​Erica Swenson

UW-Stevens Point student wins Goldwater scholarship

A University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point student has received the prestigious Barry M. Goldwater Excellence in Science Scholarship. 

Erica Swenson, a junior biochemistry major and Hayward native, is the 13th Goldwater Scholar from UW-Stevens Point. Considered the premier scholarship of its kind, the Goldwater Scholarship is given each year to undergraduate students with exceptional potential for a career in science and carries a stipend of $7,500 a year for up to two years. Swenson was selected from 1,123 students nominated by faculty members from the U.S. She submitted an extensive research proposal to become one of 282 winners.  

Swenson studies cancer genetics with Biology Professor Diane Caporale, and based her Goldwater scholarship proposal on her research of several mutations in the cancer-related genes of one individual and their transmission through three generations of her family. She also spent one summer surveying mosquitoes in northern Wisconsin with Biology Professor Jamee Hubbard and another summer studying the distribution of a newer strain of Lyme disease bacterium in Wisconsin. This summer, Swenson will continue her study of cancer genes and have a shadow internship with a genetic counselor and clinical geneticist at the Marshfield Clinic in Wausau. 

Swenson plans to attend medical school and have a career in medical genetics. She is also studying music at UW-Stevens Point. 

Contact:   Professor Sol Sepsenwol, UW-Stevens Point’s Goldwater Scholarship coordinator,
715-346-4256, ssepsenw@uwsp.edu or Diane Caporale, 715-346-3922, dcaporal@uwsp.edu.