Diedre Desmarais, University of Regina PhD candidate in political science, is the first student in the province to receive the Queen Elizabeth II Scholarship in Parliamentary Studies for both her master's and PhD programs. 

Desmarais has been awarded the $10,000 scholarship for 2005; she also received the scholarship in 1995, while pursuing her master's degree at the U of R.

The Queen Elizabeth II Scholarship in Parliamentary Studies is provided by Saskatchewan Learning to a graduate student at either the University of Regina or the University of Saskatchewan. To mark Saskatchewan's Centennial Year, two scholarships are being awarded this year. Desmarais, along with the scholarship recipient from the University of Saskatchewan, will be invited to meet with the Queen on her visit to Saskatchewan.