Four students from the Chinese mainland have been selected for the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship for pursuing higher education at the University of Oxford.

Thousands of students worldwide apply for the annual scholarship, but only around 100 get through the rigorous selection process. Those selected from the Chinese mainland are from a range of academic backgrounds, from mathematics to law.

Carina Letong Hong from Guangdong Province is a double-major in mathematics and physics at MIT. Christopher Guanyu Lu from Shanghai and has won the National Scholarship of China twice and was also a recipient of the Master Studentship of the School of Advanced Study at the University of London.

Eric Fengquan Wang from Guizhou Province currently studies at Peking University Law School. He received the National Scholarship of China in two consecutive years and is ranked first for his major at the university. Zhixin Wan from Jiangxi Province is one of the top students in the master of arts in international journalism program at Tsinghua University.

These students will begin their academic session from October next year. 

"All of us at Rhodes House are excited to congratulate our seventh class of Rhodes Scholars from China. They are four extraordinary young people, studying an impressive range of subjects, who stood out for their academic brilliance, leadership potential, and commitment to the greater good," said Dr. Elizabeth Kiss, CEO and warden of the Rhodes Trust.

The Rhodes Trust for China program launched in 2016 awards scholarships to four outstanding applicants every year. The Trust is planning to secure more funding to increase the total number of scholarships to 125 by 2028 and double the scholarships given to Chinese mainland students from four to eight.

"The four scholar-elects, with diverse disciplinary and personal backgrounds, will each be embarking on a journey to figure out what it means to 'fight the world's fight,'" said Diana Fu and Mark Jia, the national secretaries of the Rhodes Scholarships for the Chinese mainland.

The selection process takes into consideration academic excellence, exceptional character and leadership, and a commitment to solving humanity's challenges. The process includes a meticulous review before a final interview with a selection committee composed of renowned experts and leaders in a variety of academic fields.

(Cover: From left to right, Eric Fengquan, Zhixin Wan, Carina Letong and Christopher Guanyu. /Rhodes Trust)