UCSC Grad Named Rhodes Scholar, First In The School’s History

SANTA CRUZ, CA — In May, Garima Desai graduated from the University of California, Santa Cruz with a double major in Environmental Studies and Economics. She has just been named the first Rhodes Scholar in the university's history.

Desai currently works as a transportation planner in Oakland but will head to Oxford next October to pursue an M.Sc. in Economics for Development and an M.Sc. in Environmental Change and Management.

While at UC-Santa Cruz, Desai worked as a research assistant on issues related to housing and transportation. Her passion is to use economics as a tool to solve climate issues.

The Rhodes Trust selected 32 Americans as Rhodes Scholars for the 2021 academic year. They triumphed over 2300 applicants.

Elliot F. Gerson, American Secretary of the Rhodes Trust, said, “These young Americans will go to Oxford next October to study in fields broadly across the social, biological and physical sciences, the humanities, and public policy. They are leaders already, and we are confident that their contributions to public welfare globally will expand exponentially over the course of their careers.”

Rhodes Scholarships pay all expenses for two or three years of study at the University of Oxford in England — ranked the number 1 university in the world in some global rankings — and may allow funding in some instances for four years. The total value of the scholarship averages $70,000 per year, depending on the field of study.

The Scholarships were created in 1902 by the will of Cecil Rhodes. Past recipients include President Bill Clinton, George Stephanopoulos, James William Fulbright, Edwin Hubble, Bill Bradley, Cory Booker, and Dean Rusk.

The 32 U.S. Rhodes Scholars will join an international group of Scholars chosen from more than 60 countries around the world.