Trinity College announces Ussher Scholars

Posted on: 15 June 2005

The recipients of the Ussher International Fellowship Awards at Trinity College were announced today at a reception to mark the College’s inaugural Graduate Students’ Research Day. The six students were presented with iPAQs, donated by Decision Support Systems. The group contains two students from overseas. Sixiang Zhou from China is completing a PhD in the functional and structural correlates in arterial stiffness, while Zhu Diao, also from China, is pursuing a PhD in biophysics, including biomagnetism and the application of nanomaterials in biology research. The other four students are from Ireland and their PhD studies cover a diverse range of topics: Richard Hamilton is studying the German philosopher, Martin Heidegger’s philosophy of technology; Gillian Jein is studying the representation of cities in French travel writing of the 19th and 20th centuries; Daniel Kelleher is focusing on web-based contextual information Retrieval; while Kathryn McGarry is researching female prostitution in Ireland. “The Ussher International Fellowships are the most prestigious postgraduate awards that the College currently offers. They are awarded to exceptionally well-qualified candidates of outstanding promise and attract between 200-300 applicants each year. The choice of recipient is based on open competition from applicants from any discipline from all over the world. The lucky recipients of these studentships receive full fee remission and a maintenance contribution of €12,700 per year,” explained Prof. Patrick Prendergast, Dean of Graduate Studies. The Inaugural Graduate Students’ Research Day covered pertinent issues such as postgraduate students’ expectations about supervision, career planning, publishing while studying, and applying for resources. The day, organised in conjunction with the Graduate Students’ Union, was supported by the Trinity Annual Fund. The latest edition of the Trinity College Journal of Postgraduate Research was launched by the Provost, Dr. John Hegarty at the reception.