UConn doctoral student Anagha Payyambally has been named to the first class of Quad Fellows, an initiative of the governments of the United States, Australia, India, and Japan. This first-of-its-kind scholarship program is designed to build ties among the next generation of scientists and technologists. The Quad Fellowship is operated in consultation with a nongovernmental task force composed of academic, foreign policy, and private-sector leaders from each Quad country.

Payyambally, a native of Kerala, India, is a second-year doctoral student in marine sciences at UConn Avery Point, and plans on completing her degree in 2027.

The Quad program is highly competitive, with only 100 students selected for the initial class among 3,600 initial applicants. Payyambally is just one of 25 students from India to be accepted as a Quad Scholar.

 

Continue reading on UConn Today . . . .

 

Mariam Vargas ’25 (CLAS), a junior political science major, was one of 15 individuals nationally who took part in the 2023 Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Summer Enrichment Program this summer. Selection to the Washington, D.C.-based program is highly competitive, as almost 1,000 students applied for the 15 spots.

Mariam Vargas ’25 (contributed photo)

The Rangel Summer Enrichment Program is a US State Department program administered by Howard University through a cooperative agreement with the Bureau of Global Talent Management. The program provides undergraduate students with a deeper appreciation of current issues and trends in international affairs, a greater understanding of career opportunities in international affairs, and the enhanced knowledge and skills to pursue such careers.

The program’s goals are to promote greater diversity and excellence in the US foreign service. The program was named to honor Charles Rangel, who represented New York City in Congress from 1971 to 2017.

Vargas spent six weeks in Washington, D.C., learning from diplomats, foreign service officers, and other leading foreign affairs professionals.

 

Continue reading at UConn Today . . . .

 

Ten UConn students have been selected as recipients of a grant through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program for the 2023-24 academic year. The program provides grants for individually designed study and research projects or for English teaching assistantships around the world. Students meet, work, live with, and learn from the people of the host country, sharing daily experiences.

UConn had 19 semifinalists for Fulbright Student Program awards, which includes the 10 finalists and an alternate. A total of 20 UConn students completed UConn’s campus application process for the 2023-24 Fulbright round.

 

Continue reading on UConn Today . . .

 

 

The Gilman Scholarship, a prestigious academic award congressionally funded through the Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs at the State Department, has been awarded to 11 UConn students for the current application cycle. The funding supports broadening student participation in study abroad programs and encourages travel to diverse locations around the globe, along with intensive language study and internship experiences.

“We are thrilled to see our campus outreach efforts and student advising for the Gilman scholarship result in this level of success,” says Valerie Jenkelunas, Experiential Global Learning (EGL) advisor and community liaison specialist. “We had a total of 26 students apply from UConn, and 11 were chosen for awards between $3,000 and $5,000. This surpasses the statistical average of applicants awarded nationally.”

With more than 13,000 applicants from over 450 colleges each year, the Gilman Scholarship program is a highly competitive scholarship. Approximately one in four applicants are selected to receive the scholarship.

Continue reading on UConn Today . . . .

 

 

Four UConn graduate students and six alumni have recently earned National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships (NSF-GRFP).

The oldest graduate fellowship of its kind, the NSF-GRFP recognizes and supports outstanding students in NSF-supported disciplines who are pursuing research-based master’s and doctoral degrees at accredited institutions in the United States. In addition to a three-year annual stipend of $34,000, plus another $12,000 paid to the student’s home institution, fellows have access to a wide range of professional development opportunities over the course of their graduate careers.

 

Continue reading on UConn Today . . .

 

University of Connecticut junior Romir Raj ’24 (ENG), an Honors student majoring in biomedical engineering and native of Glastonbury, has been named a Goldwater Scholar. The Goldwater Scholarship is considered the nation’s premier scholarship for undergraduates studying math, natural sciences, and engineering.  Schools can nominate a maximum of four students per year.

Read more in UConn Today . . .

 

 

Click Here to Access the 2023 Statement of Interest Form

Scholarships to Study in the U.K. (Rhodes, Marshall, Mitchell, and Churchill Scholarships)

 

If you are a rising senior, a current senior, or a recent graduate interested in applying for the Rhodes, Marshall, Mitchell, Gates, or Churchill Scholarships to the UK or Ireland, we want to hear from you!

 

To enter the Rhodes, Marshall, Mitchell, and/or Churchill Scholarship competitions, students must first be nominated by the University of Connecticut through a process managed by the Office of National Scholarships and Fellowships.  To be considered for nomination for one of these awards, you must complete the following:

 

• Complete the “Statement of Interest” form linked at the top of this page (and found at https://s.uconn.edu/uk-statement-of-interest) before the May 31, 2023 deadline. Submitting the statement does not commit you to applying, so if you think you’re interested, let us know.  (If you wish to apply after the statement of intent is due, please Email Vin Moscardelli to discuss your candidacy and get further instructions.)

 

• For the Rhodes, Marshall, and/or Mitchell, students must submit complete internal applications (submission instructions to follow) by 4:00pm, Thursday, August 24, 2023. (Note that while most of these applications require 4-8 letters of recommendation, potential applicants only need to submit three letters by the time of this campus deadline.)  For the Churchill, the campus deadline is Thursday, September 28, 2023.

 

A panel of faculty, staff, and administrators will review the application materials and interview a subset of the strongest candidates for each award.  From this group, the committee selects the eventual nominees who will represent UConn in the national competitions.  Applications are due to the respective foundations on September 19 (Marshall), September 28 (Mitchell), and October 2 (Rhodes).  Applications for the Churchill Scholarship are due to the Churchill Foundation on November 1.

 

Students applying for Fulbright U.S. Student Program grants to the UK or Fulbright UK Summer Institutes are not required to complete the Statement of Interest and should instead visit https://www.onsf.uconn.edu/fulbright-us-student-program/ for the most up-to-date information.  Student may also contact incoming Fulbright Program Adviser Dr. Michael Cunningham directly to discuss their interest and eligibility.  He is available via Nexus or Email.

***

The Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation is committed to increasing awareness of the importance of the nation’s natural resources. The Udall Scholarship awards up to $7,000 and access to the Udall Scholars network to sophomores and juniors who are passionate about the environment (in any field), OR who are Native American and intend to pursue careers in Native health care or tribal public policy. 

***

The Office of National Scholarships & Fellowships is pleased to introduce UConn’s 2023 nominees for the Udall Undergraduate Scholarship.  Congratulations to these outstanding young leaders.

 

Samantha Gove (CLAS ’24) is a junior at the University of Connecticut double majoring in human rights and sociology with a minor in psychological sciences. She is a proud member of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, and she has worked to increase representation and resources for Native and Indigenous students as a mentor and an advocate both on and beyond the campus community. To do this, she founded a mentorship program for first-year Indigenous students, coordinates a mentorship program for local Native youth, and is spearheading a workshop series on minoritized languages. In addition, Samantha received a SHARE Award to support her research examining Native American victims of fatal police encounters. Through this work, she has become passionate about reducing anti-Indigenous violence in the United States through better representation in educational spaces and through justice system reform. After graduating, Samantha plans to pursue a JD/MA in American Indian studies in preparation for a career as a policy analyst. To honor her efforts, she has been named a 2022 Udall, BOLD, and Cohen Scholar and a Newman Civic Fellow. 

 

Claire Lee (CLAS ’24) from Glastonbury, CT, is a junior Honors student pursuing a dual degree in ecology and evolutionary biology and political science. She currently works as an undergraduate research assistant for Prof. Scott Wallace of the Department of Journalism, exploring literature that parallels U.S. interventionist policies and practices in Central America of the late 20th century to the present. Previously, she researched the former Brazilian administration’s environmental policies and human rights violations involving the Amazon and indigenous communities. Claire works as an intern for UConn’s Office of Sustainability, championing the university’s sustainability goals and coordinating initiatives in collaboration with other stakeholders across campus. Stemming from this involvement, and paired with her coursework interests, Claire founded the university’s first student-run environmental symposium, Ecoposium, last fall to cultivate a space for open, diverse discussions and to promote environmental literacy within the university body. Beyond school, Claire enjoys cooking, staying active, and listening to a variety of music. After graduation, she plans to obtain a J.D. and pursue a career in environmental law. 

 

 

To learn more about the Udall and other nationally-competitive scholarship and fellowship opportunities, visit the Office of National Scholarships & Fellowships and click “Talk to an Advisor.”

 

 

The Beinecke Scholarship was established in 1971 to provide substantial scholarships for the graduate education of young men and women of exceptional promise. The program seeks to encourage and enable highly motivated students to pursue opportunities available to them and to be courageous in the selection of a graduate course of study in the arts, humanities and social sciences. Since 1975 the program has selected 699 college juniors from 120 different undergraduate institutions for support during graduate study at any accredited university.

Each scholar receives $5,000 immediately prior to entering graduate school and an additional $30,000 while attending graduate school. There are no geographic restrictions on the use of the scholarship, and recipients are allowed to supplement the award with other scholarships, assistantships and research grants. Scholars are encouraged to begin graduated study as soon as possible following graduation from college, and must utilize all of the funding within five years of completion of undergraduate studies.  Participating institutions, including UConn, are allowed to nominate one student per year for the Beinecke.

 

***

Katherine Jimenez (CLAS ’24), of Derby, CT, is UConn’s 2023 nominee for the Beinecke Scholarship. She is a junior Honors student studying English and journalism. A 2023 University Scholar and BOLD Women’s Leadership Network Scholar, Katherine is passionate about creative writing and 20th-century literature that is primarily female-driven. For her University Scholar project, she is currently investigating the damaged relationship between mother and daughter through a fictional retelling of her mother’s life in Revolutionary Nicaragua. She writes 10-pages a week for her project under the guidance of Professor Regina Barreca, and serves as a fiction panelist for the Long River Review. During Summer 2023, she will visit Nicaragua to interview women, children, and veterans of the Sandinista Revolution as research for a long-form essay connecting war trauma with the female narratives we see in women’s and Latino-American literature. After graduating, Katherine intends to pursue a Ph.D. in English Literature with a focus on the “mother-in-war” issue in literature. In her free time, she enjoys reading, writing, and buying more books to read.

***

 

To learn more about the Beinecke and other nationally-competitive scholarship and fellowship opportunities, visit the Office of National Scholarships & Fellowships and click “Talk to an Advisor.”

 

The Harry S. Truman Scholarship is awarded for graduate study towards careers in public service to approximately 60 students nationally based on their academic achievement, leadership, and public service records. The Truman Scholarship identifies young people at an important inflection point in their development – when they are college juniors – and recognizes and rewards their commitment to devote themselves to public service.  Click here to learn more about the scholarship and about UConn’s campus nomination process.

 

Meet UConn’s 2023 Truman Scholarship Nominees

 

Defne Alpdogan (CLAS ’24) is a junior studying molecular & cell biology, urban & community studies, and Spanish. An intern at Desegregate CT and the Connecticut Institute for Resilience and Climate Adaptation (CIRCA), she invests her time in environmental justice and affordable housing practices. Defne dedicates her time to legislative action, specifically looking at the way minority communities are impacted by affordable housing policies. She also has deep interest in the long-lasting impact of redlining on housing and educational attainment in urban centers, specifically Philadelphia. On campus, Defne is a part of Empowering Women in Law, Nutmeg Publishing, Spoon University, and Ecoposium. In her spare time, Defne is an avid runner and cycler. She also enjoys listening to EDM + Latin music, cooking with her friends, analyzing movies, and reading. After graduation, Defne intends to pursue a J.D. with the intention of practicing criminal law.

 

Thomas Bonitz (CLAS ’24), a junior from Cheshire, CT, is an Honors student majoring in geographic information science (GIS) and economics. He is a member of the Environmental Justice Front and Fossil Fuel Free UConn, both of which encourage UConn to achieve zero carbon emissions by 2040. He also advocates for climate action through the St. Peter’s Cheshire Ecojustice Council. Thomas engages in service as a Team Leader of Honors Across State Borders and as a member of English Language Learners and Kids & UConn Bridging Education. He also plays viola in the UConn Symphony Orchestra. As a SHARE Award recipient, he worked with a team headed by Dr. Xiang (Peter) Chen to research food insecurity in Greater Hartford. He is now working with Dr. Carol Atkinson-Palombo to research the impact of commercial-scale solar installations on property prices. He has worked as a Sustainable CT Fellow, Sustainability Intern for Mansfield, CT, and co-creator of a sustainability camp curriculum for Manchester, CT. Thomas plans to pursue a Master’s in GIS and a Ph.D. in Geography, setting him up for a career as a professor, through which he hopes to use his research to inform climate policy decisions and support climate activism.

 

Liam Enea (CAHNR ’24), from Brookfield, CT, is a junior majoring in applied and resource economics. He is the founder of the Clean Energy Society, a student organization dedicated to making New England’s electricity more affordable, clean, and resilient to blackouts. As president, Liam launched a legislative effort to establish a natural gas capacity market in Connecticut based on an op-ed he wrote in the Hartford Courant. In 2022, he helped organize a contest to design the decal on UConn’s only fuel cell, which spread awareness of clean energy technology among students. He is also an undergraduate researcher at Eversource Energy Center, working on the intersection of solar, batteries, and grid resilience during storms. In civic life, Liam serves on his town’s Energy Advisory Board and Youth Commission, a municipal board he established in 2018 that has given dozens of youth the opportunity to create and enact solutions to issues facing them. Professionally, Liam interns at ISO New England and worked for two clean energy non-profits. After graduation, he hopes to pursue a law degree focused on energy and utility regulation. He wants to ease energy costs while advancing the clean energy transition, improving the lives of all ratepayers.

 

Samantha Gove (CLAS ’24), from Granby, CT, is a junior double majoring in human rights and sociology with a minor in psychological sciences. She is a proud member of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, works as the Student Coordinator of UConn’s Native American Cultural Programs, and is the President of UConn’s Native American and Indigenous Students Association. In these positions, she has worked to increase representation and resources for Native and Indigenous students as a mentor and an advocate. To do this, she founded a mentorship program for first-year Indigenous students, coordinates a mentorship program for local Native youth, and is spearheading a workshop series on minoritized languages. In addition, Samantha received a SHARE Award to support her research examining Native American victims of fatal police encounters. Through this work, she has become passionate about reducing anti-Indigenous violence in the United States through better representation in educational spaces and through justice system reform. After graduating, Samantha plans to attend law school in preparation for a career as a policy analyst. In recognition of her efforts, she has been named a 2022 Udall, Cohen, and BOLD Scholar and a Newman Civic Fellow.

 

To learn more about this and other nationally-competitive scholarship and fellowship opportunities, visit the Office of National Scholarships & Fellowships and click “Talk to an Advisor.”