Two Duke seniors were awarded the prestigious Marshall Scholarship this year for their undergraduate achievements, both having done significant laboratory research.
Sally Liu, a pre-med student, an Angier B. Duke Scholar and a pole vaulter on the track and field team, was awarded the scholarship for her research on the effects of temperature on a mutant fruit fly model for spastic paraplegia.
Dan Roberts, an engineering and physics double major and math minor, won the scholarship for his research in the field of transformative optics and his work with electromagnetic devices that act as an "invisibility cloak."
University administrators said they are proud of Liu and Roberts.
"These scholarships are fantastic for our students," Provost Peter Lange said. "They are a credit to the University, but really above all, a credit to the students."
The highly selective Marshall Scholarship annually finances two years of graduate-level study in the United Kingdom for up to 40 young Americans.
"The great thing about the scholarship is that you get to pick what you want to do as long as it is at a university in the United Kingdom for two years," Roberts said. "It's completely flexible, which is fantastic."
Roberts will begin his scholarship at the University of Cambridge next year, where he will pursue a Certificate of Advanced Study in mathematics. The following year he will join renowned scientist Sir John Pendry in his lab.
"Pendry is the foremost authority in the field," Roberts said. "He first invented transformation optics and came up with the idea that you can do any of this, so I'm very excited to work with him."
Liu plans to spend her first year at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, where she will complete a masters in public health, deferring her admission to several medical schools. She will spend the following year at the London School of Economics.
"I wanted to do a coursework-based masters because I haven't done a lot of formal public health work as an undergrad," Liu said. "Most of my work in college has been in more basic science or basic biomedical research, whereas the grad program is more interdisciplinary and I'll be looking at health issues on a population level."
Liu, who was also a finalist for the Rhodes Scholarship, credits Duke with helping her win the award.
"Duke has been amazing," she said. "Some of its biggest strengths have been the amazing research opportunities, the encouraging environment for undergrads and faculty mentorship."
Roberts, a current recipient of Duke's Goldwater Scholarship, said as well that Duke helped to open doors for him to explore his research interests.
"I think that going to a university like Duke provided opportunities for me, but I think it was ultimately up to me to actually exercise those opportunities and pursue the things that I was interested in," Roberts said.
Both Roberts and Liu said strong personal relationships with faculty members and mentors were critical to their success as applicants.
"The application process relies heavily on recommendations and I feel that I have developed personal relationship with many of my professors, specifically my research adviser," Roberts said. "I think I was able to elicit very strong recommendations."
Liu also said she appreciated the support of Duke Athletics as well as her professors in encouraging her academic interests.
"The faculty is so open to working with students," she said. "I think Duke Athletics has also done a great job of supporting athletes who want to do something outside of their sport."
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.