A Caymanian student has joined a prestigious list that includes former US President Bill Clinton.

Shmona Simpson is the 2012 winner of the Rhodes Scholarship – an international post-graduate award for study at Oxford University.

As well President Clinton who received the scholarship in 1968, the award has also been granted to the former Vice-Chancellor of the University of the West Indies Rex Nettleford in 1957.

Ms Simpson said: ““It’s an achievement, an honour because the candidates this year were of excellent quality.

“I feel truly humble to have won the scholarship for 2012.

Minister for Education, Hon. Rolston Anglin, said the honour was a proud day not only for 23-year-old Shmona, but the whole of Cayman.

He added: “On behalf of my Ministry and the Government, I would like to congratulate Shmona on this most outstanding achievement.

“This is a huge honour, not just for Shmona but also for our country as a whole.  Shmona is one of our own national scholarship recipients, and it is exciting to see her academic and leadership achievements acknowledged in this way.

“She is a true testament to the success that can come through hard work, dedication and a commitment to excellence.”

The Rhodes Scholarship is named for Cecil Rhodes, an English-born South African who was the founder of the De Beers diamond company.

The scholarship programme targets applicants with “proven intellectual and academic achievement of a high standard, who also show integrity of character, interest in and respect for their fellow beings, the ability to lead, and the energy to use their talents to the full.

Ms. Simpson, 23, was presented with the award at Barbados’ Government House on 22 November by the scholarship’s selection committee.

Shmona already has a first-class honours degree from the University of London and an MSc in global health from the University of Oxford.

The scholarship is an international postgraduate award for study at the University of Oxford, and is considered one of the world’s most prestigious scholarships by such institutions as Time, Yale University Press, and the Associated Press.