Mary Shamon

Name: Mary Shamon

College:  Stevenson

Department:  Politics

What Award/ Scholarship did you receive?  Rick Hooper Scholarship

What year do you expect to graduate? 2022

Where do you call home?  I am born and raised in Modesto California

With all of the choices for college, what made UC Santa Cruz stand out?  After visiting UCSC I instantly knew it was the place for me. Not only is It located in a beautiful city that provides the forest and the beach, but it was also a perfect distance from my hometown. After doing my research UCSC stood out for its research programs and all the wonderful things I heard about the professors and departments.

What is your field of focus? I am a politics major.

What do you hope to do once you graduate from UC Santa Cruz?  Once I graduate from UCSC I hope to begin law school where I will focus on International Law and International Relations. After law school I would like to work for a human rights organization with specific research on the Middle East.

What is one memorable moment that stands out for you as a student here?  A memorable moment from my time at UC Santa Cruz would be my freshman year 2019 when I first moved to Santa Cruz and was living in the dorms surrounded by nature and great people. A memorable time would just be all the days I was able to walk around campus.

What is your one piece of advice for incoming students about life at UC Santa Cruz? A piece of advice I have for incoming students would be to really put yourself out there. Apply to scholarships, apply to study abroad programs, research everything the school has to offer and go for it! Pushing myself out of my comfort zone and searching for things to enhance my experience really gave me a lot. 

How will this scholarship impact your academic life /research?  This scholarship will help with the financial burden of studying abroad but it will also greatly impact my future research and academic life. After researching Rick Hooper, I was so pleased to hear about all of his accomplishments in the UN as well as with Middle Eastern research. I hope to follow in his footsteps as a UCSC alumni.