According to Duke's website, "Like all students offered admission to Duke, A.B. Dukes excel academically, but they distinguish themselves in a variety of other ways. Chief among their unusual attributes is a self-motivated sense of discovery and a commitment to engage and meet the challenges faced by society at large: in the arts as well as sciences, in applied policy as well as theoretical economics, and many other areas."
Ravi is the first Southlake Carroll student to receive this scholarship.
We caught up with Ravi for a quick Q&A concerning his scholarship and plans for the future.
Southlake Style: Tell us about the application process. How did you hear aboutbrthe scholarship, what went into putting the application together, and how longbrdid it take to hear back that you had received it?
Nikhil Ravi: Duke University automatically considers every one of thebrapproximately 32,000 undergraduate applicants for this renowned meritbrscholarship, so it is not something that you specifically apply for.
The Office of Undergraduate Admissions identifies A.B. DukebrScholar candidates from the overall pool of applicants and forwards theirbrapplications to the A.B. Duke Advisory Committee. The A.B. Duke Advisory Committeebrselects approximately 40 finalists from across the country and around thebrworld. In their own words “Applicants who demonstrate exceptional promise,brintellectual hunger, and an inquisitive spark may be considered a candidate forbrthe A.B. Duke Scholarship.”
I submitted my application to Duke in November, and in early March I received an email informing me that I was one of the finalists. All finalistsbrare required to visit the campus at the end of March to meet current scholars andbrfaculty and to interview with the Advisory Committee. The four-day event wasbrjam packed with interviews, discussions, tours and dinners with the faculty,brdeans and the president of Duke.
I was thrilled and honored when I received the call frombrProfessor Gillespie on the last day of my visit informing me that I was one ofbrthe 20 students selected to receive the scholarship.
SS: Why Duke? What do you like about it? Did you get a chance tobrvisit? What will you be studying your first year?
Ravi: My first visit to Duke was at thebrend of the seventh grade for a Duke TIP awards event. I remember walking wide-eyedbraround the incredibly beautiful campus wondering what it would be like to be abrpart of the Duke family.
When I left forbrDuke in late March, I thought that it would be a tough decision, especiallybrsince I had already been accepted at three of the top-ranked Computer Sciencebrprograms and several Ivy League schools. However, the finalist visit completelybrconvinced me that the A.B. Duke Scholarship program was a perfect fit for me.
I was blown away bybrseveral things about the program - the amazing access to faculty and researchbropportunities, the chance to be part of an incredibly elite group of studentsbrthat excelled in a wide variety of fields including the arts, sciences, policy,brand economics. The current A.B. Duke Scholars also impressed me with theirbrachievements - in fact, two of the current seniors were awarded the RhodesbrScholarship.
I have a wide rangebrof interests including computer science, math, history and music. That is whybrthe diverse offerings at Duke appeal to me. brDuke values and encourages intellectual curiosity. I see myself exploring artificialbrintelligence and its applications in healthcare. The opportunities through thebrDuke Global Health Institute, strong links to the medical school, and programsbrsuch as the Duke Start-Up Challenge excite me.
SS: How does it feel to have received this prestigious and elitebrscholarship ?
Ravi: I feel privilegedbrto have received this prestigious scholarship, especially since it’s basedbrpurely on merit and is awarded to such a small number of applicants. Thebrscholarship includes the full cost of tuition and living, as well as a researchbrstipend. In addition it includes a six-week summer session at Oxford, which Ibram very excited about as well. It hasbrdefinitely given me a sense of confidence to pursue my interests. I am lookingbrforward to reconnecting with the friends that I made during my finalist visitbrand working on research projects with the amazing faculty that I met at Duke.
SS: What excites you about moving to a different state so far frombrhome? What scares you about it?
Ravi: I am excited about meeting new friends and exploring a new city.brI am especially looking forward to attending Blue Devil basketball games withbrmy classmates. My visit to campus for the finalist’s weekend helped extinguishbrany anxiety that I had about going off to college this fall. I am sure I willbrmiss home and my family but I like the fact that it is just a short two-hourbrflight to Durham.
SS: What will you miss the most about Southlake?
Ravi: What I love thebrmost about Southlake is the tremendous community spirit. I hope to recreatebrthis at Duke. I will definitely miss my friends the most. I am so fortunate tobrhave met some of the nicest, smartest, and most talented students at Carrollbrand I hope to never lose touch with them.
SS: Anything else you'd like to add can go here. Thanks!
Ravi: Ibrwould like to add that my success is because of the guidance that I receivedbrfrom so many mentors in Carroll and in Southlake and I would like to thankbrevery one of them. I would specificallybrlike to thank Carroll ISD Superintendent Dr. Faltys for being such an amazing leaderbrand role model.
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