Three academics from the University of Limerick were among a record number of Irish Fulbright Awards, which were recently announced. . The UL Fulbright Award recipients are Thomas Keating, Dr Jean McCarthy and Dr Finbarr Murphy.

The 37 Fulbright Awards presented are jointly funded by the Irish and US governments under the Ireland-United States (Fulbright) Commission for Educational Exchange. Fulbright scholarships have provided Irish students, scholars and professionals with the opportunity to study, lecture and research at top universities and institutions in the U.S. since 1957.

Fulbright-Schuman Awardee, Thomas Keating, is a PhD candidate at the University of Limerick. Thomas' research focuses on US-EU relations and how policies are affected by the decisions, perceptions, beliefs and values of leaders and advisers.  Thomas will be hosted at American University, Washington D.C.

Dr. Jean McCarthy researches and lectures at the Kemmy Business School, University of Limerick, and is co-director of the Age in the Workplace Research Network (AWR net). Specialising in industrial and organisational psychology, Dr. McCarthy will undertake research examining the multi-dimensional nature of ageist attitudes in the U.S workplace at Colorado State University.

Dr. Finbarr Murphy is a lecturer at the Kemmy Business School in the University of Limerick. Dr Murphy will undertake research at the McCombs School of Business in the University of Texas at Austin. His research area will evaluate the empirical links between equity and energy markets.

Speaking about this year’s Fulbright Awards, Ms Una Halligan, Chair of the Fulbright Commission said:”37 Fulbright awards is a record for Fulbright Ireland. We were delighted but not surprised by the level and standard of applicants in the 2012 Irish awards competition.  The reputation of Fulbright continues to grow as the international value and influence associated with being a ‘Fulbrighter’ becomes more widely recognised in both academic and professional contexts.

The Fulbright Awards are presented on an annual basis to Irish students, scholars and professionals to undertake postgraduate study and research at higher education, cultural and related institutions in the United States. Applications are encouraged in all disciplines including the visual and performing arts.  Later in the year the Commission will welcome 13 US Fulbright Scholars and 3 US Fulbright Students to Ireland

The next Fulbright Awards Competition 2013-2014 will open to applicants on Monday 27^th August 2012.  For more information visit www.fulbright.ie.

This year’s recipients will attend leading institutions across the US including NASA, Harvard, Columbia, MIT, NYU, Berkeley, Fordham, Notre Dame, Northeastern, Villanova and UCLA

Ireland also had a record year in the Fulbright-Schuman Category winning 4 out of 13 awards which are open to citizens across 27 EU member states. This category promotes US-EU relations and is funded through the U.S. State Department and the Directorate-General for Education and Culture of the European Commission.