For the third time in five years, a Claremont McKenna College senior has been awarded the highly competitive and prestigious Rhodes Scholarship.
Samuel N. Johnson-Saeger ’26, a dual major in Economics and International Relations, will head to the University of Oxford in fall of 2026. His Rhodes plans include studying international development programs, such as unconditional direct cash transfers, with the goal of improving the lives of people who are living in extreme poverty. He intends to formally pursue an M.Sc. in Economics for Development and an M.Sc. in Global Governance and Diplomacy.
Each year, the Rhodes Trust selects 32 Americans and approximately 68 others from around the world for fully funded postgraduate scholarships at Oxford. Rhodes Scholars are “chosen not only for their outstanding scholarly achievements, but for their character, commitment to others and to the common good, and for their potential for leadership in whatever domains their careers may lead.”
With the academic honor, Johnson-Saeger, who hails from Boulder, Colo., follows Sarah Chen ’22 and Bertha Tobias ’24, who earned Rhodes Scholarships in 2021 and 2023, respectively. Previous CMC Rhodes Scholars were Paul Schulz ’85 and Ryan Iwasaka ’94.
While a CMC student, Johnson-Saeger has interned at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and the Council on Foreign Relations. He is a member of CMC’s nationally-ranked Model United Nations Team, and the first student manager of the Keck Center for International and Strategic Studies.
As soon as Johnson-Saeger emerged from his final in-person Rhodes interview in Denver and learned that he was selected, he phoned his father: “I was still in a state of shock.” He celebrated later with his mother at home in nearby Boulder—a celebration that continued as news of his win spread rapidly throughout the CMC community. By the time Johnson-Saeger disembarked from his return flight to California, he had received “the most texts in my life,” as well as a shower of congratulatory messages on social media.
Throughout the intensive Rhodes application process, Johnson-Saeger said he felt strongly supported. Whether through the Rhodes panel simulation organized by Brian Davidson ’08, CMC’s Director of Fellowships Advising, or the mock interviews and random quizzes from friends, Johnson-Saeger said he “would not be here without the support of so many people at CMC and so many people at home.”
Overall, according to the Rhodes Trust, nearly 2,800 students began the Rhodes application process, and 965 candidates received formal endorsements from their colleges and universities. The endorsed applicants represented more than 264 different institutions, making Johnson-Saeger’s achievement all the more impressive.
“The unconditional probability of getting this award is exceptionally low. That said, once I heard Sam reached the interview stage, I had no doubt that he would succeed,” said Professor Angela Vossmeyer, who is currently serving as one of Johnson-Saeger’s senior thesis advisors.
Vossmeyer, who is the Rothacker Family Associate Professor of Economics and George R. Roberts Fellow at the Robert Day School of Economics and Finance, continued: “Sam is a brilliant scholar—articulate, sincere, and insightful. Anyone fortunate enough to interact with Sam can immediately see the depth of his intellect and character.”
“Sam is eminently deserving of this opportunity,” said Davidson, who shepherded the application process. “It can be cliché to say that someone cares about helping others, but Sam is one of those people who instinctually puts others first, without so much as a second thought. Working with him has been inspiring, and part of the joy of the fellowship process has been seeing so many people from Sam’s life—including many faculty, staff, and other students at CMC—come out to support him. I think they all see the same thing in him.”
Additionally, two alumni—CMC’s recent Rhodes Scholars, Sarah Chen and Bertha Tobias—each offered valuable support as Johnson-Saeger pursued the scholarship. “I talked to them when I was first writing my application and again when I found out I got an interview. And, ultimately, I think it was a piece of advice from each of them that really put me in the right mindset on my interview day,” he said.
Applying for a Rhodes Scholarship emanated from Johnson-Saeger’s interest in studying at Oxford because of its reputation as a research hub for “a specific type of anti-poverty program that I’m interested in, which is direct cash transfers. There’s a lot of really innovative impact evaluation that’s happening out of Oxford right now.”
As reality sets it in that he is officially Oxford-bound, Johnson-Saeger is especially excited to be joining a select cohort the Rhodes Trust described as having “achieved exceptional academic records across the humanities, social sciences, and physical and life sciences.”
“I’m so excited just to meet the other scholars, and everyone at Oxford,” he said. “Being able to spend two years steeped in interesting conversations with people whose interests intersect in ways that enable innovation across disciplines will be really fascinating.”