There's a recognition of accomplishment. I get the sense that by getting the Mellon Fellowship I'll be able to go on and do many other things.
People realize what a challenging competition it is.
The Mellon Fellowships, designed to help exceptionally promising students prepare for a career in teaching and scholarship, have been administered by The Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation to some 1,700 students since 1982. These new Fellows have promising futures if they are anything like their predecessors. But I think research in the social sciences and humanities is critical. I feel lucky to have had this support.