Yale Law School student Alaa Hajyahia will study at the University of Cambridge as the recipient of a prestigious Gates Cambridge Scholarship. Hajyahia was chosen in the international round of the competition.
She joins two American citizens with Yale ties — Yale senior Jennifer Miao ’22 and alumna Maya Juman ’20 — who were selected in the U.S. round earlier this year.
Before starting her studies at Yale, Hajyahia completed her undergraduate and graduate studies in law, sociology, and anthropology at Tel Aviv University in Israel.
Hajyahia, Miao, and Juman are among 79 students from around the world who will begin study at the world-class university in England this fall. Gates Cambridge Scholars receive full tuition toward their study and research in any subject at the University of Cambridge. The postgraduate scholarship program was established through a $210 million donation from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in 2000. Scholars are chosen for the academic achievement and their desire to improve the lives of others.
Since the first class in 2001, the Gates Cambridge Foundation has awarded 2,081 scholarships to students from more than 600 universities and 111 countries. Recent awardees are studying subjects ranging from food security to bat reservoirs for viral diseases to how gut hormones control food intake and blood glucose levels.
“We are delighted for Alaa, who won in the international Gates competition, and for Jennifer and Maya, who won in the U.S. Gates competition,” said Rebekah Westphal, assistant dean of Yale College and director of fellowships in the Yale Center for International and Professional Experience. “They have all been recognized for their strong commitment to improving the lives and others and for their exceptional academic work.”
