How a Pakistani Engineer Secured a Fully Funded Fulbright Scholarship to Study Renewable Energy at NYU

My name is Muhammad Taha Ali, and I’m from Lahore, Pakistan. I’m a 2022 Fulbright Master’s Scholar, and I graduated in May 2024 with a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, specializing in renewable energy from New York University, Tandon School of Engineering. I have always been passionate about solving real-world energy problems, especially those impacting developing countries like Pakistan. My interest in this field grew deeper when I realized the link between Pakistan’s air quality crisis, unreliable energy infrastructure, and the need for renewable solutions. Now, my focus is on advanced energy storage systems and renewable energy integration, combining my passion for sustainable development and technical innovation.

Fulbright Scholarship Details

I received the Fulbright Scholarship funded by the US State Department. They paid my semester fee, health insurance, and also provided me with a monthly stipend of $2185 for living expenses. For Fulbrighters from Pakistan, they made us sign a contract before the start of the program stating the amount they would be spending on us and a condition to return to Pakistan for two years. In my case, that amount was around $120,000 for two years. We were granted a visa that requires a two-year home residency. For some students, universities also give merit scholarships, and I was granted a 50% merit scholarship by NYU at the time of admission. For Fulbright, you first have to get the scholarship award, and then you apply for university admission. They ask you for four of your university preferences and apply to them on your behalf. It’s up to them if they want to change that list or not. It’s also in their hands to choose the final university for you out of that list.

Educational Background

I completed my undergraduate degree in Pakistan in 2019 from the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), earning a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. During my undergraduate years, I built a strong foundation in engineering concepts and learned to connect technical knowledge with real-world issues. During my degree, I did two engineering-focused internships, which helped me connect my classroom learning with the industry. Another important thing in my undergrad was my senior year project — the successful design and assembly of a Solar-Assisted Electric Vehicle, which had both a research and practical component. Although I didn’t graduate with a very high CGPA, the internships and projects did add value to my profile. My CGPA was 3.17, but I did get very good recommendations from my professors with whom I did my final year project based on my group’s exceptional performance.

How Did You Prepare to Apply to Institutions?

N/A. For Fulbright, we don’t directly apply to universities.

How Did You Prepare to Apply for the Fulbright Scholarship?

My preparation was not much about the university admission, but it was about the scholarship itself. It took me months of thinking to create a case for myself to be selected for this scholarship. My case was solely dependent on a major issue faced by Pakistan, which was a weak power grid, and how that connects with my current experience as an engineer at K-Electric. Additionally, proposing a strong case on what I can do in the future to solve that issue after I complete my master’s from the US. I didn’t prepare much for specific universities or professors in my field, and that may be a requirement for Ph.D. applications, but not for master’s applications. As I mentioned earlier, I didn’t apply to any university myself, as you can’t do it under Fulbright funding. Regarding exams, I took around 3 months to prepare for the GRE using the Princeton book for verbal and the Manhattan book for quant practice. My score on the GRE was 314 (Quant: 162, Verbal: 152). For STEM degrees like electrical engineering, it’s important to have a high score in quant. I also took the TOEFL but didn’t prepare much for it, and as a result, my TOEFL score was low, 98 out of 120.

What Do You Think Made Your Application Stand Out?

I believe what made my application unique was the strong connection between my academic background, practical experience, and clear future goals. My work at K-Electric gave me firsthand exposure to the challenges in Pakistan’s power sector, while my academic background provided me with strong analytical and research skills. My essays emphasized a clear problem (Pakistan’s poor air quality and unreliable grid), proposed realistic solutions (grid-independent renewable and energy storage solutions), and demonstrated how a US education would empower me to address these challenges. The alignment between my past experiences, my study plan, and my future goals made my application coherent and compelling. I would also like to mention that I didn’t get my application reviewed by anyone, and submitted my raw understanding of issues and proposed solutions.

What Would You Have Done Differently if You Were Going Through the Process Again?

While Fulbright was the perfect fit for me in terms of academic and professional goals, applying directly to universities with their merit scholarships or assistantships could have given me more flexibility in terms of post-graduation opportunities. I also would have reached out to professors and potential research advisors earlier in the process. Building those connections in advance can help align your research goals with the faculty's work, making your application even stronger. Lastly, I would have spent more time doing the research for the list of four university preferences rather than just giving the names of the top universities.

What Advice Would You Give Those Looking to Apply for a Similar Scholarship?

First and foremost, don’t underestimate the power of starting early. Give yourself enough time to reflect on your journey, clarify your goals, and align them with the scholarship’s mission. Your story is unique, so let that shine through in your essays by connecting your personal experiences to the impact you want to create.

Secondly, always be very specific about the issue that you are going to address. This issue should be related to your home country, and you ideally should have your practical experience connected to that issue. You should have a clear and concise goal on how you would resolve that issue when you return to your country after completing your master's.

Lastly, it’s always safe to give a balanced list of university preferences, including both private and state universities and some top-tier and mid-tier universities, so that they don’t change it themselves. In my case, I gave all the top universities, so they didn’t consider any university from my list except NYU, and added three state universities that were lesser known. They applied to these four universities on my behalf, and I got into NYU, Clemson State, and Lehigh University. It’s also in their hands to choose the final university for you out of that list and I was lucky enough that they chose NYU and not the other state universities.