The Henry Luce Foundation has selected Claremont McKenna College as one of 65 colleges and universities to recommend candidates for the prestigious Luce Scholars Program, which provides annual stipends and internships to 15 young Americans interested in living and working in Asia for a year.
Although CMC students currently enrolled in their senior year of studies are eligible for the fellowships, the program often selects recent, high-achieving graduates who already are on the trajectory to being leaders in their career fields, says assistant professor of government Ken Miller, who is helping oversee the nomination process for CMC. "Recent CMC alumni should consider applying for the Luce Scholars Program," Miller says, "perhaps after they have completed a Fulbright or other fellowship, or law school, or a stint in investment banking."
An overview of the program, including frequently asked questions, can be found at: (http://www.hluce.org/3scholfm.html.) Applicants must be U.S. citizens with at least a bachelor's degree, and must not be more than 29 years of age on Sept. 1 of the year they enter the program. Candidates may have backgrounds in virtually any field other than Asian studies, including medicine, the arts, business, law, science, environmental studies, and journalism.
Students or alumni who already have significant experience in Asia or Asian studies are not eligible for the fellowship. "The reasoning," says Miller, "is that the program is designed to create an awareness of Asia among as many future leaders as possible, not those who are already familiar with the region."
Fellowships begin in August and conclude the following July. Applications are submitted by eligible institutions the first week of December. Following an interview process with finalists, winners are announced in mid-March, for placements in the following countries in East and Southeast Asia: Brunei, Cambodia, China and Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam.
This is not the first time CMC has participated in the Luce Scholars Program.
As a junior majoring both in philosophy and literature, David Schneider '80 spent a semester as an intern in the newsroom at the CBS-owned television station in Los Angeles (Channel 2). The following year, as a senior, he applied for the Luce Scholars Program and was selected upon graduation for an internship with GMA Television in Manila, Philippines, serving as foreign news editor for 11 months. "I was 22 years old, producing a nightly five-minute section covering world news," says Schneider. " It was a life changing experience, both professionally and personally."
Schneider is the first of two Luce scholars from CMC. Ed Eger '83, of Citibank in Singapore, also was selected for the program.
Upon his return, Schneider joined CBS News, working for the Evening News shows in Los Angeles and Denver, and became one of the original producers for both 48 Hours and 60 Minutes II. He currently serves as head of a documentary unit at JAK Films, the production arm of Lucasfilm, overseeing the creation of approximately 100 historical documentaries covering the early 20th century.
"The Luce Scholars Program was hugely important to me, not because it opened specific doors in my career," he says, "but because it gave me time to explore a part of the world that was beyond my universe: to see things, meet people, ask questions and, most importantly, to listen to and observe life as others live it."
For more information about the program or applying for the fellowship, contact Professor Ken Miller, 909-607-2811, kmiller@claremontmckenna.edu; or John Faranda '79, vice president for alumni relations/director of development, 909-621-8153, john.faranda@claremontmckenna.edu.