The Rath Foundation - An Enduring Legacy at UW-Madison

The MD/PhD program at UW–Madison was the most perfect fit for me. Madison was a wonderful place to live and study, and the UW was an incredible home of scholarship and camaraderie. The Rath scholarship supported the first four years of my MD/PhD program which enabled me to complete two years of medical school and two years of my PhD. Having external funding enabled me to study with fewer worries about housing and other incidental costs. Having this prestigious scholarship on my CV has supported me in matching at a competitive residency in psychiatry. I matched into Psychiatry at my top choice, the University of Pittsburgh, where my training combines rigorous clinical work with world-class research. My training at the UW prepared me to become a highly trained and well-prepared psychiatrist and physician-scientist. The Rath Foundation funds in particular supported work I did in neuroscience and psychology and how they relate to mental illness. The Rath supported me in medical school rather than undergrad, and it was part of a few sources of funding. I remain grateful to the Rath Foundation for supporting my early graduate work. I believe in the power of philanthropy to help students reach incredible goals. I mainly try to pay back this incredible gift by devoting myself to research into understanding childhood mental illness, and doing clinical work focusing on vulnerable children and adolescents on the LGBTQIA spectrum who need support more than ever. Graduating without medical school debt has enabled me to dedicate my time to research and clinical practice for vulnerable children who need it the most. Thank you for dedicating these funds to the cause of higher education. Please continue your commitment to the University of Wisconsin, as it faces some historical challenges.

Ceci Westbrook MS'13, PhD'17, MD'19 Chicago, Illinois

Masters in Psychology Doctorate in Psychology Doctor of Medicine

Medical Scientist Training Program Psychiatry Residency

“I believe in the power of philanthropy to help students reach incredible goals.”

SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AND PUBLIC HEALTH