Mielad Ziaee earns prestigious Marshall Scholarship after 16-year gap for University of Houston

It has been 16 years since a University of Houston student received the prestigious Marshall Scholarship. This year, psychology major Mielad Ziaee has achieved this honor, becoming only the third UH student to do so.

Ziaee's achievements in 2024 include winning two other notable awards: the Harry S. Truman Scholarship and the Phi Beta Kappa Key into Public Service. The Marshall Scholarship now offers him an opportunity to study abroad and represent his university.

UH President Khator expressed pride in Ziaee's accomplishments, stating, "He has relentlessly pursued academic excellence, and, most impressively, he’ll learn from the world’s top institutions to make a positive change in underserved communities."

The Marshall Scholarship is among the world's most esteemed academic honors. It allows U.S. students to study at leading British institutions and is named after former U.S. Secretary of State George Marshall. Each year, it is awarded to a select few from around 1,000 applicants nationwide.

"I am immensely grateful for the investment given to me by the British Government," said Ziaee. "As a Marshall Scholar, I am proud to represent my communities as an Iranian American, Muslim, Texan, and UH Cougar."

Ziaee plans to attend the University of Edinburgh for a Master of Public Health and later study health and international development at the London School of Economics.

His research at UH concentrated on food insecurity issues in Houston's Third Ward. He also participated in research initiatives at Harvard Medical School through Harvard/MIT Equitable Access to Research Training program and engaged with Johns Hopkins School of Medicine as a CDC John R. Lewis Scholar.

In his pursuit of scholarships like the Marshall Award, Ziaee was supported by faculty mentors and UH’s Office of Undergraduate Research and Major Awards (OURMA). "OURMA was an invaluable resource for me while preparing for this award," he noted.

Ziaee credits his family for their support throughout his journey as a first-generation student raised in Clear Lake area of Houston.

The list of past Marshall recipients includes notable figures such as author Thomas Friedman and astronaut Anne Charlotte McClain. Institutions attended by these scholars include Oxford University and King's College London among others.

"I look forward to spending this time immersing myself in the cultures of Britain," Ziaee remarked about his upcoming experience as a scholar abroad.