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In this video, get to know New Jersey native Christopher D'Urso, one of Penn's two 2018 Rhodes Scholars. We quiz him about his fellowship journey, his hopes for Oxford and beyond, and what he wore to the big interview!
Video produced by Emily Eckardt and Kathryn R. Morgan, CURF Graduate Fellows, 2018.
News
April 17, 2018
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Born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Wendy De La Rosa is the daughter of an inspiring political activist who fought for the working class.
Amidst economic uncertainty, Wendy immigrated to the United States in hopes of a better life and settled in a small apartment in the Bronx with her large, extended family. It was in that apartment that Wendy’s interest in financial decision-making began. She entertained herself by observing how her family managed their limited finances.
Wendy graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from The... more
April 13, 2018
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Two juniors from the University of Pennsylvania, Anea Moore and Stephen Damianos, have been awarded Harry S. Truman Scholarships, a merit-based award of as much as $30,000 that supports college students who plan to pursue careers in government or public service and who wish to attend graduate or professional school in order to help prepare them for careers in public service. They are among 59 Truman Scholars selected this year from among 756 candidates nominated by 311 colleges and universities.
First-generation, low-income (FGLI) student leader Anea Moore... more
April 9, 2018
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As I boarded my first of three flights to Malaysia last January, my brain was buzzing with ideas about what my job as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant would entail. In hindsight, I could never have anticipated what was in store. From cleaning lizard poop off my bedroom walls to driving through monsoon rains to learning how to use a “squatty potty”, I was regularly pushed out of my comfort zone. Learning how to adapt also taught me a lot about myself.
Teaching English as a Second Language in Malaysia presents many unique challenges. The use of English throughout... more
April 3, 2018
Penn students and alumni are starting to be offered Fulbright grants for the 2018-19 academic year. This list will be updated as we hear back from host countries over the next several months. See this story for the 2017-18 Finalists.
The Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships (CURF) wishes to heartily congratulate Penn’s Fulbright Finalists for grant year 2018-2019:
Fulbright Study/Research Grant
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Kevin BerryPhD Candidate, Architectural HistoryIndianapolis, IN
Kevin Berry will begin his Fulbright research in Germany in September 2018. He will be conducting... more
April 3, 2018
Two juniors at the University of Pennsylvania have been selected as Goldwater Scholars by the Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation, which provides scholarships to undergraduate students interested in pursuing research careers in the natural sciences, math, or engineering.
They are the 38th and 39th recipients from Penn since the United States Congress established the foundation in 1986 to honor the work of U.S. Sen. Barry Goldwater.
The 38th Goldwater Scholar at Penn is Angus Beane, a junior in the School of Arts and Sciences who hails from Richmond, Va. He... more
March 19, 2018
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Although I have spent only eight months here in Peru, I feel like I’ve been here for a few thousand years. This is probably due to the fact that as an archaeologist, I am constantly exposed to the rich history and culture that Peru holds. Everywhere you look, there seems to be physical evidence of a connection to Peru’s past.
As a bioarcheologist, my job is to read the bones of those who have passed before us. Through my analyses, I can determine an individual’s gender, ancestry, age, health status, diet, and even markers of occupational stress and trauma just from... more
March 13, 2018
Six University of Pennsylvania seniors and two alumni have received 2018 Thouron Awards to pursue graduate studies in the United Kingdom. Each scholarship recipient is eligible for tuition and stipends for as long as two years while earning a graduate degree.
The recipients:
Alexis Montouris Ciambotti from Warren, N.J., is double-majoring in political science with a concentration in international relations and classical studies in the School of Arts and Sciences. A 2018 Dean’s Scholar, she is a former Perry World House Student Fellow and a former Fellow of the Penn Program on Democracy,... more
March 13, 2018
Olivia Route, a 2015 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, has been selected a 2018 Luce Scholar.
Established in 1974, the Luce Scholars Program provides one-year internships for future leaders in American society who are unfamiliar with Asia to engage with important issues in the region. The Luce Scholars Program competitive fellowship program invites nominations from 75 colleges and universities across the country and provides stipends, language training and individualized professional placement in Asia for as many as 18 Luce Scholars each year.
Students can be placed in... more
March 9, 2018
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When I arrived at UCL, I was filled with confidence and exuberance. I had been awarded the US-UK Fulbright All-Disciplines Award, and orientation had just begun. After words of congratulations and compliments, a Fulbright representative asked that we each come to the front of the room to introduce ourselves and describe our projects to the group. Waiting for my turn to speak, I listened to my peers describe their work.
They spoke of their research into counterterrorism strategies in Africa, the impact of policy on juvenile... more
February 19, 2018
The University of Pennsylvania is proud to be included again on the list of U.S. colleges and universities that produced the most 2017-2018 Fulbright U.S. Students recently announced by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. The Fulbright Program is the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program. Top-producing institutions are highlighted annually in The Chronicle of Higher Education.
22 students from Penn received Fulbright awards for academic year 2017-2018, continuing a multiyear trend of producing large numbers of recipients.... more
February 14, 2018
To begin this blog, first I will provide you with a list entitled, “You might be a Ph.D. abroad if…:
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You spend more time worrying about your writing schedule than visiting the popular tourist destinations.
Your command of the language hasn’t improved as much as it could because your top priorities include deadlines, fieldwork, and manuscripts.
You experience non-productivity guilt – a guilt specific to grad students who are taught that there is always more that you can do.
The number one topic of conversation is your dissertation, even though you’d rather talk about... more
February 13, 2018
University of Pennsylvania senior Kevin Chen of Fremont, Calif., has been selected for a Churchill Scholarship from the Winston Churchill Foundation, which will allow him to study abroad for a year at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom.
Awarded annually to American students with a grade point average of 3.7 or higher, the scholarship funds a year of master’s study in science, mathematics and engineering at Cambridge’s Churchill College.
Chen will graduate from Penn in May with a bachelor’s degree in physics, biophysics and biochemistry along with a master’s in physics... more
January 29, 2018
This annual event features exciting panels every day of a full week where faculty members answer questions about the variety of ways research is conducted in their field, how undergraduates can get involved, the day-to-day tasks of student researchers, what experience and skills can be gained, and how research can impact future career options. Students have the opportunity to learn about research funding options, what they can do to make themselves more competitive for major fellowships, and how CURF can help. The week culminates in a Research Symposium which highlights the work that student... more
December 4, 2017
A senior from the University of Pennsylvania, Eric Tse of Beijing, has been awarded a Schwarzman Scholarship, which will fund one year of graduate study leading to a master’s degree in global affairs at China’s Tsinghua University.
Tse is one of 142 selected to receive the third annual Schwarzman Scholarships, including students from 39 countries and 97 universities. This year, more than 4,000 people applied to the highly selective program for students who have demonstrated exemplary leadership qualities, along with the potential to bridge and understand cultural and political differences.... more
December 1, 2017
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Farah Otero-Amad (COL '18) has been named to the 2018 class of Charles B. Rangel Graduate Fellows, which supports winners through two years of graduate school as well as entry into the Foreign Service corps.
Farah Otero-Amad will graduate in May 2018 with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with a concentration in International Relations, and a minor in Modern Middle Eastern Studies. Born and raised in California, she has also lived and worked overseas in Mexico, Spain, Japan, Ireland, and the Middle East. She is trilingual. Her recent experience at the U... more
November 19, 2017
Two University of Pennsylvania seniors have been awarded Rhodes Scholarships for graduate study at the University of Oxford. Christopher D’Urso, of Colts Neck, N.J., has been awarded an American Rhodes and Adnan Zikri Jaafar, of Malaysia, has been awarded a Malaysian Rhodes.
“All of us at Penn are enormously proud of Chris and Zikri,” said Penn President Amy Gutmann. “Our newest Rhodes scholars share a passion for community engagement, human rights and social justice. Their work embodies the finest attributes of Penn scholars who are working to make a profound difference in the world. Chris... more
November 7, 2017
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In years past, “Have you eaten?” was a common greeting in Beijing.
Recently, it’s fallen out of favor.
After centuries of food scarcity, “Of course I’ve eaten. This is modern China,” seems to be the implied response.
I’ve been in Beijing for about month studying Mandarin before beginning a Fulbright grant. I’ve been asked, “Have you eaten?” only once. Questions I’ve been asked an equal number of times, all in Mandarin, include: Do you prefer pour-over coffee? Did you know you can use your smart phone to pay your electric bill? What did you buy at IKEA?... more
October 12, 2017
If the old adage holds true to “choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life,” University of Pennsylvania senior Claudia Kassner will enjoy a long and happy career studying ancient languages and history. She spent last summer in Greece at the archaeological site of Delphi, a major religious destination in the ancient Greek world, examining the manumission epigraphy, inscriptions that document the act of slave owners freeing their slaves.
As a University Scholar, with research funded by Penn’s Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships, Kassner is studying a... more
October 4, 2017
On my first day interning at the Kislak Center, I paged through the Furness Library’s copies of the Second, Third and Fourth Folios. A group of scholars examining the less-studied later Folios had contacted Penn wanting to know if these copies contained any marginalia, corrections, or marks of provenance. To my surprise, I discovered that the flyleaves of Penn’s second copy of the Fourth Folio were virtually filled with notes in the same neat handwriting. The most recent work referenced in the notes, Sir Walter Scott’s Lady of the Lake (1810), suggests the annotations were written in the... more
October 2, 2017
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1. The opportunity to study whatever you want, wherever you want in the United Kingdom
The Thouron Award places very few restrictions on what students can study during their fellowship year abroad. While I chose to pursue a master’s degree in Comparative Social Policy at the University of Oxford, others in my Thouron cohort studied Computer Science, Anthropology, International Relations, Migration Studies, and Journalism at universities across the U.K. This diverse set of interests demonstrates the breadth of courses offered in the U.K. and the generous support the... more
September 25, 2017
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Rebecca Heilweil, a senior and University Scholar at the University of Pennsylvania, spent this summer solidifying her future while looking into her past.
In June and July, while working in her hometown of New York City as a contributor for Forbes Magazine’s Technology section, Heilweil, a dual major in history and political science in the School of Arts & Sciences, was also able to begin research into her Irish and Jewish roots.
This exploration will serve as the basis for her presentations to the University Scholars and Wolf Humanities Forum... more
September 11, 2017
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This summer, Christeen Samuel, a University Scholar and a sophomore from New York City, spent 10 weeks in western Germany using technology to observe how the brain changes when a person makes an impulsive, aggressive choice, such as road rage.
A biological basis of behavior major in the School of Arts & Sciences, Samuel studied the neural correlates of aggressive and impulsive decision-making among people who have been diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, or BPD, a condition that creates instability in moods.
Her research, which will continue... more
September 11, 2017
A version of this was originally posted by the US-Ireland Alliance for the Mitchell Scholars blog.
As an aspiring physician-scientist, a common question I get asked by friends and family at home is why I would want to come to Ireland for my gap year. When people think of Ireland, they generally picture the magnificent culture, landscape, music, and arts available here. Yes, these are all great perks of being in Ireland. But if you look past the amazing culture and beautiful landscapes of Ireland, you can see that the scientific and biomedical opportunities available here make spending a year... more
August 28, 2017
Julia Bache, a junior at the University of Pennsylvania (and a University Scholar), is working on a long-term research project that’s focused on the financial sustainability of historic house museums.
Majoring in management and real estate at the Wharton School and minoring in history in the School of Arts & Sciences, Bache began the project last summer studying five historic homes in Pennsylvania: Powel House, Physick House, Woodlands and Grumblethorpe in Philadelphia and Waynesborough in Paoli.
Last year, her research examined historic house museums and visitor engagement. She surveyed... more