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MC International Students Advance to Doctoral Studies


Niveditha Kadiyala, who's the latest Mississippi College international student to enter a doctoral program, is bound for New York Friday to start work on her new degree.

But before the native of India slips away from the Clinton campus, staff members and friends at MC's International Center showered her with cake and words of praise.

"Thanks for all your help," International Programs Office Director Jim Brackenridge told Nivedeitha as MC colleagues looked on at her farewell reception Tuesday afternoon. "You are absolutely excellent."

A native of Hyderabad, India, Kadiyala graduated with a bachelor's degree in pharmacy from Juwaharlal Nehru Technological University in India. At MC, she studied in the graduate health services administration program. The 22-year-old was recently accepted by the Touro College of Pharmacy in New York where she will pursue a doctor of pharmacy degree.

A dedicated student worker in MC's international programs office for the past year, Kadiyala couldn't hold back her tears.

"The International Center has been good to me," she said. "It is like a second family."

Pursuing a doctoral degree in pharmacy will give her the opportunity to open a pharmacy in her native India where she served as a volunteer with a blood services organization. She also worked with the Ramakrishna Mission, a group that educates people in rural areas about proper hygiene and health care. There are family ties to pharmacy. Her uncle is a pharmacist in Detroit. It will take Niveditha four years to receive her doctorate in New York.

Over the past two years, Niveditha becomes the 11th MC international student to enter a doctoral program. MC today is home to about 400 international students, up from 330 last fall, and just nine students when President Lee Royce arrived in 2002. The international students come from 26 nations. About 250 students are from China.

The fact that MC is producing so many students entering doctoral programs speaks well for the faculty, Brackenridge said. MC's international students are attending a number of outstanding schools all over the United States.

Among others: Qianyi Cheng, a native of China, received a master's in chemistry from MC and the future teacher is now working on a doctorate in chemistry at the University of Georgia. Xi Li, a native of China, received a master's in biology from MC. A future professor, Li is enrolled in the doctoral program at Texas A&M University. Dmitry Liskin, a native of Russia, received a bachelor's degree in chemistry from MC. He is in the doctoral program in chemistry at the University of Washington.

Denis Aleksandrovich Sokolov, a native of Russia, received a bachelor's degree in chemistry at MC. He is in the doctoral program at Georgia Tech. Jianning Su, a native of China, received a master's in mathematics at MC, and will pursue a doctorate in mathematics at Louisiana Tech. Yuhua Guo, who studied Teaching English as a Foreign Language at MC, is seeking a doctorate in higher education leadership and policy at Florida State University.

Di Huang, a native of China, received a master's in chemistry from MC, and was accepted into the chemical engineering doctorate at Michigan Tech. A native of China, Zhenyu He received a master's of education in computer science degree at MC. He is in the doctorate in educational technologies program at the University of Missouri. Jiabei Lin, a native of China, earned a master's in chemistry at MC. She is in the bio-chemistry doctoral program at the University of Alabama. Shravan Kumar Renapurkar studied in the graduate program of health services administration at Mississippi College. He is enrolled at Boston University's Goldman School of Dental Medicine.

PHOTO: India native and Mississippi College international student, Niveditha Kadiyala, enjoys a reception held in her honor. She leaves later this week for New York to start work on her doctoral degree.