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Killam Fellow shares Canadian Experience

Guard at Fulbright (1)

March 31, 2016

Originally posted: March 2016

Katie and Trevor with friendComing to Canada has been the best decision of my college career. It opened my eyes to the world outside of just the states, and it’s been neat to experience life in another country. The Killam Fellowship provided me with so many more opportunities than just coming to UBC to study. It has also allowed me to travel all over Canada and has introduced me to some great friends. The fellowship has two conferences for all its grantees – one in the fall in Ottawa and one in the spring in DC. The trip to Ottawa was an amazing experience and it was exciting to see the other side of the country and visit Canada’s capital. This year marked the 25th anniversary for Fulbright Canada and all Killam and Fulbright fellows were invited to an extravagant gala where we had the night of our lives. Along with that trip and the conference in DC, we were also awarded some funding to travel to another Canadian destination of our choosing, which we used to go to the Yukon. Visiting Whitehorse was incredible! I got to see a whole different way of life and part of Canada from Vancouver. We got the opportunity to see the northern lights, go dog-sledding, and so much more! I’m grateful to have been able to take this journey for the past year, and while I’m ready to come home to UW, living in Canada has opened my eyes to the world around me and despite the short distance from home, Vancouver has been an amazing place to go on exchange.

Katie and Trevor with dogThe Killam Fellowships Program provides an opportunity for exceptional undergraduate students from universities in the United States to spend either one semester or a full academic year as an exchange student in Canada. Killam provides a cash award of $5,000 U.S. per semester ($10,000 for a full academic year), an all expense paid three day orientation in Ottawa, and a three day all expense paid seminar in Washington. The Canadian Studies Center is a partner institution with the Killam Foundation enabling up to two full academic year fellowships annually for U.W. students. For more information on the Killam Fellowship contact the Center at canada@uw.edu.