Mississippi State’s Office of Prestigious External Scholarships encourages students to reach new heights
After earning an exceptional high school GPA and test scores, Christopher Robinson turned his attention to college. Dreaming of a career in the medical field, he submitted his applications full of promise and anticipation. But as a first-generation college student, the Brookhaven native was largely unfamiliar with the opportunities a university could provide.
That’s where Mississippi State stepped in. By providing support through a presidential scholarship—the most prestigious at the university—as well as challenging academics and opportunities for research and civic engagement, MSU helped position Robinson to achieve his goals and more.
Today, the 2022 biomedical engineering graduate is in his second year at Harvard Medical School with a résumé that includes a Public Policy and International Affairs Fellowship at Princeton and being a finalist for the Harry S. Truman and Rhodes scholarships. His undergraduate years were crucial in paving his way for further success by providing mentors, challenging coursework and hands-on research opportunities that helped make his dreams a reality.
He credits Mississippi State and its Office of Prestigious External Scholarships, or OPES, for helping him overcome feelings of self-doubt and reach heights he never would have thought possible.
“I hadn’t heard about any of the major scholarships before, but coming to MSU opened my eyes to what was possible,” Robinson said. “The first barrier for students to overcome is simply understanding what these opportunities are and how they are beneficial. And as someone long burdened with imposter syndrome, applying to these programs was as emotionally challenging as it was technically difficult.
“I wouldn’t have felt like I could apply, or even have known these opportunities existed, if it weren’t for the faculty and mentors I met throughout my time at MSU,” Robinson continued.
Seizing Opportunities
Led by David Hoffman, OPES helps Mississippi State identify candidates for prestigious national and international awards and provides guidance as they apply for these highly competitive, merit-based honors, which include Rhodes, Gates Cambridge, Marshall, Truman, Goldwater, Astronaut, Knight-Hennessy, Fulbright and Udall scholarships.
Robinson said Hoffman doesn’t just guide students through the often-tedious application processes but also helps them build confidence, manage expectations, identify opportunities and stay on task.
“To have someone explain these possibilities and believe that you can achieve these goals—that is important,” Robinson said. “For someone to see your potential and help you grow essentially from a high school senior to a functioning adult, is so meaningful.”
Mississippi State formally began mentoring students on their path to prestigious scholarships in 2012. Last fall, the university took that support to the next level by expanding the OPES advising capacity and making Hoffman, a professor of anthropology, the full-time director. The unit also has new office space in Nunnelee Hall, which is homebase to many members of MSU’s Shackouls Honors College.
“We have amazing students who just need to be identified, encouraged and given the tools to compete on these levels,” Hoffman said. “It’s amazing to see the students’ self-confidence grow as we help them navigate options and find what they’re truly passionate about.”
Investing in Success
MSU Provost and Executive Vice President David Shaw said investing in students to help them achieve their goals is an obvious priority for a university that has such a strong student body—boasting the highest average ACT scores in the state.
“MSU is blessed with incredibly talented students who have what it takes to succeed at the highest levels when mentored appropriately, and we need to invest in them in the way they deserve,” Shaw said. “We do that by developing programs, like the Office of Prestigious External Scholarships, staffed with exceptional faculty who know where opportunities lie and can match each student’s strengths with those prospects.
“Our students can compete with anyone in the world given the right coaching, and it is our responsibility to provide that guidance and mentoring to help them achieve their full potential,” he continued.
The university’s efforts are paying off. Across the board, Mississippi State has seen an increase in the number of winners and finalists for some of the country’s most competitive collegiate awards. For instance, Robinson was MSU’s fifth Rhodes finalist in 10 years and there have been four more since. He also was the sixth Bulldog in seven years to receive the national PPIA Junior Fellowship; the fourth to participate at Princeton. Since that time, MSU has had at least one PPIA winner every year.
“We’ve seen tremendous growth in applications and awards, including a dozen Fulbright winners, our first Marshall and Churchill scholars, multiple Goldwater winners, and Truman and Rhodes finalists,” Hoffman explained. “With the growth of OPES, we can expand the scope of our mentorship to include many other prestigious awards.
“Advising and application steering is the bread and butter of the office, which we know benefits students,” he added. “It is my mission to shine a light on amazing students and the excellent faculty mentoring that occurs throughout Mississippi State.”
Opening Doors
Hoffman explained that the expansion of OPES not only enables faculty to mentor students for a wider variety of awards, it also makes it easier to reach a wider segment of the MSU student body. With a more formal physical presence and more faculty dedicating time and effort to the unit, it is now easier than ever for students to learn about OPES and for faculty to identify students who show the potential to be competitive award applicants.
“The new office and additional focus time enables us to reach more eligible students,” Hoffman said. “It goes far beyond those who are part of the Shackouls Honors College to include all eligible students.”
Hoffman said students of all backgrounds, studying a broad range of disciplines, benefit from the mentorship and services offered through OPES. And regardless of their ultimate success in applying for awards, those students who take part all come out as winners.
“We are helping them develop strong applications for their desired scholarships or fellowships, but we are also helping them develop compelling personal narratives which can be applied in so many other ways,” Hoffman said. “This work clearly is beneficial for everyone entering the workforce or going on to graduate school.”
Robinson said his time at MSU pushed him out of his comfort zone. He became involved on campus, joined a research team, and developed relationships with other students and a wide variety of faculty and staff mentors. OPES, he said, encouraged him to consider those experiences as a whole to better understand his interests and define his career and life goals.
He said that self-reflection solidified his passion for health care and helped him discover an interest in public policy.
“OPES taught me to articulate what drives my interest in a way that encapsulates all of my experiences,” Robinson said. “The encouragement and conversations around melding my passions with tangible career options continue to shape how I view my role in the world.”
Other students who have worked with OPES echoed his sentiment. Lucy Mellen, a senior geosciences and political science double major from Hattiesburg and a Bobby and Barbara Martin Presidential Endowed Scholarship recipient, said the office helped shape her next steps.
“Applying for a prestigious external scholarship requires deep thought about your aspirations. I have been able to research and discover my professional goals in a way that has thoroughly prepared me both for my applications to graduate school and for taking advantage of professional opportunities, such as internships, that align with those goals,” said Mellen, who was named one of only 55 Udall Scholars from across the country for 2023.
“I will leave MSU knowing that I did everything I could to build relationships and experiences that will go far beyond the walls of this institution,” she added.
Trussville, Alabama, native Annamarie Thompson, a Goldwater and Astronaut Scholarship winner in 2024, said she is grateful to have sought guidance from OPES and credits that mentorship with allowing her to confidently pursue graduate school.
“Mississippi State allows students to achieve in big ways,” Thompson, a senior biomedical engineering major, said. “Working with Dr. Hoffman and OPES was one of the best decisions I made as an undergraduate.”
Shaw said one of the reasons Mississippi State excels producing successful graduates is that Bulldog faculty and staff are fully invested in helping every student achieve his or her goals—going above and beyond to open eyes and open doors to any opportunity that might lay the groundwork for future achievement.
“Effective mentorship is the difference-maker not only in students competing for and winning these scholarships but also for helping them realize their potential and see avenues of success that they might not otherwise know about,” Shaw said.
“And what makes MSU special, is that we celebrate each other’s successes, because when one Bulldog succeeds, we all do,” he continued.
Sharing the MSU Story
In the crowded and competitive world of higher education, having Mississippi State talked about in these high-achieving circles helps bring recognition to the exceptional work being done at the university. And that exposure—having Bulldogs listed among the ranks of Ivy Leaguers and those from other historically prestigious institutions—has a kind of benefit that can’t be measured.
Shaw calls it “telling our story”—helping the world to see all Mississippi State has to offer and to overcome outsiders’ sometimes negative perceptions of the rural South.
“Success breeds success,” Shaw said. “The more MSU students are successful in competing for and winning these prestigious awards, the more people will see Mississippi State as the kind of university that produces exceptional graduates, creates opportunities and does world-changing work.
“The more success we have in competing for these awards, the more we can use that as a tool to recruit both students and faculty of the very highest caliber,” he continued. “These prestigious achievements are another way for us to tell our story and help the world understand what we’ve always known—Mississippi State and our family do great things that are changing the world for the better.”
By Allison Matthews, Photos by Megan Bean and Beth Wynn
Merit Pages highlights MSU student achievements of all kinds
At Mississippi State, student achievement knows no bounds. To celebrate each individual’s success, the university has partnered with Merit Pages to highlight student success of all types.
Through the Merit Pages platform, MSU can create and distribute personalized stories to showcase student accomplishments, making it easier than ever for proud family and friends to celebrate their Bulldog’s achievements.
Regina Hyatt, MSU’s vice president for student affairs, said Merit Pages allows the university to ensure all student success is recognized beyond the campus borders.
“Merit Pages is a wonderful tool for celebrating and sharing the incredible achievements of our students,” Hyatt said. “It not only highlights their hard work and dedication but also connects them with future employers, graduate programs and their communities.”
Managed for the university by the Office of Public Affairs, the Merit Pages platform allows students to create a profile, which can include a picture and résumé. In this way, the service works as a searchable, online portfolio of one’s notable achievements—including professionally written articles from MSU’s newsroom, as well as other accomplishments listed by the individual.
While students can opt-out at any time, the free-to-them service has been a hit not just with the students but also their parents, high school alma maters, hometown media outlets and even local elected officials, who can receive automatic emails about new honors so they can celebrate, congratulate and boast about their Bulldogs’ successes.
Learn more or search for students you know at msstate.meritpages.com.