The prestigious Marshall Scholarships fund up to three years of graduate study in any academic topic at any university in the United Kingdom.
Five Yale College seniors — Bobby Atkinson, Ayelet Kalfus, Robby Hill, Xavier Blackwell-Lipkind, and Olivia Sally — are among 51 recipients of prestigious Marshall Scholarships, which funds up to three years of graduate study in any academic topic at any university in the United Kingdom.
The recipients, who are considered among the most accomplished undergraduate students and recent graduates in the United States, were chosen following an intense selection process and will begin graduate studies at top universities across the U.K. next year.
The Marshall Scholarship program was created by an act of the British Parliament in 1953 as “a living memorial” for former U.S. Secretary of State General George Marshall and the assistance of the U.S. under the Marshall Plan.
This year’s class of Marshall scholars is the largest in the seven-decade history of the program. Half of the 2024 class will pursue degrees in STEM-related fields, including several who will study issues relating to the ethics and advancement of artificial intelligence.
“This year’s exceptional cohort boasts impressive academic achievement and promising researchers and innovators in a range of fields,” said Peter Abbott, British consul general to New England. “This class of scholars is already making a profound impact on the world, and their contributions will undoubtedly strengthen the U.K.-U.S. relationship and usher in a new era of collaboration — something which the world needs more than ever.”
Ayelet Kalfus
Ayelet Kalfus, a senior from New York, New York, is majoring in physics at Yale. Fascinated by interdisciplinary science, her research experience spans physics, biology, and computer science. Within the Yale STEM communities, Kalfus has served as co-president of both the Yale Undergraduate Quantum Computing Group and Yale Women in Physics+. Deeply committed to the arts, she is working on a mini documentary following undergraduates across their four years at Yale. Kalfus volunteered with Ukrainian refugees in Prague this past summer, and has established a fellowship to fund further volunteers, with the first two students traveling this winter. Currently a first-year counselor, she enjoys academically and emotionally mentoring first-year students in her residential college, as well as volunteering with New Haven Reads. Kalfus plans to pursue the systems and synthetic biology MRes (Postgraduate Research Masters) degree and the artificial intelligence M.Sc. degree at Imperial College London.
Since 1954, more than 2,200 students have received graduate degrees through the Marshall Scholarship.
This article was adapted from the Yale News Article of December 11, 2023. See below for link to the original article and other related links.