UCL: Recipients of prestigious Marshall Scholarship to study at UCL
Julia Chaffers of Princeton University, New Jersey, and Ifeyinwa Ojukwu of Syracuse University, New York, are among the 41 winners of the 2022 Marshall Scholarships and were selected following a rigorous and months-long process.
Those awarded the prestigious bursary are considered to be some of the top undergraduate university students and recent graduates in the United States, and marked out a future leaders. The accolade finances them to study for a graduate degree at a top academic institution in the UK in any field of study.
Julia, who is from Wellesley, Massachusetts, is concentrating in History and will be pursuing a master’s degree at UCL in United States Studies: History and Politics, before heading to the University of Manchester the following year to complete a course in British History.
She hopes that her studies in the UK will build on her research related to the legacies of slavery and racism in the United States, allowing her to examine the topics within a global context.
Julia said: “I want to continue studying history to tell more undiscovered stories and bring communities together around a more complex shared understanding of our past and present.”
Meanwhile, Ifeyinwa, is a Biology and Psychology graduate at Syracuse University and plans to pursue a master’s degree in Precision Medicine at UCL – with the aim of disrupting race-related health inequalities.
Ifeyinwa said: “Race-related health disparities in patient care and outcomes are unfortunately abundant in the U.S, and I’ve come to realise that our approach to solving these issues will have to be multi-faceted and comprehensive in order to be effective.
“I believe one such facet lies in precision medicine, a medical model that more actively takes into account patients’ individual genetic and environmental characteristics.
“As a future physician and health policy advisor, I hope to be a part of this field’s expansion and broadened application in medical practice and treatment. I believe my Marshall year will be integral to achieving this goal.”
The Marshall Scholarship scheme was founded in 1953 and, this year, the program received nearly 1000 applications from top undergraduate students representing 33 institutions across the United States.
Those selected reflect a wide range of cultural, academic, and geographic backgrounds. Among the cohort are nationally-recognised LGBT rights advocates, artists, award-winning documentary filmmakers and scientists conducting cutting-edge research on Artificial Intelligence and space travel.
Professor David Price, UCL Vice-Provost (Research, Innovation & Global Engagement), said: “I congratulate Julia and Infeyinwa on the impressive achievement of being awarded the Marshall Scholarship. We are looking forward to welcoming them into the UCL community and helping further their studies and ambitions to become future American leaders.”
The Marshall Scholarship is principally funded by the UK Government but is also supported by partnership arrangements with British academic institutions, which allows winners to study for graduate degrees at any university in the UK.
The program also receives generous support from the Association of Marshall Scholars (AMS) and the British Schools & Universities Foundation (BUSF).
Dame Karen Pierce, British Ambassador to the United States, said: “Marshalls Scholars continue to represent the very best of American society, from their ingenuity and creativity to their commitment to public service.
“For decades, the scholarship has played an important role in supporting young future leaders such as these and I am excited for them to continue their development at some of the UK’s top universities.”
Notable previous winners of the scholarship include, Philanthropist and founder of LinkedIn, Reid Hoffman, the 2008 Nobel Prize Winner in Chemistry, Roget Tsien, and Pulitzer Prize-winning authors, Anne Applebaum, Tom Friedman, Jeffrey Gettleman and Dan Yergin.