Isabel DeVito ’24 has been named both a Macmillan and Rotary Global Scholar and will pursue a Master of Science in Statistical Ecology at the University of St Andrews beginning this fall.
“I am incredibly grateful to both the Saint Andrews Society of New York and the International Rotary Foundation for recognizing my commitment to wildlife conservation ecology and enabling me to pursue a Master’s in Scotland,” says DeVito, an Organismal Biology & Ecology major.
DeVito was awarded the Macmillan Scholarship by the Saint Andrews Society of New York, which is a Scottish cultural society founded in 1756. The long-running scholarship program gives Americans of Scottish heritage the opportunity to attend a master’s program at a university in Scotland.
Additionally, DeVito was named a Rotary Global Scholar, which is run by the International Rotary Foundation. Rotary Global Scholarships are awarded to candidates who wish to attend graduate school abroad and are working towards one of the seven Rotary areas of focus. DeVito applied with a focus on protecting the environment. The Rotary Global Scholarship application is first done through the applicant’s local district, so after presenting her undergraduate research and expressing her conservation work goals for graduate school and her career, DeVito was named a Global Scholarship candidate for the New Jersey Rotary District. They then sponsored her application to the International Rotary Foundation.
DeVito became more interested in learning about statistical modeling techniques for wildlife population ecology and monitoring after working on her senior thesis, where she did research using camera traps to study carnivores in the Manitou Experimental Forest.
“The researchers at the University of St Andrews Centre for Research into Ecological and Environmental Modelling have been instrumental in developing techniques for estimating populations of snow leopards and other threatened species from camera trap data, so I think the program will be a great fit for my interests in population ecology and especially the conservation of elusive species such as wild cats,” says DeVito. “I can’t wait to start exploring more advanced analytical techniques for population monitoring, and I’m thrilled to be studying at St. Andrews, as my mum is Scottish, and I have always considered Scotland a second home.”
Between the two scholarships, DeVito was awarded $65,000 in funding, which will cover her tuition and all living expenses for her time at St Andrews. DeVito was also awarded the Mary Alice Hamilton Award in Organismal Biology and Ecology from the CC OBE Department, which is given to the top graduating Biology major based on academic performance, undergraduate research, and prospects for a successful career in biology.
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