Green Hope High School senior Nabiha Rahman has just accepted her offer to be a Morehead-Cain Scholar at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC). After graduating from Green Hope this June, Rahman will get to meet and connect with fellow Morehead Cain scholars and start a new journey at UNC.
The Morehead-Cain Scholarship is a full-ride scholarship to UNC that covers tuition, room, educational material, and study abroad fees. Morehead-Cain Scholarship, the first merit scholarship program at the first public university in America, looks for students who embody the four pillars of value: leadership, character, scholarship and physical vigor. The lengthy process is filled with applications and interview rounds over the course of the school year, and tests the determination of the potential scholars.
Rahman powered through the scholarship process with the same strong efforts she put into her four years at Green Hope. She went above and beyond throughout high school and dedicated hours to her community by leading her school’s EmpowerHer Club and founding the nonprofit organization Lumina Girls Foundation. Rahman’s dedication paid off in the end, and allowed for beneficial experiences that she said made her application feel true to who she is. She expressed how this “made it easier to stay consistent and speak from the heart when it came to interviews.”
Rahman was given multiple strong options for her education, such as Duke University, but found that UNC Chapel Hill would be the best fit for her. “I’ve always loved the UNC atmosphere: their campus, community, and also the beautiful Carolina blue.” Rahman plans to pursue medical school, making this full-ride offer a valuable way to save money for future expenses. She has also looked into summer leadership experiences provided through Morehead-Cain, believing that the opportunity “allows you to grow each summer in a different way, beyond just academics.” Rahman is currently most excited to join an outdoor leadership backpacking course in Alaska this summer.
The biggest piece of advice Rahman wants to provide future Morehead-Cain applicants is to be true to yourself. It is easy to get overwhelmed during this process and feel a lot of pressure to out-do your competition and present yourself in the most desirable way possible. Rahman cautions future applicants, saying they are likely to face the possibility of “everyone around you telling you what to say and what not to say when writing responses to questions.” She suggests that rising seniors should utilize their summer to figure out who they truly are before beginning applications.
The process is stressful, but Rahman is excited for others to strive for this opportunity. She believes that the skills students will gain from applications, as well as virtual and in-person interviews, will benefit them beyond the college application process.
“At the end of the day, just being yourself and writing about your own interests is enough,” Rahman shared.
Rahman is ready to venture into the next four years and pursue a major in global public health on the pre-med track. She hopes to build many friendships and connections within the diverse community at UNC Chapel Hill.
