Rachel Petherbridge, George J. Mitchell Scholarship, Class of 2020

A native of North Carolina, Rachel Petherbridge is a Biomedical Engineering major at Boston University where her accomplishments in synthetic biology have earned her a Goldwater Scholarship and selection as a Harvard Amgen Scholar. She served as Vice President of the BU Undergraduate Women in Science and Engineering group and is a Student Leader for STEM Pathways where she helps expand STEM opportunities for students in Boston. She was also a member of BU’s iGEM team, an international competition for students in synthetic biology, which won Gold (2016) and Silver (2018) at the Jamboree. Rachel began college with two passions: science and policy. She’s combined them by holding leadership roles in the BU Model UN conferences and working as a staff writer for the BU International Relations Review, where she’s written on topics such as the Zika virus and climate change. She will study International Public Policy and Diplomacy at University College Cork.
George J. Mitchell Scholarship, Class of 2020