Princeton University student Evan Soltas is one of 32 people chosen for a prestigious scholarship to Oxford University starting in October.
RUMSON -- In 2012, Rumson native and Princeton University student Evan Soltas started an economics website that earned him a job with Ezra Klein's Wonkblog at The Washington Post.
Three years later, it has led him to a Rhodes Scholarship to pursue post-graduate studies at Oxford University.
The 22-year-old New Jersey man was one of 32 people chosen for the prestigious award immediately after a round of interviews Saturday.
"It's really intense," Soltas told NJ Advance Media. "I think they're aware of how stressful it is. It's an immense honor to be selected."
He took to Twitter on Sunday to share the news.
I am thrilled to announce that I have been selected to be a 2016 Rhodes Scholar: https://t.co/3RSSYeWWwN
-- Evan Soltas (@esoltas) November 22, 2015
Soltas was among 869 applicants who were endorsed by 316 colleges and universities. The scholarship, valued at $50,000 per year, covers all expenses for two or three years of study at the university in England starting in October.
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Soltas, who attended high school at the Marine Academy of Science and Technology in Sandy Hook before he transferred to Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire, plans to study statistics and machine learning at Oxford.
He's interested in using data to answer economic questions, like whether the federal government's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program truly has a positive effect on food security. Soltas is also passionate about how finance interacts with the macroeconomy to cause recessions and booms.
He has already started to learn about these topics by maintaining his own economics blog, sending out the morning newsletter for the Wonkblog project and writing occasional pieces for Bloomberg.
As for his long-term goals?
"I still don't know," he said. "I do know that long-term, what I find really fulfilling is to work at the corner of research and public policy, and find ways that take advantage of the things that I'm good at to help make a positive difference in the world."
Three other Princeton University students were named Rhodes Scholars. They are Richard Lu, of Ballwin, Miss., Katherine Clifton, of Honolulu, Hawaii, and Cameron Platt, of Santa Barbara, Calif.
Marisa Iati may be reached at miati@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @Marisa_Iati. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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