UNC Greensboro graduated its inaugural class of McNair Scholars in May, and now 11 of the 17 scholars have started the next chapter in their academic journey: graduate school.

The UNCG-McNair Scholars Program is a federal TRiO program funded by the U.S. Department of Education that prepares undergraduate students for the pursuit of a doctoral degree. The program is designed for first-generation students from low-income backgrounds, as well as students who are members of groups that are traditionally underrepresented in graduate studies.

UNCG launched its McNair Program in the fall of 2017 and is one of just five universities in the UNC System to offer it. UNCG-McNair provides students with faculty mentorship, research and conference presentation opportunities, and graduate school preparation.

Alyssa Sanchez ’19 is now pursuing a doctorate in pharmacy at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. Some of her peers enrolled at graduate programs here at UNCG. Others left Greensboro for master’s and doctoral programs at American University, the University of Nevada, Reno, and the University of South Carolina, to name a few.

Alyssa credits UNCG-McNair for helping her get accepted to what was her top choice for graduate school.

“The entire program was very student-centric,” said Sanchez. “The McNair staff provided mentorship, helped me study for the Pharmacy College Admission Test, and supported me financially to continue with my research over the summer.”

TO LEARN MORE:
studentsuccess.uncg.edu/uncg-mcnair-scholars-program

By Alyssa Bedrosian