idea to apply [for a Fulbright grant].”

Douglass is doing neuroscience research in Brazil at the intersection of music, computation and programming, analyzing how brain regions interconnect during the learning of music. He said University faculty played an integral role in him getting the grant — specifically, Beatriz Ilari, professor of music teaching and learning, used her experience conducting research in Brazil to advise him during the application process.

Douglass said he has gained a lot from being in Brazil over the past six months, beyond just being abroad for research purposes.

“It’s just as much about the exchange of, ‘what does it mean to be an American? What does it mean to be a Brazilian?’” Douglass said. “I’m in Brazil and learning a language, the food, the culture, the music, having a wonderful experience abroad and making really important connections. … So it’s been a very holistic experience.”

Beyond research, Fulbright’s teaching scholarships allow Americans to work as English teaching assistants in foreign countries while also “serving as cultural ambassadors for the U.S.,” according to the Fulbright website.

Nine of the 19 recipients from USC received teaching scholarships. Yvette Castañeda, who graduated from the Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences in 2025, is now working in Galician, Spain as an English teaching assistant after receiving her scholarship.

“I wanted to do something different before I went to law school and pursued a set career. I just wanted to explore, travel and live somewhere I’ve never been before,” Castañeda said. “It’s definitely an experience I would recommend to anyone who’s interested.”

Though she said she is happy to have received the grant, Castañeda said Fulbright notified her of her acceptance a month after they were supposed to, a delay she said the Trump Administration caused.

In May of 2025, the Trump administration denied awards to “a substantial number of people” who had been chosen to participate in the program, according to CBS News. This led to the entire Fulbright Scholarship Board — which has final approval over Fulbright grant recipients— quitting.

The Fulbright program is still running for the 2025–26 academic year, with applications for the upcoming cycle opening this spring. Douglass said he recommends students consider the program, and said he feels it has given him a better understanding of the world around him.

“It really is a program that you can build to give yourself some cultural exchange, which I think in these times, is more important than ever to gain perspective outside of the United States,” Douglass said. “I feel like my thinking about the world has changed a lot living here, even though I was already connected to Brazil. It truly is a different experience to walk in the shoes of another culture.”