Yolanda Valencia has been awarded the GO-MAP Dissertation Fellowship for 2017-2018 year, which will support her upcoming field research and writing.
While she initially believed that she didn't stand a chance to win the fellowship, Yolanda would not have applied had her advisor, Vicky Lawson, not encouraged her to do so. By then taking a few hours every day for a week to work on her dissertation as well as receiving feedback from her peers and professors, Yolanda was able to build one of the strongest applications that the GO-MAP selection committee had reviewed.
"I look forward to dedicating full-time to doing research and to writing a powerful dissertation about immigrant communities’ struggles" Yolanda says. ”Immigrant resistance and their ability to thrive in a place (and time) of intense state-sanctioned violence and racism; in a place where they are not supposed to survive will be a key focus of my work".
Yolanda's successful application process serves as a prime example of the types of fellowship opportunities that exist for those in the geography department. If there is one piece of advice that she would give to future applicants however, it would be to "apply for funding and apply often!"