Scholarship Stories

Chelsea Dean – Atmospheric Science, Class of 2016
"Thank you so much for donating so that students like me can have scholarships. I really appreciate it! This scholarship has helped me out so much this year and because of it I did not have to take out any loans. No loans this year means I will be able to pay off my other loans sooner. Furthermore, this scholarship has helped me get one step closer to graduating with a degree in Atmospheric Science and pursuing my dream of being a meteorlogist."

Christy Reick – Biochemistry, Class of 2016
"I am sincerely honored to have been selected as the recipient of this scholarship. Thank you for your generosity, which has allowed my family and me to have one less thing to worry about. As I complete my education at Purdue University, I am very thankful for receiving your thoughtful gift. Because of your scholarship, I had enough money to apply for medical school. I hope to attend medical school and become a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine or Allopathic Physician. Thank you again for your thoughtful and generous gift."

Suraya Williams - Biological Sciences, Class of 2016
"Receiving this scholarship means a great deal and I am so appreciative that I was chosen. I am an out-of-state student and paying for Purdue has not been easy for my family. This scholarship is going to lighten the financial burden. The money my family would have spent is going to be put towards my law school education, and will give me a head start toward the next step of my academic career."

Janise Unger – Genetics, Class of 2016
"I would like to thank my donors for being so generous as to grant me the scholarship I received this past summer. This scholarship was put towards my study abroad experience in Madrid, Spain. I did a 6 week program where I took 2 classes to finish my minor. The trip included staying with a host family, several excursions to other regions of the country, visits to the cathedral, the royal palace, the Senate, and admission into an art museum where class was held once a week. During my free weekends, I went to Paris, San Sebastian, and a couple other cities near Madrid. Studying abroad gave me the courage to go far outside my comfort zone and fully immerse myself into a completely different culture. Without the generosity of my donors this experience would never have occurred."

Dalton Chaffee – Applied Physics, Class of 2017
"Thanks to the scholarship I received, I am able to study abroad at the National University of Singapore (NUS), which in turn has broadened my outlook on life tremendously. Previously, I had only traveled briefly outside of the U.S. when I was much younger, so the past two months in Singapore have been completely unique to anything that I have encountered. Without this scholarship, I would not be having this life-changing experience. I hope that the effort that I put forth in my studies and future career will do justice to this altruistic contribution."

Christina DeSantiago – Applied Statistics, Class of 2017
"I greatly appreciate your generous donation for my study abroad program in Athens this spring semester. I am looking forward to this experience to learn about a new culture by taking courses about service learning, history of sports in Greece, social media in Greece, and modern Greek language. I am a very hands-on learner and so I cannot imagine a better environment than Athens to learn about Greek history and culture. This scholarship is helping me to pursue my dreams. Thank you for your generosity!"

Rachel Bogue – Atmospheric Science, Class of 2017
"I am extremely humbled and grateful for you generosity in choosing me for this scholarship which will greatly help me fund my higher education. As a military kid, I moved almost every three years growing up. Because of this, I never really felt like I had a 'hometown'. Purdue's incredible science program and historic traditions really attracted me to apply and I couldn't be happier with my decision to attend. I really have found a community of support and encouragement at Purdue that I have never before experienced. I can easily say that Purdue is the first place I feel that I can call 'home'. Your generosity has helped alleviate the hefty out-of-state tuition burden on my family and has allowed me to continue my academic pursuits and fulfill my dreams."

Francisco Lynch – Biochemistry, Class of 2017
"Thank you so much for the money you have provided for my scholarship! It will help me very much in paying for the study abroad program. I have been looking forward to studying abroad since I was a child so this is a dream come true for me!"

Nicole Biddinger – Biological Sciences, Class of 2017
"Thank you so much for your support of study abroad endeavors for students in the College of Science! It is an absolute honor to have received this scholarship to support my study abroad trip. As Saint Augustine once wrote, 'The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page.' and I feel fortunate to graduate from Purdue next year knowing that I have read as much of that book as possible."

Alexus Roberts – Biology and Chemistry, Class of 2017
"I cannot even begin to describe how appreciative I am of people like you who are generous in their support of students like me! These funds are allowing me to get the experiences I need to matriculate into an amazing graduate school program. In turn, this will put me well on my way to having a successful career!"

Joel Garcia – Chemistry, Class of 2018
"I was born in Guatemala and lived there for eight years. My family first moved to the U.S. because my mother was given the opportunity to obtain her PhD from Purdue in Food Science and Nutrition. I hope to be involved in a health related career where I can use my knowledge and abilities to help people. By obtaining a degree from Purdue University, I know that this will be possible. Without your help, my family would struggle financially and being here at Purdue would be impossible."

Jaron Tong – Chemistry and Physics, Class of 2018
"It is a tremendous honor to have been selected as one of your scholarship recipients. As an international student in this huge university, I constantly have doubts and wonder if I am doing the right things. With help from people like you who have said 'yes', I have found my voice and my identity. Receiving this scholarship is certainly a loud, affirming yes to my academic career and for that I am beyond grateful. Thank you!"

Jason Shipp – Computer Science and Applied Mathematics, Class of 2018
"Beyond simply being abroad, my scholarship allows me to expand my scholastic endeavors while I study at the University of St. Andrews. Your generosity is also aiding my involvement in my sport, fencing, while abroad. I have been a fencer for the last eight years, and with this opportunity I will be able to be coached from a former Olympian and Olympic coach."

Kaitlyn Dowden – Mathematic-Statistics Emphasis, Economics, Class of 2018
"I am so touched and honored to receive this scholarship. I am going to use the money to help fund my semester abroad at the University of Bath in the United Kingdom, where I will be studying Math and Statistics at one of the best science universities in the UK. I intend to make the most of my trip. I have already started speaking to my Statistics professor in the UK and I plan to travel while I'm aborad to soak up as many different cultures as possible. While I'm a student at the University of Bath, I intend to study Time Series, Probability, and Complex Analysis, which I am very excited about. I cannot say how absolutely eternally thankful I am for this scholarship and all that it will allow me to accomplish!"

Kenny Nguyen – Neurobiology & Physiology, Class of 2018
"I am truly honored and cannot thank you enough for your kind donation. Because of your generosity, I am able to attend the university that I love and study my passions to the fullest extent. Your donation has truly been pivotal in the funding of my college education. As an out-of-state student, I am paying an enormous amount for my college tuition. And to not burden my parents, I decided to take a loan and personally be responsible for the funding of my college education. I honestly cannot thank you enough. This scholarship has greatly helped me in achieving and reaching my dreams. When I graduate from Purdue, I aspire to become a person such as yourself and generously aid in funding the education of students."

Margaret "Maggie" Christy – Actuarial Science & Applied Statistics, Class of 2019
"Thank you so much for your generous scholarship award. I am truly honored to be the recipient of this scholarship. Your generosity has greatly aided in funding my education costs this year. Receiving this award has relieved some of the financial burden for paying for college and made it easy for me to choose Purdue University."

Tyler Azbell – Chemistry, Class of 2019
"Thank you immensely for your generosity, for this opportunity, and for your continued support for the College of Science at Purdue! I am an out-of-state student from Ohio and only through generous scholarships like yours have I been able to attend Purdue. The chemistry program at Purdue is highly esteemed and when looking at many schools my goal was to reach for the best. The opportunities provided for me at Purdue have already started to broaden my career path and I look forward to continuing my studies here. Financial assistance such as this scholarship helps me worry less about the pressures of tuition and focus more on academics. I want to thank you very much for providing me with this scholarship and I assure you that the gift will not be put to waste."

Alexander Sganga– Computer Science, Class of 2019
"I really appreciate the financial assistance this scholarship will provide. I have an older brother who has severe autism, and he will likely be a large financial responsibility for my family for the rest of his life. This has made it more difficult for my family to finance my collegiate education, and this scholarship goes a long way to helping alleviate some of that burden."

Stephenie Droll – Genetics, Class of 2019
"Your generosity helped take me to Germany for a summer study abroad experience. I am so very thankful. Going back to Germany has been a goal of mine since the first time I went 6 years ago. This time, I was able to improve my German reading and listening skills and prove that I had enough knowledge to navigate and converse in German. I was able to successfully complete my German minor, make new friends, and enjoy living in another culture. Thank you so much for helping me go on this life-changing trip."

Michael Smith – Mathematics, Class of 2019
"I want to thank you so much for this opportunity that I never expected. This scholarship came to me at a time when my aid was shaky and my parents and I were worried if I would be alright financially. My schooling to me isn't just a future career or investment, it is the fuel to my passion. Words cannot express how excited I was to know that things were going to work out for my school payments. I hope that I will be able to treat this donation like an investment into the future and someday, somehow, pay at least some of it back to this wonderful community. Without the help of those like you, our future would indeed be bleak. Again, I thank you so much."

Zach Tatum – Mathematics, Class of 2019
"Thank you for everything you do for college students. Scholarship donors provide an opportunity to seek higher education and your generosity has assisted me in pursuing my dreams and aspirations. College already has enough challenges without the financial aspect being taking into account, so any bit of help with affording college I can say truly means the world to me."