Chancellor's Fellowship Challenge empowers future leaders at the Rady School of Management

SAN DIEGO – The importance of graduate fellowships cannot be overstated for students who want to break through financial barriers and access advanced degrees. For Edgar Leon, a fellowship was his ticket to a brighter future.

A fellowship helped bridge the gap for Leon, a second-year full-time MBA student from Fallbrook. "I've had an interesting journey – if you were to ask people that I grew up with whether I would be where I am now, they probably would not believe it," Leon said.

After high school, Leon enrolled at Palomar College, but his grades suffered while working 30+ hours a week. His p...