The 2025-2026 cohort of the Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program at John Jay College is geared towards preparing first generation, low-income undergraduate students from underrepresented communities to pursue a graduate degree.
The McNair scholars program is designed to support undergraduate students pursuing scholarly activities through a two-year academic year program.
Along with mentorship events, there are also sessions in the program that aim to build a strong application and meet McNair scholars nationwide at academic conferences.
Scholars are paired with a mentor of their choosing, attend academic conferences, and network with other McNair scholars nationwide as they learn other disciplines and present their research.
McNair scholars enjoy many perks including career counseling, GRE preparation, and guidance through the graduate school application process.
John Jay alumna and a McNair program assistant Kajal Sieuraj said her experience in the program was joyful and challenging.
“Had I not done this program, I would have been so lost after graduation. It helped me understand the components behind what it takes to create and complete a research project, what I should do in graduate school in terms of finding a mentor and navigating graduate life,” she said.
Sieuraj also shared how her motivations for her career intersect with her goals as a McNair scholar.
“Aside from graduate school, I want to create my own collaborative fashion organization with my friends, focused on a more sustainable, research-based lens of what to do with garments in an eco-friendly manner in which my friends create unique pieces [of clothing] for a cheaper cost,” she said.
Although Sieuraj isn’t currently in graduate school, she focuses on the success of current McNair scholars, as she works closely with the Associate Director of the McNair Program, Professor Ernest Lee,.
“For me, the gratifying feeling I get is when I see a student’s confidence grow in regards attaining and achieving the PhD overall,” he said. “At first, people get skeptical especially when they don’t know much about pursuing a higher education,” said Lee.
Lee also feels that the McNair Program not only opens students to a diverse faculty and student body of people who look like them, but also to others who are also engaging with the graduate lifestyle.
“It’s more than just searching online but the process. Being with a supporting cohort who are focused on the same thing. Most of all, the conference’s recruiters approach you, the stipend, and obtaining fee waivers when applying to graduate schools,” he said.
Andrew Vargas, a second-year McNair scholar and toxicology major, said that he first entered the program with previous research experience as a toxicology major involved in the PRISM Undergraduate Research Program and the Honors program.
“I first joined McNair because I was interested in becoming a professor and I didn’t believe you could get into a PhD program fully funded. I couldn’t have done it without McNair,” he said. “I got into the John Hopkins Environmental PhD program and it was fully funded. It’s hard work but I come out reaping the rewards,” said Vargas.
As an environmental scientist and advocate, Vargas said that his doctoral research will focus on the food systems, specifically industrial animal food production in marginalized communities in vulnerable populations.
“Coming from a marginalized background, my research focuses on diversity, inclusion, and equity as I value elevating the voices of other marginalized individuals and highlighting Indigenous knowledge and the environmental field as a whole,” he explained.
Vargas’s independent project as a McNair scholar examines environmental anxiety and the existence it has in poor communities of color.
“Even if you’re hesitant to apply, it’s best to make an informed decision when considering applying to graduate school. First, see if you want to pursue a higher education,” he said. “Two, look at what is to be expected from you in a doctoral and masters program. It [research] will make you fall more in love and give you more clarity on what the next moves are,” said Vargas
The application cycle for the 2025-2026 cohort is open until April 25th, 2025. For more information, contact Associate Director Dr.S.Ernest Lee, or McNair Program Assistant Kajal Sieuraj.
