Directory

I was raised in Marion, Arkansas and attended the University of Georgia as a Foundation Fellow and Stamps Scholar to study genetics. I devoted much of my time on campus to researching protein kinases using bioinformatic and biochemical approaches and working as a campus tour guide. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I began researching developmental lung biology at Vanderbilt. I quickly realized my interest at the intersection of developmental and cancer biology and the wide therapeutic potential the field offers. As an aspiring physician-scientist, I also took time to research public health in my home region as a Delta Scholar and wrote for the Boston Congress of Public Health. At Cambridge, I will pursue a PhD in the Department of Physiology, Development, and Neuroscience to functionally assess the cell extrinsic and intrinsic mechanisms controlling human lung airway fate specification. Through this research, I hope to deepen our understanding of fundamental biological processes to guide personalized medical therapies that are accessible to all populations. I am grateful to be joining the Gates Cambridge community and am honored to have been selected for a cohort in which intellectual acumen and compassion are equally valued.

Previous Education

University of Georgia Genetics, Minor in Statistics 2022

Lucy Burgchardt's background in archaeology informs her current research into how archaeological findings are taken up in public life and used toward political ends. Her award-winning dissertation, completed at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, investigated the history of preservation advocacy on behalf of ancestral Indigenous landscapes in the Southwestern United States. Her next project is an analysis of organizational rhetoric at sites like Mesa Verde National Park and Chaco Culture National Historical Park.

Previous Education

Ripon College

I have always been interested in the underlying mechanisms of disease, particularly cancer. After my undergraduate degree at Rhodes University, a small university in a small town in South Africa, I needed to decide between chemistry and biochemistry for my postgraduate endeavours; even though I love biochemistry, I opted for chemistry, as it allowed me to explore diseases (and other topics) with a molecular approach and left a few more doors open. Over the course of my undergraduate degree and postgraduate research, this interest has been ignited and has ultimately developed into an insatiable hunger to understand more. I will now be doing my PhD with a broader focus encompassing both chemistry and biochemistry. This project will investigate the effect that Glioblastoma Multiforme (malignant brain tumours) has on the surrounding extracellular matrix within brain tissue, in order to enhance its progression and invasion. Once the mechanism of the disease has been mapped out, an intelligent molecular intervention can be designed. I am just delighted about what this opportunity has to offer me in my quest for knowledge, filling the research gap, sharing my love for science and combatting this devastating disease.

Previous Education

Rhodes University Chemistry 2023
Rhodes University Chemistry 2022
Rhodes University Chemistry and Biochemistry 2021

I am reading for an MPhil in the History and Philosophy of Science with a concentration in the history of medicine. My research focuses on modern reproductive medicine and technology. Upon returning to the US, I will matriculate at the Mount SInai School of Medicine through the "Humanities and Medicine Program." I am a 2009 graduate of Northwestern University with a BA in American Studies and I hail from Pittsburgh, PA.

I was born and raised in Guadalajara, Mexico, and studied Mechanical Engineering at Brown University. As a senior, I joined the Applied Mechanics Lab and fell in love with experimental research on microstructures. I learned that designing lattice architectures can create materials that are stiffer, tougher, or more energy-absorptive. This world of engineering and design felt like a form of sculpture—one where nature’s principles and perfect designs guide material innovation. During my MPhil in Micro & Nanotechnology Enterprise at Cambridge, I hope to deepen my understanding of how micro- and nanostructures influence material performance, with a focus on scalable manufacturing techniques. I believe that microstructures have the potential to revolutionize industries by allowing the development of stronger, lighter, and more efficient components.As a woman in STEM, I want to help redefine who gets to shape the future of engineering. I am proud to represent my family, Mexico, and the US, and hope to pave the way for more women to push boundaries in science and technology. I’m honored to join the Gates Cambridge community and create tiny structures to drive massive advancements that can make the world a better place.

Previous Education

Brown University Mechanical Engineering

Between 2015 and 2021 I was Lecturer and later Senior Lecturer in Urban History at the University of Leicester. In 2021 I joined Mary Immaculate College (MIC), Limerick, Ireland, as Director of Research.

I am an Associate Professor teaching medieval literature in the Department of English Literature at the University of Reading. My primary research interest is the literature of medieval England. My first book "Otherworlds: Fantasy and History in Medieval Literature" was published by Oxford University Press in 2015.The Gates Cambridge Trust funded my MPhil (2008) and PhD (2011) at the University of Cambridge. Before coming to Reading, I spent four years working at the University of Oxford as Fitzjames Research Fellow in Old and Middle English at Merton College.

Previous Education

University of Cambridge PhD Medieval Literature 2011
University of Cambridge MPhil Medieval and Renaissance Literature 2008
University College Dublin BA English 2007

Growing up in Long Island, New York, my interest in science stemmed from a long-held obsession with Agatha Christie novels and crime television. Fascinated by the mysteries that science could uncover, I threw myself wholeheartedly into the incredible research program offered by my high school. While attending Carnegie Mellon University, my interests began to narrow; I sought out research experiences at the interface of biology and chemistry. I came to realize that biology was a predictable, malleable series of reactions in which I, as a chemist, had the power to interfere when those reactions went wrong. During my MPhil in Chemistry, I hope to work towards elucidating some of the molecular mechanisms that allow genetic material to be translated into the many proteins that are needed to sustain life. In doing so, I can develop molecules that prevent dysregulation of protein production, and the diseases that come with it. The ability to break down complicated biological processes into well-controlled experiments will be an invaluable skill as I ultimately lead my own research group in developing therapeutic agents against cancer.

Previous Education

Carnegie Mellon University

Growing up in the Bolivian Amazon, I witnessed both the construction of infrastructure and the creation of natural reserves. The puzzling tensions between these projects sparked my interest in the politics of the built and natural environment. I moved to Mexico to pursue a BA in Industrial Design at Tec the Monterrey, a training that left me well attuned to the ways in which material cultures (re)produce human-nature relations. During my MPhil in Latin American Studies, I studied the expansion of infrastructures, socio-environmental conflicts, and the emergence of the bio-tech approach to regional development. Now, through my PhD in Geography, I seek to understand the dynamics between scientific knowledge and entrepreneurial networks, and the role that such dynamics play in shaping visions of development in the Amazon. More specifically, I plan to examine how genetic and genomic sciences are enabling the emergence of new discourses and practices of development in relation to the enormous biological diversity concentrated in the Amazon Basin. My research interests also include Indigenous Knowledge, Bioeconomy, Intellectual Property of Genetic Material, and Histories of Development.

Previous Education

University of Cambridge Latin American Studies 2020
Tec de Monterrey (ITESM CEM) Industrial Design 2012

Growing up in Beijing, China, before moving to the U.S. for high school, I have been drawn to the fundamental questions of nature—both how we can use computation to understand it and how nature itself can be harnessed as a computational resource. This curiosity led me to quantum information theory, where I have been excited to explore the fundamental capabilities of quantum computers with theoretical guarantees. Throughout my undergraduate career at the California Institute of Technology, I worked on quantum simulations, quantum algorithms, and quantum error correction, where I have been fascinated by how techniques in theoretical computer science could be applied to help illuminate physical phenomena. At University of Cambridge, I will be pursuing a MPhil in Advanced Computer Science to further my understanding of interdisciplinary approaches that integrate physics, computer science, and mathematics to push the boundaries of quantum technology. I am excited to contribute to the future of quantum computing as both a researcher and, hopefully, one day as an educator, and I look forward to being part of the Gates Cambridge scholar community.

Previous Education

California Institute of Technology Electrical Engineering

My interest in the intersection of child nutrition and education grew out of my experience helping to start Vincent Academy, a charter school in West Oakland, CA. I have pursued the topic of child nutrition in my coursework as a Health and Societies major at the University of Pennsylvania. My thesis investigated the impact of recent changes to the nutritional composition of school meals in Philadelphia and its surrounding suburbs. As a Gates Cambridge scholar, I hope to continue to explore the potential for schools to function as a locus for health intervention, with a specific focus on mechanisms for preventing childhood obesity. As an undergraduate, I have been involved in starting and managing an afterschool program at the HMS School for Children with Cerebral Palsy and have worked as a college access mentor at West Philadelphia High School. Going forward, I hope to continue to work with children in a range of educational settings.

Interests: mountain biking, hiking, sailing, skiing (downhill and cross country), running, and baking.

Previous Education

University of Pennsylvania