A University of Victoria student has landed one of the top honours for young academics. UVic microbiology graduate Shaeleen (Shae) Mihalynuk will head to England after being named as the province's Rhodes Scholar for 2025. Of 11 Canadians awarded the prestigious scholarship, Mihalynuk is the only one from B.C.   

The scholarship provides two fully funded years of post-graduate studies at England鈥檚 Oxford University. The award is given to young people with proven academic excellence and exceptional character, who鈥檝e committed their talents to solving humanity鈥檚 challenges.   

Only 13 Rhodes Scholars have ever been selected from UVic, with Mihalynuk being the third recipient in the last six years.   

鈥淚 think the news is still sinking in,鈥� said Mihalynuk in a press release. 鈥淚 feel totally overjoyed to be named a Rhodes Scholar. I owe so much to my support system, and I鈥檓 grateful for the people in my life who were able to look at a student who was quiet and find skills and potential.    

At UVic, Mihalynuk was involved in the fight against antimicrobial resistance, she worked as part of the PeptAID project helping to develop alternatives to antibiotics for poultry diseases.   

鈥淪hae has a remarkable knack for enriching the experiences of those around her,鈥� said Caren Helbing, professor of microbiology and Mihalynuk鈥檚 honours supervisor, in a press release. 鈥淚t is rare to find someone who, while demanding so much of herself, has the empathy and capacity to raise others up from wherever they happen to be. I am thrilled that Shae has been selected as a Rhodes Scholar and am excited to see what amazing accomplishments she will make in the future.鈥�  

Along with her academic success, Mihalynuk has a love for dance that allowed her to demonstrate her leadership abilities through her time with the Veselka Ukrainian Dance Association where she helped to create a semi-professional dance troupe, and classes including ballet and Ukrainian dance for seniors. She also has helped to coordinate several fundraising campaigns for Ukraine, since the onset of the invasion of the nation.  

Mihalynuk will head to Oxford in fall 2025, where she is interested in studying global health, genomic medicine and translational health science.