The President’s Distinguished Graduate Student Scholarship
The President’s Distinguished Graduate Student Scholarship, established in 2020, is designed to assist graduate students with the direct costs of their education and is based on student academic achievement and research potential. This scholarship, valued at $17,500, is awarded to current and incoming students in University of Winnipeg graduate programs.
Vrushang Patel – Applied Computer Science & Society Alumni
Receiving this prestigious award inspired me to make a new effective contribution to my thesis. This award was the opportunity to show my academic and research potential. This award allowed me to focus on my research and gave me a chance to publish a paper at a reputed conference. It also alleviates some financial burden for international students so that they can contribute to their research.
I was fortunate enough that I worked under the supervision of Dr. Sheela Ramanna from the department of Applied Computer Science. My research was focused on Natural Language Processing (NLP) domain. I introduced a new Text Classification algorithm and “Covid-Sentiment” dataset as a part of my thesis. I used Tolerance Near Sets to perform Sentiment Analysis of the Covid-19 related tweets to analyze the sentiments of people during this pandemic. This is the first time where Tolerance Near set was used in the NLP domain. My algorithm outperformed many strong algorithms in terms of performance. Due to this excellent contribution, my research was awarded the highest distinction from the university. I would like to make one suggestion to new graduate students that always try your best to contribute with the help of your research which makes a significant impact on society.
I need to thank all of the wonderful professors who have deeply impacted my life at the University of Winnipeg. I want to say special thanks to Dr. Talal Halabi for his excellent support throughout my master’s journey. My Family and friends have been very supportive for me which has allowed me to pursue graduate studies.
2021-22 Award Recipient
Emily Unger – Master in Environmental & Social Change
Receiving the President’s Distinguished Graduate Student Scholarship is an honor. It will provide me the opportunity to focus on my research and participate fully in the MESC program as I pursue my Masters in Environment.
I am currently working with Eagle Lake First Nation and Dr. Ryan Bullock on a collaborative research project. The research will follow a relationship-based approach to understanding resource governance and related capacity needs, working collaboratively with the community to identify solutions that account for their rights and align with their long-term goals. By mobilizing different knowledges among industry professionals, academics, and community members, my research will analyze how First Nations and settler Canadian relations can be reconciled through resource governance models that in turn will help develop First Nation-university capacity needed to respond to shifting sectoral demands.
I have always enjoyed working with communities and on collaborative and mutually beneficial projects. I believe that research that is collaborative and accessible is vital to climate and environmental resilience, and I am continually surprised by the opportunities that exist when academics and community come together to create high impact research. I look forward to further developing relationships with the community here at the U of W, as well as Eagle Lake First Nation. I am thankful to have the opportunity to work on both Treaty 1 and Treaty 3 Territory as I pursue my masters.
I would like to thank my supervisor, Dr. Ryan Bullock and the community of Eagle Lake for their continued support and trust in me throughout this process, as well as my friends and family in for their support and encouragement as I continue down this path.
Revanti Mukherjee – Bioscience, Technology, and Public Policy
My name is Revanti Mukherjee. It’s an honor and privilege to be the recipient of “The President’s Distinguished Graduate Student Scholarship 2021” and I would like to express my gratitude to the Awards committee at the University of Winnipeg for giving me this award. I am a second-year graduate student at the Department of Biology and an international student from India with a background in Biotechnology. I’m working under the supervision of Dr. Anuraag Shrivastav and my research work is based on the expression of protein markers in cancer cells and identifying their role in signaling pathways that contribute to aggressive forms of Breast cancer. I was encouraged to apply for this award as it lays more emphasis on research and receiving this award strengthens my desire to do more. The scholarship award has not only renewed my motivation to achieve my academic goals but will also support my research work and timely publication of it. Part of the anxiety involved in post-secondary studies, particularly in a foreign country, is never quite knowing where you’ll end up. This award gives me the confidence to keep going and helps me focus on the right reasons. I appreciate this recognition and would like to express my gratitude to the Faculty of Graduate Studies, Awards Committee, my supervisor Dr. Anuraag Shrivastav for always supporting me and guiding me in the right direction, without whose help it would have been impossible. I would also like to thank my family and friends, who have always supported me which has made it possible for me to pursue a graduate degree. Thank you!
Diana Cowley – Indigenous Governance
Winning the UWGSS is significant to my studies because it has granted me a successful passage to completing my master’s degree. Being dedicated to my studies as it relates to my research is what qualified me for this award. The right people took notice and believed in this work, I am grateful.
I would like to thank everyone at the University of Winnipeg Graduate and Indigenous Departments, the Masters of Arts in Indigenous Governance Program, Dr. Gabriel Nemoga and Dr. Yvonne Vizina. Thank you from my heart.
I'm looking forward to blowing everyone's mind's away with this amazing research I'm doing with the Anishinaabeg of Treaty No.3 regarding their biocultural heritage that is grounded in Anishinaabe ancestral laws.
Sophia Brown – Bioscience, Technology, and Public Policy
Receiving the President’s Distinguished Graduate Student Scholarship is an honour, and it will help me during my studies in Bioscience, Technology, and Public Policy. Coming from the United States, this scholarship has aided me tremendously with my transition to Canada. I am researching bats and the fungal disease called white nose syndrome (WNS) in Dr. Craig Willis’s lab. Specifically, I have been tracking little brown bat movements during the spring and fall just before and after hibernation. Determining their movements and habitat use during this time can help to define critical habitat for this endangered species. In the upcoming academic year, I am looking forward to analyzing all the data that I have collected this field season. I would like to give a huge thank you to my supervisor, Dr. Willis, and all my friends, family, and field crew that have helped me throughout my studies.