The New Year is off to a bright start for David Bernstein ’13. The economics major and anthropology minor has been selected to serve as a Fulbright Alumni Ambassador—one of nineteen former Fulbright scholars honored in such a way across the country.
He is the first Bowdoin graduate to receive this award, which involves promoting the Fulbright program by speaking at conferences and presentations about his experiences as an international scholar. The ambassadorship also involves representing the program on Capitol Hill in discussions with policymakers.
Bernstein received a Fulbright Study/Research Grant to study in Luxembourg, where in 2014 he gained a master’s degree in entrepreneurship and innovation.
He is currently enrolled in a joint business and medicine program at the University of Rochester’s School of Medicine & Dentistry and Simon Business School, where he has completed an MBA and is now in his third year of med school.
“I was thrilled and honored to be named a Fulbright Alumni Ambassador and represent the Fulbright Program across the country!” said Bernstein, who said his experience in Luxembourg changed his life, both professionally and personally. “The problem-solving and cross-cultural competencies I learned complemented my outstanding Bowdoin education.”
Bernstein said his goal is to be “a public healthcare leader focused on improving the American healthcare system by better aligning incentives around quality, not quantity of care.”
He said the biggest take-away from his Bowdoin education was the concept of the Common Good, which he described as the cornerstone of his undergraduate experience.
Click here to read a Fulbright Student blog by David Bernstein.