David An
When David An embarked on his Fulbright student fellowship to China and Taiwan, he expected to move beyond just research to experience Taiwan’s democracy and elections and China’s village elections first hand.  But his Fulbright experience far exceeded his expectations.  To quote Mr. An, “Fulbright was a priceless opportunity for me to meet leaders, engage with professors, attend political science conferences, and be taken seriously as a promising scholar-practitioner.”

His first months as a Fulbright scholar were spent in a graduate level electoral policy course at the National Taiwan University (NTU).  The most challenging part of that experience was learning abstract political science terminology in Mandarin Chinese, but he knew it would be essential for his participation in academic conferences and field research in the following months.

An was soon immersed in the politics involved in Taiwan’s 2005 local mayoral elections.  He quickly built up an expertise in Taiwan politics that was important on two occasions: an on-air interview on ICRT radio and hosting Democratic Pacific Union (DPU) delegates for Taiwan Vice President Annette Lu.

Weeks before the local elections, David An was invited to the ICRT radio office for a morning news interview.  In a broadcast transmitted throughout Taiwan, he briefed listeners on political geography, partisan trends, expected outcomes and scandals.

On the week of the elections, Taiwan’s Vice President Annette Lu invited An to join her staff in hosting two dozen DPU delegates from Latin America and Australia.  He explained political trends to the delegates as they observed the run up to the elections.

In the months following the Taiwan local elections, An actively participated in several political science conferences held at Academia Sinica and NTU.  Being a small part of Taiwan’s academic community inspired him to pursue his doctorate, and led him to where he is today as a Ph.D. candidate at George Washington University studying international relations theory.

For the final three months of his Fulbright experience, An traveled throughout China interviewing professors, officials and local citizens about village elections in China. He has written several articles on the topic.

David An plans to devote his life to being a scholar-practitioner – to teach as a professor in international relations at a major university, and also work in government (hopefully someday as a political appointee or a foreign affairs officer at the U.S. Department of State).  He credits his Fulbright experience as being instrumental in shaping his thinking and direction.