An academically outstanding postgraduate student who is likely to become a transformative leader will be welcomed to Newnham College as a Gates Cambridge Scholar.
Alanna Just, 24, from Vancouver, Canada, will take up the most prestigious international postgraduate scholarship at the University of Cambridge in October.
She will pursue a one-year MPhil in Medical Science (Psychiatry) at the Department of Psychiatry and she will conduct research on vulnerability and resilience in substance-use disorders.
Alanna, pictured, is one of a group of 55 people who have just been named as Scholars and they will join 35 US Scholars to form the Class of 2016.
Competition for the Scholarships is fierce – the successful candidates were selected from a total pool of 3730 applicants on the basis of their intellectual ability, commitment to improving the lives of others, leadership potential and academic fit with Cambridge.
Alanna pursued a double major in Neuroscience and Philosophy of Mind at Quest University Canada and for her Bachelor’s thesis she conducted graduate-level research on adult neurogenesis and morphine addiction at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School.
She has travelled to remote communities in Siberia, been on guiding expeditions in Mongolia, and volunteered on medical pilgrimages in Nepal. She currently works as a research assistant at a women’s medical clinic, and serves on the Board of Directors of a non-profit organisation in Vancouver.
Alanna said: “These seemingly disparate opportunities engendered in me a commitment to improving the live of others. It is this commitment, along with my persistent passion for the mind, that led me to the MPhil in Medical Science (Psychiatry) at the University of Cambridge.”
The Gates Cambridge Scholarship programme was established in October 2000 by a donation of US$210m from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to the University of Cambridge; this is the largest ever single donation to a UK university.
Scholarships are awarded to outstanding applicants from countries outside the UK to pursue a full-time postgraduate degree in any subject available at the University of Cambridge.
The 55 new Scholars come from 30 countries – ranging from Colombia to Australia to Sudan – and include the first ever Scholar from Rwanda. Women outnumber men by a ratio of 36 to 19.
Alanna added: “I am grateful for the opportunity to join the Gates Cambridge community, and look forward to engaging with other passionate scholars as we catalyse change.”
Professor Barry Everitt, Provost (CEO) of the Gates Cambridge Trust, said: “The Scholars are truly remarkable and inspiring individuals who demonstrated at interview that they fit the mission of the Scholarship by their commitment to using their academic skills and leadership capacity to improve the lives of others.
“We look forward to welcoming all 90 new Scholars to Cambridge and to seeing their future impact as Gates Cambridge Alumni.”
For more information visit Gates Cambridge.