Jane M. Tolmie, a third year doctoral student in English from Halifax, Canada, became the sixth Harvard student this year to win a Rhodes scholarship when she clinched one of two awards given in the Maritime region of Canada on December 13.

Joseph C. Harris, professor of English and folklore, who has worked extensively with Tolmie her studies, said he was not astonished by her win.

"I wasn't surprised because I saw it coming," he said. "There's this quality of inner, banked fire--some controlled passion which is part of her personality. And she has an absolutely splendid record."

All Rhodes scholarship winners undertake study for two years at no cost in the program of their choice at Oxford University in England.

Tolmie said she plans to take a leave of absence to attend Oxford, where she intends to work toward another masters degree in philosophy and continue her doctoral research.

According to Cynthia E. Verba, director of fellowships at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS), Tolmie is the only student from GSAS to apply for and win the Rhodes in recent memory.

"She should be singled out as a pioneer," Verba said.

In contrast, Verba said that GSAS students have traditionally applied for a graduate student version of the Fulbright scholarship and for fellowships which specifically allow for dissertation research. She said more than 30 GSAS students applied this year for the Fulbright award.

Verba said it was unusual for a student already doing graduate work at Harvard to apply to do more graduate work at Oxford.

Still, she said Tolmie's ability to immerse herself in research at Oxford will be very valuable.

"I think it's a wonderful opportunity," Verba said. "A year in the U.K. is a highly coveted thing to have for people who are doing English lit."

Tolmie, in contrast, attributed the lack of GSAS Rhodes applicants to the fact that many grad students are too old to meet the requirement that recipients be 19 to 25 years old. Tolmie herself is 23.

While also interested in applying for the Fulbright, she was ineligible for the scholarship because she is Canadian and the award is only given to American students.

However, Tolmie said that after seven years of study in the United States, she was ready for a change of scenery.

"I'm really looking forward to seeing something new," she said.