An alumnus received a prestigious Rhodes Scholarship this weekend, according to a University release.
Josh Pickar, who graduated from GW in 2014, is the second GW-affiliated recipient of the scholarship, which provides an all-expenses-paid study abroad at the University of Oxford in England. Pickar will study global governance, diplomacy and comparative social policy at the University of Oxford, according to the release.
The Rhodes Scholarships are the oldest international fellowship program in the world and recipients are sent to Oxford to study the promotion of international understanding and peace.
Applicants must be endorsed by their college or university. This year 2,500 students sought endorsements, and 882 were endorsed by 311 different colleges and universities, according to the Rhodes Trust release. Candidates undergo three levels of review: the university level, state committee level and district committee level. Thirty-two individuals are then selected to represent the United States at Oxford for a duration of one or two years.
Pickar, who graduated early from high school and finished his international affairs degree at GW in two years, said in the release that his dream is to be the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations or secretary of state, which he described as “lofty goals.”
Pickar said in the release that when he was at GW, he had the opportunity to intern for then-Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., where he researched environmental policy and racial discrimination.
“It was the first time that I really got to work in policy and understand how what you’re studying affects the real world, and it was just a really useful experience,” Pickar said.
Pickar also studied at GW Law for a year before transferring to the University of Chicago Law School.
Pickar has worked with the International Refugee Assistance Project, to help grant asylum and relocation for an LGBT Iraqi refugee to the U.S. after the refugee was assaulted by his family and exiled, according to the release.
Pickar, who speaks Russian, French and Spanish fluently, and is learning German, Italian and Arabic, said in the release that he has a passion for global communication and understanding other cultures, laws and politics.
“In order to be an effective policy or lawmaker, you have to be able to communicate with other people, so I hope to be able to use languages to work on international treaties or negotiation and better understand why different countries feel a certain way about policies from the U.S.,” Pickar said in the release.
