Four UC Merced graduate students can focus fully on their research and academic studies this year thanks to a generous gift from the Northern California Chapter of the Achievement Rewards for College Scientists (ARCS) Foundation.
ARCS, a national organization established and operated entirely by women, is committed to the advancement of science in the United States by financially supporting distinguished graduate students in science, technology, engineering and medical research disciplines at its partner institutions.
UC Merced was named a partner university by the ARCS Foundation in 2022 and the 2023-2024 academic year is the campus’ second time awarding the fellowship.
“We are grateful for our partnership with the ARCS Northern California Chapter advancing science and engineering graduate education in the Central Valley,” Vice Provost and Dean of Graduate Studies Hrant Hratchian said. “The ARCS Foundation’s generous fellowship support helps eliminate barriers and empower our graduate students to further propel their research.”
This is Ph.D. student Zunaira Iqbal’s second year as an ARCS Scholar. Her research with Cognitive and Information Sciences (CIS) professors Kristina Backer, Antoine “Tony” Shahin and Michael Spivey focuses on Spanish-English bilingual speech perception — specifically how various factors, such as visual information and attention, influence bilingual phonetic perception.
“It is such an honor to receive the ARCS fellowship and to be recognized for my language neuroscience research,” the Fremont native said. “This scholarship allows me to focus on my research and additional opportunities, such as applying to postdoctoral programs.”
