Sabrina Sixta, a first-year direct-entry PhD student in the Department of Statistical Sciences, was successful in the 2020 Canada Graduate Scholarships-Master’s (CGS-M) competition, which provides funds to master students or direct-entry PhD students.
After graduating from the University of Ottawa with a Bachelor in Financial Mathematics and Economics in 2015, Sabrina worked in the financial sector for over four years before returning to university. The transition was not without struggles, but constant revision of prerequisite material, persistent effort in solving problems and her innate mathematical curiosity helped her catch up and succeed.
Sabrina’s current research interest lies in the area of Markov chain convergence bounds, and she is looking forward to contributing meaningfully to the literature.
The NSERC CGS-M program provides financial support to exceptional scholars, like Sabrina, in order to allow the select candidates to fully concentrate on their studies in their chosen fields.
Sabrina is happily surprised to have won the CGS-M and grateful for the opportunity.