Polona Fras was born and raised in Slovenia. In 2014, she graduated from the University of Ljubljana with a bachelor's degree in chemistry and Japanese studies. During her studies, she received a scholarship from the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology and spent a year deepening her knowledge of the Japanese language and culture at a private women’s university in Osaka, Japan. After graduation, she returned to Japan, where she lived and worked for almost 10 years. As an assistant English teacher, Polona was able to share her passion for languages with her students and helped many of them earn high marks on English-language proficiency tests. She also utilized her experiences studying in Japan to organize study-abroad programs for university students and to support exchange students in matters relating to everyday life in Japan, visas, and scholarship applications. She recently moved to Vienna and is looking forward to supporting Fulbright Austria’s mission as a new member of the team.