The University of Virginia is among the nation’s top producing schools of Fulbright scholars, the U.S. State Department said Monday.

The department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs ranked UVA on the list of U.S. colleges and universities that produced the most 2017-18 Fulbright scholars. The Fulbright program is the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program.

Twelve UVA students and alumni received Fulbright awards for the 2017-18 academic year. These winners are pursuing projects ranging from conducting research at Namdroling Monastery in the Tibetan refugee community of Bylakuppe, India, to teaching English in Omsk, Russia, to studying sustainability at the Institute of Education at University College London to pursuing a master’s degree in South Korea.

This is the second time in three years that UVA earned the recognition. The Fulbright competition is administered at the University of Virginia by the Center for Undergraduate Excellence. UVA has had 252 Fulbright recipients since the program started and 33 in the last three years.

Inclusion on the list means the University is moving in the right direction with regard to language instruction and global programs, said Andrus G. Ashoo, associate director of the Center for Undergraduate Excellence. “I hope this also means that University of Virginia students will see the Fulbright U.S. Student Award as an excellent option, an option which more students can and should pursue.”

Ashoo said there will be a third annual panel discussion and reception Feb. 28 with several former UVA Fulbright recipients who have completed research, studied or taught English abroad. The event, hosted by the Center for Undergraduate Excellence with support from the UVA Career Center, will be held at 5 p.m. in the auditorium of the Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library. Those interested in attending may register online.

“This will be a great opportunity for students interested in further study, service, teaching or creative opportunities after graduation,” Ashoo said.

Since it was started in 1946, the Fulbright program has provided more than 380,000 participants – chosen for their academic merit and leadership potential – with the opportunity to exchange ideas and contribute to finding solutions to shared international concerns. More than 1,900 U.S. students, artists and young professionals in more than 100 different fields of study are offered Fulbright grants to study, teach English, and conduct research abroad each year. The Fulbright U.S. Student Program operates in more than 140 countries throughout the world.

The Fulbright program also awards grants to U.S. scholars, teachers and faculty to conduct research and teach overseas. In addition, some 4,000 foreign Fulbright students and scholars come to the United States annually to study, lecture, conduct research and teach foreign languages.