Ramela Xhaho, a 2025 CCNY alumna, has been awarded a 2026 Salk Scholarship for medical school by CUNY.
Ramela Xhaho, of The City College of New York’s Class of 2025, is the recipient of a Jonas E. Salk Scholarship awarded by The City University of New York (CUNY). The scholarships recognize exceptional students who plan careers in medicine and the biological sciences.
As a Salk Scholar, Xhaho, who graduated summa cum laude last spring with a 4.0 GPA and a B.S. in biology, will receive a stipend of $8,000 to be allocated over three or four years of medical studies.
Her other academic honors at CCNY included:
- Division of Science Valedictorian;
- The Outstanding Biology Presentation Award;
- The Sharon D. Cosloy Undergraduate Research Scholarship in Biology; and
- The Bernard Levine Scholarship in Science and Mathematics
The Albanian-born immigrant, who resides in Brooklyn, is currently working as an adjunct lecturer in CCNY’s Division of Science while waiting to enroll in medical school.
“My future goals are to provide compassionate care to patients from diverse backgrounds and to conduct research,” said Xhaho. “Being an immigrant has influenced my desire to be a physician, as I plan to serve different immigrant communities as well. I also enjoy conducting research to integrate scientific discovery with patient care.”
She’s volunteered at Montefiore Medical Center, where her duties included shadowing physicians in the Emergency Department. And in her sophomore year, Xhaho participated in the Weill Cornell DedicatED Summer Apprenticeship Program, networking with physicians and medical students to discuss the process of applying to medical school, among other things.
About the Salk Scholarship Program
The Salk Scholarship is named for Dr. Jonas Salk, a 1934 graduate of City College, who developed the first polio vaccine in 1955. Dr. Salk turned down a tickertape parade in honor of his discovery, and asked that the money be used for scholarships instead. New York City provided initial funding for the scholarships that year. The Jonas Salk Scholarships are awarded annually to eight graduates of CUNY senior colleges who have been accepted by, and plan to attend, U.S. medical or graduate schools.
About The City College of New York
Since 1847, The City College of New York has provided a high-quality and affordable education to generations of New Yorkers in a wide variety of disciplines. CCNY embraces its position at the forefront of social change. It is ranked #1 by the Harvard-based Opportunity Insights out of 369 selective public colleges in the United States on the overall mobility index. This measure reflects both access and outcomes, representing the likelihood that a student at CCNY can move up two or more income quintiles. Education research organization Degree Choices ranks CCNY #1 nationally among universities for economic return on investment. In addition, the Center for World University Rankings places CCNY in the top 1.8% of universities worldwide in terms of academic excellence. Labor analytics firm Lightcast puts at $3.2 billion CCNY’s annual economic impact on the regional economy (5 boroughs and 5 adjacent counties) and quantifies the “for dollar” return on investment to students, taxpayers, and society. At City College, more than 16,500 students pursue undergraduate and graduate degrees in eight schools and divisions, driven by significant funded research, creativity, and scholarship. In 2023, CCNY launched its most expansive fundraising campaign ever. The campaign, titled “Doing Remarkable Things Together,” seeks to bring the College’s Foundation to more than $1 billion in total assets in support of the College's mission. CCNY is as diverse, dynamic, and visionary as New York City itself. View CCNY Media Kit.
Jay Mwamba
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