Dominic Meiklejohn

Part of UK in USA [New York]

30th August 2011 New York, USA

It’s that time of year again for Marshall Scholarships

Guest blog by Ann Reinking, Media and Public Affairs Coordinator.

Planning the federal budget for President Obama. Directing and writing the Hollywood film The Adjustment Bureau. Co-founding the professional social networking site Linked-In. These are just a few examples of the impressive achievements of Marshall Scholarship recipients.

The Marshall Scholarship provides American students with the exciting opportunity to study in the UK for their graduate degrees. Founded in 1953, this highly-competitive scholarship is named for US Secretary of State George C. Marshall, and reflects the enduring relationship between the UK and the US.  

As college students make their way back to campuses in September, we here at the Consulate are preparing for the next round of Marshall Scholarship applications. It’s always an enjoyable process of reviewing applications and joining interviews with candidates that possess such diverse, remarkable interests and experiences.

Last year, the New York Regional Selection Committee granted five scholarships to Andrew Furnas, Kristen Hall, Gerardo Melendez-Torres, Alessondra Speidel and Nathaniel Thomas. Mr. Furnas, a graduate of Brown University with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics, will pursue his studies in the area of using mathematics to better understand the weaving of fabrics. Ms. Hall graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, and with experience in studying the effects of HIV/AIDS on the growth of Botswana’s service sector and travelling to Tanzania, she will pursue a Master of Science in economics for development at Oxford University. Mr. Melendez-Torres, also a University of Pennsylvania graduate, will study for a Master of Philosophy degree in evidence-based social intervention at Oxford University. 

With a bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering from Duke University, Ms. Speidel will focus her studies on clinical applications of regenerative medicine at Imperial College London, drawing on her previous research in regenerating cardiac tissue.  Mr. Thomas double-majored at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with undergraduate degrees in physics and mathematics, and minors in economics and music. He will use his Marshall Scholarship to pursue a Master of Advanced Study in mathematics at Cambridge University and a master of Computer Science degree at Oxford University. 

These five scholars are indicative of the extraordinary students that embark to the UK every September on Marshall Scholarships, and we look forward to hearing about their experiences and what their next ventures will be upon returning to the US.

To learn more about the Marshall Scholarship, visit http://www.marshallscholarship.org/about/   

About Dominic Meiklejohn

I was born in Woking, outside London, in 1967 and attended Merton College, Oxford University, graduating in Politics, Philosophy and Economics. After university, I worked for HM Customs and Excise…

I was born in Woking, outside London, in 1967 and attended Merton College, Oxford University, graduating in Politics, Philosophy and Economics.

After university, I worked for HM Customs and Excise before joining the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1990. After working for the European Community Department, I learned Polish and began a posting at the British Embassy Warsaw, where I headed the British Know How Fund for Poland (1993-96). In 1997, I worked for the OSCE Mission in Albania, before heading up the India team in the South Asian Department of the FCO. In 2000, I was posted as First Secretary to the British Embassy Warsaw, with a particular focus on European Union issues in the run-up to Poland’s accession to the EU. In 2003, I returned to the UK as Deputy Head of the Environment Policy Department. From 2004-2005, I led the FCO’s Knowledge Management Programme. During this period, I led two deployments of the FCO’s Consular Rapid Deployment Team– to Sri Lanka, after the tsunami in 2004 and to Pakistan, after the earthquake in 2005. From 2006-2007, I served as Deputy Consul-General, Basra, Iraq. From June 2007 I worked with the FCO’s Change Unit.

I took up my current appointment on 22 January 2008. My wife Joanne and I are the proud parents of Olivia. Outside of the office, I cycle around Manhattan, play soccer (football) and, when parenting duties allow, enjoy the cultural riches offered by New York. I try hard to understand baseball.

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