Over the past year, students from each Collegiate Division, and from a broad range of majors, have received national recognition in prestigious fellowships, including the Marshall, Rhodes and Truman Scholarships. But, how do students navigate these highly-selective and competitive opportunities?
Look no further than the Office of National Fellowships in the College.
Arthur Salvo
“I received a research Fulbright to Germany when I was an undergraduate, and it was a life-changing experience,” said Dr. Arthur Salvo, interim director and assistant dean of national fellowships in the College. “Knowing first-hand how fellowships can change a student’s trajectory is what brought me to the College, and to this role.”
A longtime educator, Salvo taught German language, culture and literature at Columbia University, then Colgate University, before coming to the University of Chicago in 2018. Today, he and his team are tasked with supporting College students who apply for nationally competitive fellowships. However, for Salvo, engaging in the process is just as transformative, regardless whether a student is awarded a prize.
“When I work with students, I tell them that our pride in them has nothing to do with the selection decisions that committees make,” said Salvo. “Our admiration for them is rooted in their commitment to the learning process, to answering difficult questions that they otherwise might not encounter, but that can have a profound impact on their future path and the impact of their work. Our office is committed to fostering this kind of intensive learning and self-understanding that is rooted in the aims of a liberal arts education.”
We sat down with Arthur to learn more about the work of the Office of National Fellowships in the College and how students can take advantage of the supports they have to offer.
What are fellowships, and what opportunities do they provide students?
So, there's a definitional answer and there's one that’s more interesting. We'll skip the boring one. The interesting way of thinking about fellowships is that they are vehicles that help students develop the skills and talents they need to serve our world.
Fellowships offer experiences that are just as unique as our students, their interests and their commitments. There are fellowships that support graduate study, research experiences, foreign language acquisition and immersion in different cultures. There are also opportunities that support the humanities, STEM, the social sciences and more. And there are awards that offer pathways to public service and that support future leaders who are intent on making change.
Our goal is for students to find an opportunity that is a match for their vision of themselves and the capacities that they want to develop during their time here at the University of Chicago and beyond.
How do students get engaged with your office?
There are opportunities to meet us all over campus throughout the year—we table at College-wide events, host frequent information sessions and events of our own, and also present in classes and with other campus offices year-round.
If you are a student, you also receive a weekly email that includes everything you need to know. My colleague, Annabella Melvin, sends out a newsletter every Monday that highlights our fellowships sessions and extends a weekly invitation to work with us. It also celebrates student stories that help you see the pivotal role that fellowships have played in the lives of your peers.
We also offer general advising hours. If you think there might be an opportunity you want to explore, you can come and meet with a member of our staff. The sign up is right through the link in those emails.
How does the Office of National Fellowships support students through this process?
We forge long-term, developmental relationships with students and help them achieve extraordinary things. For many students, we’re working with them for years, and sometimes even after they graduate from the College.
In addition to helping students identify which fellowships might be a good fit, my team members Johanna Best, Jenna Sarchio and I provide expert counsel through one-on-one advising meetings and draft review; we get in the trenches with students, guiding them through each stage of intensive application processes. We also help applicants prepare for national interviews and foster community, enabling them to connect and learn through this shared experience.
What do you take away from this work?
I take away a great sense of pride in our students—we’re proud that they have courage to apply for competitive awards, to engage in deep self-reflection, and we're proud of their actual agency in the world.
We think of fellowships as a fundamentally educational endeavor. And that's important, because in a world that is often outcome-oriented, we are focused on personal growth, on development, and on cultivating a sense of purpose that is ultimately directed outwards. At the end of the day, we celebrate what students have learned in the fellowships process and all the things they have accomplished that made them candidates in the first place. And these achievements are theirs.
I think about how our student leaders have served populations that deserve our care—people who are incarcerated, people who are migrants, people who are fighting substance use disorders, people who are precariously housed, or who are finding their footing after serving in armed conflict—and I take joy in knowing that UChicago students have improved the lives of others. I think about student researchers who are making important contributions to their disciplines and who have sought to increase our understanding of neurodegenerative diseases and advance cancer research. We have students who are challenging us to think about the value of textile art, who are changing how we understand ancient tablets and making them accessible to others. And we have visionaries who are building urgently needed bridges across communities of difference and who are focused on saving our endangered planet. These are all real areas where our students are making our world a better place, and this matters because they are our future.
