From the Office of the Dean...

June 4, 2009

Student wins NSEP Scholarship to study in Russia

Jasmine Whelan has won a National Security Education Program (NSEP) Boren Scholarships for language and culture study abroad in Russia during the 2009-2010 academic year. NSEP, which was the brainchild of Senator David L. Boren, provides resources for scholarships, fellowships and grants for undergraduates and graduate students to understand foreign cultures, strengthen U.S. economic competitiveness, and enhance international cooperation and security.

Jasmine is a member of the South Carolina Honors College where, as a Carolina Scholar, she holds the James A. Morris Carolina Scholarship; she is also a Leiber Scholar and a Palmetto Fellow. She will spend her junior year in St. Petersburg, Russia, learning Russian with a program offered through the American Council of Teachers of Russian. She has also received a Ceny Walker Undergraduate Fellowship from the Walker Institute of International and Area Studies at USC and the Rising Senior Award for Russian from the USC College of Arts and Sciences to help finance her studies in Russia. When she returns to her home state, she will continue her double degrees in International Studies and Russian, with the goal of working as a US Foreign Service Officer.

The NSEP David L. Boren Scholarships and Fellowships provide U.S. undergraduates and graduates with the resources and encouragement they need to acquire skills and experience in countries and areas of the world critical to the future security of our nation. This year NSEP granted a total of 130 scholarships for undergraduate students from 896 applications nationwide and 98 fellowships from a nationwide application pool of 499. The maximum year-long undergraduate award is $20,000 while the graduate award is $30,000.

NSEP candidates were supported during the application process by two offices at the University of South Carolina: the Office of International Programs for Students, which assists international students studying on campus as well as Carolina students studying internationally, and the Office of Fellowships and Scholar Programs, established in 1994 to assist students applying for national fellowship competitions. To visit and to access the NSEP website, visit http://www.iie.org/nsep.