Susan Humphrey of Campbellton will pursue her studies at Oxford University next fall

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By Yvon Gauvin
Times & Transcript staff

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SACKVILLE - Susan Humphrey of Campbellton admits feeling overwhelmed by news that she will be heading to Oxford University next fall as one of 11 Canadian Rhodes Scholars.

"It still feels very unreal," she said this week from the Mount Allison University campus, where she is completing her fourth year in international relations.

The 21-year-old student, one of two from the Maritimes going to Oxford, received the news on Saturday, her birthday. The other Rhodes Scholar is Rosanne Nicol of Hamilton, Ont., currently studying at Halifax's King's College.

Susan becomes the 48th student at Mount Allison University to become a Rhodes Scholar, which comes with a $100,000 scholarship to spend two years at Oxford.

"I never could have afforded to go to Oxford," Susan said, adding she wasn't that confident about her chances after meeting the nine other candidates at a dinner on Friday organized as part of the selection process.

These were "extraordinary candidates," she said.

The selection process took place on Saturday.

Susan said she knew she had a chance because otherwise she wouldn't have been in the running, but she didn't know what to expect. However, the judging portion "went well," she said.

The Rhodes Scholarship is one of the most prestigious international academic awards and is shared by many prominent world figures and professionals. Campbellton has the distinction of two Rhodes Scholars. The first was Derek Hum, who earned a master's degree in politics, philosophy and economics in 1969. He went on to earn a doctorate in political economics.

Susan is a graduate of Sugarloaf High School in Campbellton. She will be studying for her master's of philosophy in comparative politics when she enters Oxford in October.

"This is certainly a defining moment in charting the course of my life. So many doors have just opened up for me, and I am thrilled to be able to learn from some of the world's most renowned professors and to study alongside students whose interests fall in line with my own," she said.

She traces her interest in international relations to her teen years at Sugarloaf and her studies of the United Nations organization, its history and contemporary issues. The interest was cemented during an exchange trip to China to experience the country and its culture.

She chose Mount Allison because of the excellent program in international relations as well as the size and closeness of the institution to home.

On campus, she is a senator on the Students' Administrative Council, an international relations research assistant, co-president of the Mount Allison Young Liberals Association and president of the University's Swing Society. Last year, she received a Killam Fellowship allowing her to spend a semester studying domestic and international influences on Canadian foreign policy at Smith College in Massachusetts.

She also held summer positions as head guide at the Canadian National Vimy Memorial in France and as a parliamentary guide in Ottawa.

She says she's not made up her mind yet as to her final goal, and wants to explore the opportunities as they present themselves.

Susan is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J. David Humphrey of Campbellton.

Mount Allison, meanwhile, has produced more Rhodes Scholars per capita than any university in the British Commonwealth.

"Susan joins an impressive list of Allisonians to receive this honour. She has taken advantage of the opportunities for leadership development at Mount Allison, both inside the classroom and out. She is one of the university's most outstanding senior students and I know she will be an excellent ambassador when she arrives at Oxford next fall," said Mount Allison president and vice-chancellor Dr. Robert Campbell.

Eighty-four Rhodes Scholars are picked each year, 11 from Canada, to attend the university.