Sharon Lee Smith
Environmental Engineering doctoral student

"I was heavily recruited by a number of other universities, but the UI just felt more like home," says graduate student Sharon Lee Smith. "When I was an undergraduate, I participated in the Graduate College's Summer Research Opportunity Program. This program helped me to both mature as a student and to determine that environmental engineering was my path."

Several excellent graduate engineering programs recruited Sharon, and some offered financial packages beyond what the UI had been able to offer. Then the UI Graduate College stepped in, offering Sharon a prestigious Graduate Merit Fellowship.

"I cannot say enough about how much the Graduate College has offered me as a student and person," says Sharon. "I hope one day to become a college professor and to use my Iowa graduate degree to help developing countries maintain a clean water supply."

Sharon's story is more than one of individual triumph: She began working toward her Ph.D. degree with two young sons -- Jaylen, 5, and Marquis, 6 -- in tow. The Graduate College offered her additional funding to help her move from Louisiana and resettle her family in Iowa City.

"To be successful you have to be happy," Sharon points out. "The Graduate College's financial support and the warm, friendly environment the Graduate College promotes have been key to my success as an engineering student. I wish I could personally thank all supporters of the Graduate College's fellowship programs."

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