Phillip Chong, of Fairfax, Va., a 2008 Virginia Tech graduate with a double major in agricultural and applied economics and political science, has been named one of 80 recipients in the United States to be awarded the Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship. Sponsored by the U.S. State Department, the Fulbright grant program will provide Chong the opportunity to teach English in a secondary school in South Korea for one year, beginning in July.
MQ: What was your main interest when applying for the Fulbright grant?
PC: My main interest was to find a good program that would allow me to explore the world, give back and enlarge a community. That was something I felt was important to me, not only to give back, but to gain a wider perspective of the world around me.
MQ: What was the application process like?
PC: It was a lot like any other application you would do for grad school. Basically, it's an application that details your biography, a few letters of reference, an interview, a personal statement and a proposed statement of what you're going to do over there. What I wrote was why I think I would be a good candidate to teach English and what my research proposal would be. But, overall, it was a pretty difficult application process.
MQ: Why did you choose a teaching assistantship?
PC: During my time at Tech, I spent a lot of time at Margaret Beeks (Elementary School) where I was a tutor for math and English programs. Teaching has always been something I've had a real passion for, and I genuinely enjoy working with other people, especially with younger kids. I just thought this was a really neat opportunity for me to go out there and teach English, and try to make an impact in something that I think I'm pretty decent at.
MQ: And why an assistantship in South Korea?
PC: Well, I was born here (in the United States), but both of my parents are from South Korea. So, it made a lot of sense for me to go back there and pick up the language a little better; because even though I can speak it, I think I have a lot of room for improvement. And I also think that that region is interesting in terms of economics, history and culture, so it's a better way to expand my view.
MQ: What part of South Korea are you going to?
PC: I'm not quite sure yet. It will be anywhere except Seoul, which is the capital and the biggest city in South Korea.
MQ: What kind of background or training, if any, have you done to prepare yourself?
PC: I took a graduate course in the school of education, and it was basically a methods class and teaching strategies, so I think that will be incredibly helpful. They also provide a six-week orientation, where I will hopefully pick up some teaching techniques. But I think Tech has done a great job in preparing me with that graduate class, and hopefully my previous experience at Margaret Beeks will be useful, too.
MQ: Have you ever visited South Korea or studied abroad before?
PC: The last time I visited South Korea was two years ago. But no, I haven't studied abroad, which makes it even more interesting. I'm a little excited and nervous about that.
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