Meet Rudyard Sadleir
Senior, Environmental Geology
Rhodes Scholar

"Use the city! At UIC you have the resources of Chicago at your fingertips. The Art Institute, the Field Museum, other universities, world-class restaurants, music, culture, a transportation hub--the city provides wonderful opportunites you can't experience in a small town," advises UIC's first Rhodes scholar, Rudyard Sadleir.

A native of Park Ridge, Illinois, Sadleir was an athlete in high school, winning five-time honors as Illinois champion in speed-skating from 1988 to 1993.

"When I took a geology class in the earth and environmental sciences department it was love at first sight," says Sadleir. He discovered a real passion for paleobiology, the study of the pre-history of life.

At a conference on dinosaur paleontology, Sadleir met acclaimed University of Chicago paleontologist Paul Sereno, who, impressed with Sadleir's academic work and his volunteer efforts at the Field Museum, invited him to a dinosaur dig in the Sahara. Upon returning from his second dig with Sereno, in Niger, Sadleir learned that he had won a prestigious Rhodes scholarship. He will receive a full scholarship to study at Oxford University in the United Kingdom.

Sadleir credits the UIC Honors College and Office of Special Scholarship Programs with encouraging him to apply for a Rhodes scholarship. He notes that another high point for him at UIC has been the Rugby Club, where he learned the importance of teamwork and interdependence. "My work ethic derives from what I've learned in athletic activities," says Sadleir.

UIC's urban location not only helped Sadleir find outstanding academic opportunities, he also says the city allowed him to develop a variety of extra-curricular interests. "The Rhodes committee asked me about my interest in cooking," he explained. "That came about after dining in one of Chicago's finest restaurants. This place is amazing for students who want to get the most out of their university experience."