A University of Pennsylvania medical student working in pediatric oncology and a senior whose research focuses on finding a cure for paralysis are two of 12 Americans selected to receive 2017 George J. Mitchell Scholarships for graduate studies in Ireland or Northern Ireland.

Sponsored by the U.S.-Ireland Alliance, the scholarship covers tuition, accommodations, a living-expense stipend and an international travel stipend. The national competition attracted nearly 300 applicants.

Phillip Cohen, a third-year medical student at the Perelman School of Medicine from Washington, D.C., will graduate in May 2018. He plans to pursue a master’s in global health at Trinity College in Dublin. In 2014, Cohen served as executive director of the Penn Human Rights Clinic. Time spent volunteering at the only pediatric oncology facility in Tanzania in 2011 inspired him to pursue a medical career.

Carla Winter, a senior from Morristown, N.J., intends to pursue a master’s in regenerative medicine at the National University of Ireland in Galway. She will graduate in May 2016 from the School of Engineering and Applied Science with a bachelor’s in bioengineering. She works as an undergraduate researcher in D. Kacy Cullen's Laboratory within the Center for Brain Injury and Repair in the School of Medicine.

Penn’s Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships assists students in applying for scholarships such as the Mitchell.

“Phillip’s long-standing commitment to improve pediatric oncology care for underserved patients in the developing world is inspiring and Carla's demonstrated commitment to improving the lives of those afflicted with paralysis is exemplary.” said Wallace Genser, CURF senior associate director for fellowships and operations. “We’re extremely pleased that the Mitchell committee recognized their academic accomplishments and we have thoroughly enjoyed working with each of them.”

The Mitchell Scholarship is named for former U.S. Senator George J. Mitchell, who was President Clinton’s special envoy for Northern Ireland and had an instrumental role in the peace process there.