Eight Stanford students were selected for the Schwarzman scholarship, a graduate program that funds one year of study in global affairs at Schwarzman College in Tsinghua University in Beijing, China. 

The students, announced on Jan. 15, are Emily Deng ’26, Divya Ganesan ’26, Truc Cam Nguyen ’25, Patricio Ortiz ’26, Kristine Pashin ’26, Ethan Sperla ’24, Noah Tan ’25 and Yujing Zhang ’24. They will join a cohort of 150 students from 40 countries and 83 universities. 

“I was so excited when I got the news,” Ganesan, a former Daily columnist, wrote in a statement to The Daily. 

“It felt meant to be and even more gratifying to celebrate with my Mayfield cohort, she added, referencing the entrepreneurial Stanford Mayfield fellows program. “I was in class when I got the call and they had all been supporting me through the process.”

According to the Schwarzman Scholars website, the program received a record number of applications this year, selecting the students from more than 5,800 candidates around the world.

In a social media post announcing the scholars, Stanford wrote that it is “celebrating this remarkable group of students and alumni advancing global leadership and research.”

Ganesan hopes that the program will help her develop a deeper “cultural empathy in the context of a geopolitical situation that is framed as competition rather than collaboration.”

“I feel incredibly grateful for the mentorship and support that got me there particularly Professor Zegart and Professor Diamond,” she added. 

Stephen A. Schwarzman, co-founder, chairman and CEO of Blackstone, founded the scholarship program in 2013, with admissions opening in 2015. According to Schwarzman, he was inspired by the Rhodes Scholars in an effort to “redefin[e] global leadership for the 21st century.” 

The scholars will begin their studies in August.