Local trio off to the US on scholarship programme

TYRONE trio, Leticia Aranyi, Rebecca Smyth and Cliona McGurgan, are off to study in the USA this month.

They will be among 48 students on Study USA, a programme which offers scholarships to study business or Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) related subjects in American colleges, across 28 states, helping to develop their career prospects when they return to the North.

Leticia and Cliona are both from Omagh. Leticia, a Food and Nutrition student at Ulster University is off to Emory and Henry College in Virginia, while Cliona, who studies Law at Queen’s University Belfast, will spend the next year on the opposite side of the country at Saint Martin’s University, Washington.

Rebecca, from Dromore, is also a Law student at Queen’s University Belfast and is heading to the University of Tulsa.

Speaking ahead of their departure, Leticia (20), who is a past pupil of Drumragh Integrated College, said, “I decided to participate in the Study USA programme because it is an amazing opportunity to challenge myself and in doing so widen my horizons both academically and socially. I am excited to meet new people and make life-long friends to share this invaluable experience with.

“I know I will greatly benefit from this opportunity of living and studying abroad as it will allow me to gain a global mind-set, network with a diverse range of people and obtain international experience. Without a doubt, these factors will assist me in my career plans within the food sector once I finish my degree in Food and Nutrition.”

The British Council, which is the UK’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations, manages Study USA on behalf of the Department for the Economy – and since its formation in 1994, the initiative has sent over 2,000 students studying in the North to all four corners of the United States.

Jonathan Stewart, British Council Northern Ireland director, said, “Study USA is a great way for Northern Ireland students to connect with another country, to really get to understand that country through living there for a year, and enhance their CV by developing new skills in an international setting.

“While in the US, the students will have the opportunity to learn from leading experts in their field, developing intercultural skills that will prepare them for working in a global economy.

“Most importantly, our students will build links with counterparts in the United States that will last a lifetime.”