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FILE – People walk around Oxford University’s campus on Sept. 3, 2017, in Oxford, England. (AP Photo/Caroline Spiezio, File)
A group of 32 students from the United States have been selected to attend the University of Oxford as part of the prestigious Rhodes scholar program in the coming year among an international class representing more than 70 nations, scholarship officials announced.
Nearly 3,000 U.S. students began the application process for the scholarship covering all expenses at the storied university in Oxford, England, to pursue graduate degrees beginning in October 2025, the Office of the American Secretary of the Rhodes Trust in McLean, Virginia, said in a statement early Sunday.
The 32 recipients include students from 19 states and the District of Columbia attending 20 U.S. colleges and universities. During the application process, 865 students were endorsed by 243 colleges and universities. Committees in 16 U.S. districts then selected 238 finalists for interviews.
Four of the recipients are from the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York, the most selected from the service academy in one year since 1959. Others include the first Rhodes scholars chosen from Eastern Mennonite University in Virginia and California’s Pepperdine University.
Returning students to the program for the first time in decades, Coe College in Iowa had its first scholarship winner in more than 53 years and North Carolina’s Davidson College placed a scholar after 25 years without the recognition.
The trust touted the wide-ranging interests of the scholarship winners: a DJ who uses AI in music and medicine, a religious studies major proficient in six languages, an amateur boxer and the youngest elected official in Missouri.
Ramona L. Doyle, American secretary of the Rhodes Trust, said in the statement that in addition to academic excellence, “a Rhodes Scholar should also have great ambition for social impact, and an uncommon ability to work with others to achieve one’s goals.”
“They should be committed to make a strong difference for good in the world, be concerned for the welfare of others, and be acutely conscious of inequities,” Doyle said.
The sponsorships were created in 1902 by the will of Cecil Rhodes, a founder of the diamond mining and manufacturing company De Beers. The inaugural class entered Oxford in 1903 and the first U.S. Rhodes scholars arrived the next year. Scholars pursue advanced degrees in subjects ranging from social sciences and humanities to biological and physical sciences, according to the trust.
The Rhodes scholarship is “the oldest and best-known award for international study, and arguably the most famous academic award available to American college graduates,” Doyle said.
Sunday’s announcement brings the total number of Americans selected for Rhodes scholarships to 3,674 representing 329 colleges and universities, the trust said, noting 675 U.S. women have won the scholarship despite only having been eligbile to apply since 1976.
The U.S. scholars chosen for the 2024 class were the first to take part in a screening process in person following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. During the previous three years, the selection process was conducted online.
The scholarships are typically for two to three years but may extend to four. The award covers all fees, a living expense stipend and transportion between England and the recipient’s location. The scholarship is valued at about $75,000 annually, reaching to about $250,000 for scholars who remain in their departments for four years.
Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.