[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/Killam_06.jpg” caption=”Lara Hershcovitch and Mike Lukas met up on campus for a brief reunion on March 31, 2006. Photo credit: Deborah McIvor”]Mike Lukas, a third-year math student, saw an email in his inbox last spring that caught his attention. The Office of Student Financial Aid & Scholarships had sent a mass email to remind eligible students of the approaching application deadline for the prestigious Killam Fellowship Program. His interest piqued, Lukas further investigated the program and discovered that, if selected, he could study in the U.S. for a term and receive credit for his studies toward his McMaster degree.

At the same time, Lara Hershcovitch was looking into her options for a term away from her school, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). A Brain and Cognitive Sciences major, Hershcovitch found the lure of McMaster's established medical school hard to resist and listed it in her top choices for exchange locations. By a happy coincidence, both students were selected to receive a prestigious Killam Fellowship Award to study across the border for one term and were given their top choice of institutions, McMaster and MIT.

While Killam Fellowships are not officially set up as a direct student exchange program, these students found themselves swapping locations last September for memorable adventures 'abroad'. Although MIT offered various research opportunities, it does not have an established medical school. Hershcovitch wanted to find out more about McMaster's medical program while expanding her horizons to include Canada as a second home. She was intrigued when, at the age of 9, her parents sent her to Camp Kinneret in Quebec. Hershcovitch returned for five more summers and has since been fascinated with Canada. Now, however, Canada holds far more friends at McMaster as well as rich memories to add to her collection.

Lukas was inspired to apply for a Killam Fellowship after visiting Scandinavia and traveling with young people from various countries with differing cultural values. He had been to the U.S. many times, but he wanted to see what it would be like to study math at a prestigious school like MIT. Although he was a bit nervous at first about how he would rank in another program, Lukas felt very well prepared coming from McMaster. “I did very well at MIT, better than I expected,” said Lukas “In general, Canadian schools seem to require more courses per term than American, so I had all the prerequisites I needed to be able to successfully transition into MIT's program.”

“My time here has truly been unforgettable,” added Hershcovitch. “Even from the first day, any anxiousness from starting the semester disappeared with the help of McMaster's welcoming community. I loved all my classes and felt that there was a unique medical perspective on the material. The campus size enhances the interactive environment and creates a small tight-knit community. I am so grateful to have had this wonderful opportunity.”

“The whole collective experience of being placed in another environment and having to cope with academic and social differences makes you grow,” said Lukas. “I feel this experience made me a better student and offered me a chance to work with experts in my field who are from another part of the world.”

This spring, Lukas and Hershcovitch reunited in person on the McMaster campus. Hershcovitch had decided to visit her McMaster friends during her Spring Break, while her MIT classmates traveled south to sunny beaches. Lukas' mother, Jan, beamed while her son exchanged stories with his American counterpart to catch up since their travels last term. Hershcovitch was fortunate enough to have met Mrs. Lukas during her fall term at McMaster and was pleased to have a sense of connection to the community through a parent figure.

Mrs. Lukas said she felt Hershcovitch was like an adoptive daughter while her son was away. “It's so important for these young people to find a parent figure to connect with in the community they are staying. I was just lucky to be able to get in touch with Lara, and I would have liked to find her earlier in the term, so I could have set up some volunteering experiences for her while she visited.”

The two scholars, who were introduced at an Ottawa orientation last fall, are currently packing their bags and will cross paths again at a Killam “end of term” gathering planned in Washington, D.C. this weekend. This year's group of Killam scholars from both Canada and the U.S. will engage in a series of lectures and discussions and enjoy tours at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Capitol Hill, and Smithsonian Museums.

Lara Hershcovitch is hoping to return to McMaster as a student yet again; it's one of her top choices of medical schools on her applications for Fall 2007. Lukas would consider another travel opportunity such as Killam, he says, and he may even come back to Mac for his graduate degree.

The 2005-2006 academic year has been the third year of the Killam Fellowships Program, which was created through a partnership between the Foundation for Educational Exchange between Canada and the United States of America and the American Killam Trusts. The program, the first of its kind at this level between Canada and the United States provides exceptional students from select universities with the opportunity to attend university in the other country for one semester or one year of their undergraduate career. The goal of the program is to increase mutual understanding between Canada and the United States through direct, personal involvement.