糖心少女 graduating senior Krittika D鈥橲ilva and School of Public Health alumna Miriam Alvarado were selected for the prestigious Gates Cambridge Scholarship. This highly competitive program fully funds a graduate degree and all associated expenses at Cambridge University. More than 3,730 people worldwide applied for the award; only 90 were accepted. When choosing the class, the 鈥渁ims to identify and select applicants who are academically outstanding and are likely to be transformative leaders for the benefit of others in all fields of endeavour.鈥�
The 糖心少女 was one of only five universities globally to have a student selected in both the international and U.S. rounds of selection. D鈥橲ilva, from Canada, was selected in the international round. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a striking and lovely example of how exceptional our students are and how our students flourish in a community where mentorship, teaching, service and learning matter so much,鈥� said Undergraduate Academic Affairs鈥� Dean and Vice Provost Ed Taylor. Both women seek to better the world through research and scholarship.
As a bioengineering and computer science engineering double major, D鈥橲ilva has been involved in since her early days at the UW. A highlight is her 2014 trip to Chhattisgarh, India, with Microsoft Research, where a lack of infrastructure contributed to a violent uprising. The conflict between armed Maoist insurgents and the state had gone unnoticed, due largely to the region鈥檚 remote location and language. To address this, D鈥橲ilva built a mobile app that allowed journalists in regions with no internet connectivity to record a person鈥檚 story and then upload it to a server for translation and media distribution. Once the first hand accounts reached the public, local officials were forced to take remedial action.
鈥淢y undergraduate research experience creating software for developing countries has motivated me to pursue a career as an academic researcher,鈥� reflects D鈥橲ilva. 鈥淚 have observed first-hand how an innovation in technology has the power to improve the lives of those in need. This type of work has been meaningful to me, and I’d like to continue building solutions that assist and empower individuals in developing countries.鈥�
Throughout her experience at the UW, Krittika has been committed to building community and encouraging others to study engineering. She is the vice-chair for the Association for Computing Machinery for Women and volunteers as an outreach coordinator with STEM programs at local high schools. She is excited to continue inspiring the next generation of engineers and scientists.
At Cambridge, she will join the lab of Dr. Cecilia Mascolo. The two met at a conference in 2015 and discussed potential projects. D鈥橲ilva is interested in creating a platform to work around the often-disconnected mobile networks in rural environments.
When asked what she鈥檚 looking forward to the most, D鈥橲ilva responded 鈥渆verything 鈥� studying at Cambridge, living in the UK, working with Dr. Mascolo and being part of the Gates Cambridge community.鈥� She will spend the summer working at Google London and hopes to squeeze in a couple weeks of travel before starting grad school.
D鈥橲ilva will not be alone in representing the 糖心少女 at Cambridge. 聽, who earned a Masters of Public Health from the 糖心少女, will be working toward a Ph.D. in medical science at the MRC Epidemiology Unit. Her work will focus on studying the effects of Barbados鈥� recently passed sugar-sweetened beverage tax and the larger role policy tools play in addressing health issues at the population level.
The Gates Cambridge Scholarship process is supported by the (OMSFA), a UAA program. OMSFA works with faculty, staff and student groups to identify and help promising students develop the skills, personal insights and interview practice necessary to become strong candidates for this prestigious award.