University of North Carolina Athletics
UNC's Bernstein Receives Prestigious NCAA Scholarship
July 13, 2016 | Fencing, Academics
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Jake Bernstein, who graduated from North Carolina in May, has been awarded an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship. He is among 48 men and women from winter sports honored and the only student from an Atlantic Coast Conference school. The award is worth $7,500, to be used toward graduate studies.
Bernstein, from St. Louis, Mo., majored in computer science and was a four-year member of the men's fencing team.
Candidates for the prestigious scholarships must be in the final season of eligibility, have a 3.2 or better cumulative grade point average, have performed with distinction in a varsity sport and be outstanding role models in collegiate athletics. Bernstein clears the bar with room to spare: He graduated with a 3.82 GPA and was honored as one of UNC's Top 10 Scholar-Athletes, recognizing the highest grade point averages among all senior student-athletes. As a captain on the men's foil team, he qualified for NCAA Mid-South/Atlantic Regionals in his junior and senior years. He was involved in a host of activities while at UNC, including the Richard A. Baddour Carolina Leadership Academy, in which he earned Leader of Distinction status. He also was part of a team of student entrepreneurs who started CommuniGift, a web platform to help donors provide birthday presents to kids who would not otherwise have them.
“Every time he stepped on the strip, you knew you had 100 percent from him,” said UNC fencing coach Ron Miller. “Of course, he has a lot of talents and a lot of other things going on in his life outside of fencing – as an entrepreneur, certainly he's already been very successful. He's the real deal, in terms of his academics, his leadership and his positive approach to life. He's going to make a major impact. He was a credit to UNC as a student here and as an alum he will continue to be.”
In August, Bernstein will start work at Google in San Francisco as an Associate Product Manager. He plans to begin work toward an MBA at Stanford Graduate School of Business within the next few years.
The NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships for winter include the sports of basketball, bowling, fencing, gymnastics, ice hockey, indoor track and field, rifle, skiing, swimming and diving, and wrestling. For a list of all the male honorees, click hereand for the women's list, click here.
Players Mentioned
