Next year, four University seniors will have the opportunity to study for free in Great Britain, immersing themselves in British culture at the graduate schools of their choice.
Seniors Karen Saah, Michael Dal Bello, Beau Ances and Michelle Peluso are the recipients of the Thouron Award, a fellowship that allows selected University graduates to study at any institution of higher education in Great Britain.
The award covers tuition, room, board and expenses for travel and cultural enrichment, according to Carole Clarke, who coordinates the fellowship for the University’s Office of Development.
The fellowship was established in 1960 by Sir John Thouron and the late Lady Thouron, both Philadelphia-area residents originally from the Great Britain, Clarke said.
The Thouron family sponsors the fellowship in order to promote understanding between the people of the Great Britain and United States.
The Thourons also established a parallel fellowship which allows British university graduates to pursue graduate studies at the University.
The award recipients are provided with ample spending money with which they are encouraged to travel and expose themselves to all aspects of the British or American culture, Clarke said.
“It is an incredibly generous program,” said Clarke. “The [Thouron] family wants them to really be acquainted with England.”
In addition to experiencing British culture first-hand, the students will benefit from the multi-cultural environment of a European graduate school.
“I think it will be a good time to meet people from all over the world,” said Wharton and College senior Dal Bello, who will participate in a two-year philosophy, politics and economics program at Balliol College of Oxford University. “Oxford’s a very international place.”
The competition for the awards is sever and the selection process is rigorous, Clarke said.
After a preliminary evaluation of applicants’ academic qualifications and personal qualities, a group of semi-finalists is chosen and participates in a grueling day-long interview process.
During the interview semi-finalists meet with members of the Thouron family, appear before a selection committee and make a presentation to a group of their peers.
The number of British and American students chosen vary each year depending on the quality of the applicants and the cost of the programs they choose, Clarke said.
“The students must be strong representatives of Penn and the U.S. because they’re seen as ambassadors,” Clarke said.
Students interested in applying for the Thouron Award should contact the Office of International Programs for more information.
“We’re looking for people with a strong sense of self and . . . an extra spark, that something that sets people apart,” she said.
