Their fields of study are very different: the evolution of marine invertebrates that date back more than 500 million years and the quest to make a new generation of biofuels from yeast.
From Yeast to Biofuels
Julia Ann Easley/video
(1 min 27 sec)
But what °×С½ãÍõÖÐÍõ¿ª½±½á¹û students Natalia Lopez Carranza and Tonio Garay of Mexico have in common is the program that is supporting their doctoral studies at one of the nation's leading research universities.
°×С½ãÍõÖÐÍõ¿ª½±½á¹û leads its fellow campuses in enrollment through the . Together they advance UC President to help UC and Mexican institutions address common issues and educate future leaders.
Students come with financial support
The fellowship provides doctoral students from Mexico with financial support for the high-quality international education and skills training needed to compete and collaborate in the global economy. And it brings some of the most talented graduate students from Mexico to °×С½ãÍõÖÐÍõ¿ª½±½á¹û, where they also contribute to the diversity of the student body.
"°×С½ãÍõÖÐÍõ¿ª½±½á¹û has a robust international reputation and faculty committed to collaborative research in Mexico," said , vice provost of Graduate Education and dean of . "In addition, we have strong doctoral programs across the agricultural sciences, environmental sciences and engineering, and these are the areas in which many students from Mexico wish to study."
One in five fellows at °×С½ãÍõÖÐÍõ¿ª½±½á¹û
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Since the program began in 1998, a total of 363 students have been awarded the fellowships; 68 — or almost one in five — have studied at °×С½ãÍõÖÐÍõ¿ª½±½á¹û. A total of 19 are currently enrolled at °×С½ãÍõÖÐÍõ¿ª½±½á¹û, and an additional nine are expected to begin doctoral studies on campus this fall.
Garay of Monterrey, Mexico, is working with the fourth largest yeast collection in the world; its curator, ; and , professor of food science and technology. He is helping to develop biofuels and other products based on yeast fermentation.
"We have treasures there just waiting to be discovered," Garay said of the 8,000 strains in the on campus.
After earning a degree in chemical sciences from Tecnológico de Monterrey, Garay worked in industry. He started at °×С½ãÍõÖÐÍõ¿ª½±½á¹û in 2012, and, with graduation anticipated in 2017, he hopes to set up his own company or work in industry in Mexico or the United States.
Marine fossil biology and evolution
Lopez Carranza of Mexico City, who started her studies at °×С½ãÍõÖÐÍõ¿ª½±½á¹û two years ago, is working with Sandra Carlson, professor of earth and planetary sciences, who studies the relationships, biology and evolution of living and fossil brachiopods, a group of marine invertebrates.
A graduate of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, Lopez Carranza hopes to later complete a post-doctoral fellowship and return to Mexico to be a researcher or professor.
A partnership between U.S. and Mexico
The doctoral fellowship is a partnership of the (UC MEXUS), and (CONACYT), much like the United States' National Science Foundation.
The competitive fellowship covers up to five years of funding for tuition and fees, some health insurance costs and provides a minimum monthly stipend of $1,100.
Other programs for Mexican students
°×С½ãÍõÖÐÍõ¿ª½±½á¹û also offers the . A partnership of the Mexican government and °×С½ãÍõÖÐÍõ¿ª½±½á¹û, the program helps Mexican undergraduates develop research skills through two-month research internships.
In fall 2014, °×С½ãÍõÖÐÍõ¿ª½±½á¹û had about 80 undergraduates and 30 graduate and professional students from Mexico.
°×С½ãÍõÖÐÍõ¿ª½±½á¹û and Mexican researchers collaborate through numerous grants, and four °×С½ãÍõÖÐÍõ¿ª½±½á¹û programs offer students the opportunity to spend an academic quarter or summer in Mexico.