The Road To Fulbright: Scholarship Process A ‘Surreal’ Experience For McLain

For Chatham's Tucker McLain, the recent news that he had been awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to do research abroad in an area he is passionate about was a "surreal" experience. 

Earlier last month he had earned a masters in fine arts in creative writing from Northern Michigan University (NMU) and had wondered about his next steps. Now, starting in September, he will spend nine months in Estonia, exploring the overlapping themes of that Baltic state's literature, especially those "written or set during times of turmoil."

 Like many before him, when he thought about the Fulbright, created in 1946 in the aftermath of World War II by the late Senator J. William Fulbright, it was "always theoretical," he said recently. The award is designed to improve understanding between people and countries. 

 McLain's quest for a Fulbright started with a major disappointment a year ago. 

"I had applied for an associate editor position at a university magazine that I thought I would get, and I didn't get it," he recalled. "I was crushed." Knowing he wanted to add more diversity of experience to his background, "I wracked my mind thinking about the options."

 Whenever he had thought of the Fulbright he had assumed, mistakenly as it turns out, that "there must be thousands of applicants for each position." An advisor at NMU suggested he check the data on the state department website, and "it turns out to be a lot less than thousands," he recalled. 

 McLain had earned a BA in anthropology at St. Lawrence University, developing an interest in small and developing countries. Estonia is one such country, ruled by Germany and Russia for centuries and earning its independence in 1991. He had also been intrigued by several Estonian novels, those few translated to English, that as a self-described "book nerd" he had read. 

 Perhaps, he thought, by studying literature in a country that intrigued him, he could combine both of his interests. When he started to think about applying, he found that there were often just 30 applicants for two positions available in research in that country. He decided to try for one of them.

 He soon found out why the number of applicants was so much smaller than he thought when he started through what turned out to be a year-long grueling application process. 

 After completing a 30-page application and passing two rounds of interviews with representatives from the program, from the state department and from Estonia, he waited for two months. It was after his graduation in May, while he was making stir fry for dinner, he recalled, that he saw the text, asking him to check his account to see the status of his application.

 Vowing to wait until after dinner, he recalled getting the stir fry started before he changed his mind. "I couldn't wait!" After learning of his acceptance as a research scholar, "I texted everyone who had helped me," he said, "it was very surreal. I had been working on this for 11 months!"

 He is the fifth person in the history of Northern Michigan University to receive a Fulbright, and the first whose grant supports research. Eighty percent of the awards support teaching experiences, he noted. He is also the first master’s level student there to receive the award.

 Asked about whether the turmoil in Washington, D.C. had affected his grant, McLain was hopeful, noting that the money had been already appropriated. "As of now it is still there," he said. 

 McLain, the son of Kevin and Blair McLain, grew up attending Chatham schools and graduated from Monomoy High School in 2016, in the school’s second graduating class. He is especially grateful for the support of his teachers and educators all along the way. McLain particularly remembered Rachel Barnes' seventh and eighth grade humanities class. 

"My all-time favorite books are the ones I read in her class," he said, adding, "her introduction to Shakespeare ignited a love of literature. Her support was huge."

 McLain also spent much of the past 10 years volunteering and working at the Chatham Orpheum Theater, where his father is executive director. 

"It is such a unique community oriented place," he said, adding the experience taught him so much about community service and about helping people. Going away to college helped him crystalize how much having the Cape community support influenced him. "I am always grateful for it."

 In his spare time McLain continues to read and write, including working on finishing his novel. 

"It has turned out to be a bigger project and I am slowly pushing it out," he said with a laugh.