FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Four University of Arkansas students will interview at the state Rhodes competition Wednesday, Dec. 4 at the Capitol Hotel in Little Rock. Candidates Rachel Driver (Fayetteville), Eric Jackson (Idaho Falls), Jeff Sparks (Ft. Smith) and Keri Steffes (Siloam Springs) are Honors College seniors from the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences.

Rachel Driver, a Chancellor's Scholar who is majoring in anthropology, hopes to study material culture at Oxford. She has just completed a research project "The Palio of Siena: The Material Culture of La Madonna De Provenzano," which came out of research she conducted in Italy. The Palio is a secular event - in this case a horse race - which has religious overtones.

"It is the intersection of the secular and the sacred that is most interesting to me," Driver said. "I look forward to the possibility of pursuing this topic at Oxford."

Majoring in international relations, Keri Steffes hopes to pursue this field in the UK. A Bodenhamer Fellow, Steffes studied at Cambridge last year where she worked on the international implications of media coverage of the Israeli Six-Day War. She has also spent summers in Jordan and Honduras.

"I eventually plan to attend law school concentrating on international law and hope to intern with the United Nations," Steffes explained. "Eventually, I would like to work for a department such as the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration or the Council of Foreign Relations."

Eric Jackson and Jeff Sparks are both premed students but have different approaches to their future careers.

Eric Jackson, a Sturgis Fellow, majoring in psychology, intends to pursue a Master of Philosophy in medical anthropology at Oxford. He plans to eventually work in a world health organization.

"This course of study would provide me with a deeper understanding of the social, scientific, and humanitarian factors surrounding medicine," Jackson said.

Jeff Sparks, a Chancellor's Scholar majoring in physics and minoring in history, wants to pursue a degree in the history of science, medicine, and technology. He plans to practice medicine and write essays for publication on medical topics.

"Oxford started this discipline early in the twentieth century and continues to foster a good working relationship between traditional sciences and humanities by emphasizing technical research in the sciences along with rigorous independent study in humanities," Sparks explained.

Two state finalists will be selected as regional finalists. Rhodes Scholars will be announced after the Dec. 6-7 district interviews.