Student First at Alabama in 40-Plus Years to Win Marshall Scholarship

By WVUA 23 News Reporter Simya Dickson

After a 40-plus year drought, the University of Alabama has its third Marshall Scholarship recipient.

UA senior Caroline Yuk said she’s elated at the chance to pursue her graduate studies overseas in the United Kingdom.

“I really liked the potential of that, because I wanted to study both neuroscience and audiology and the combination of those,” said Yuk. “There are really great institutions in the UK for that.”

In addition, there are plenty of international collaboration potentials, Yuk said.

She’s one of only three students at UA to ever receive the scholarship.

Yuk was born deaf and said her experiences and the opportunities she received along the way helped spark interest in her current field of study.

“Growing up, I was very interested in my cochlear implants,” said Yuk. “I was always taking them apart. Taking out the batteries. Studying it. Even as a child, it was really like a superpower to be able to turn my hearing on, and then turn it off instantly.”

Yuk said the mentors she met along the way helped ensure her success.

“Once you have a mentor who really supports your experience and what you want to do, I think the sky is the limit really,” she said.

After graduating from UA, Yuk said she plans to study neuroscience at the University of Oxford and audiology at University College London.