Recipient’s Blog

2nd entry:  On February 12, 2010, I witnessed the first snowfall to blanket Rome since February 1986 (oddly enough, exactly two weeks before I was born).  The city was in an uproar: banks closed, traffic was at a standstill, children ran from their classrooms to throw...

1st entry:  It is difficult to put into words the sense of awe I feel daily living in Rome.  The Fulbright scholarship I received for Art History has taken me to parts of the city that few (if any) travelers ever see: national libraries, private collections of rare...

The first night I arrived in Ho Chi Minh City was an experience that I will never forget.  The moment the sliding glass doors opened and I stepped out of the airport, I was completely overwhelmed by the sights and sounds of the city.  Once I managed to get a cab and...

I have made impressive progress with my language skills and I have definitely met my goal to have colloquial fluency.  There is really no comparison between the language study I have had abroad to the one I had at UC Irvine.  When you study a language overseas, you...

My name is Long-Co Nguyen and I received the Strauss Scholarship in 2009. As a contributor to the SOP blog, I’ll try to give insight on the process of applying for a scholarship and the experiences the scholarship has offered me. And hopefully, upon hearing about it...

“Sawatdi, khrap!,” bellowed the taxi driver as he waved his hand in my direction, calling for my attention.  A sudden chill shot up my back as I ambled my way toward him.  The chill was distinctive.  It was the sort of chill one feels in the wake of illumination.  For...

Matin at a Merage dinner in Washington D.C. I am the coordinator and manager for Modulation of the Inflammatory Response to Brain Death using Hypertonic Saline in a Porcine Model, In UCIMC for Dr. Malinoski, director of the surgical intensive care unit who is a trauma...

My name is Maryjane Vennat, and I am currently a third-year biology major and public health minor here at the University of California, Irvine. Early last year, I was truly shocked and honored to be named a 2009 Goldwater Scholar. In fact, my first exposure to...