Stanford alumni Yassamin Ansari and Erica Gaston have been announced as winners of the 2017 Gates Cambridge Scholarships. They will get the chance to have their graduate studies at the University of Cambridge in England.

They are two of 55 people who were awarded scholarships during the international round of the competition and will represent the United States. They will be joining the 35 scholars chosen back in February as Gates Cambridge Scholars during the separate round for the U.S.

The Gates Cambridge Scholarship focuses on helping intellectually outstanding postgraduate students with a capacity for leadership and a commitment to improving the lives of other people. Scholars are presented with exceptional opportunities and networks at Cambridge and beyond it.

In a post on Stanford's official website, it was reported that Yassamin Ansari, 25, earned her bachelor's degree in international relations with honors in international security studies back in 2014. Currently, she wants to take up a master's degree in international relations and politics at the University of Cambridge, where she will be researching on climate change and international security.

Ansari expressed her excitement on being part of the Gates community. She is also thrilled about the knowledge that she can learn from her "brilliant peers" as she continues to grow as an individual and future leader.

Erica Gaston, 35, earned her bachelor's degree in international relations at Stanford in 2003. She specialized in international security. She graduated from Harvard Law School in 2007.

With the Gates Cambridge Scholarship, she will be pursuing a doctorate in politics and international studies. She wants to investigate whether the control mechanisms that external factors establish when working with local or hybrid security forces are effective in mitigating the risks and costs of implementing them.

Last year, The Rhodes Trust announced that 32 students have been chosen to represent the United States as Rhodes Scholars for 2017. The scholarship will carry the expenses of the 32 chosen men and women for two or three years of study at the University of Oxford.