Penn State hosts 19 National Science Foundation graduate researchers

Penn State is hosting 19 new National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) recipients for the 2015-16 academic year. The students join 62 prior recipients continuing in the University’s graduate degree programs in the Eberly College of Science and the colleges of Agricultural Sciences, Earth and Mineral Sciences, Engineering, Health and Human Development, Information Sciences and Technology, and the Liberal Arts, as well as the Intercollege Graduate Degree Programs.

The NSF program supports outstanding graduate students in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines, and those in STEM education and learning research, who are pursuing research-based master’s and doctoral degrees.

The 2015-16 class of new fellows at the University are: Jordan Barr, materials science & engineering; Birgitt Boschitsch, mechanical engineering; Federica Bulgarelli, psychology; Lyndsey Denis, materials science & engineering; Brett Green, physics; Sean Hixon, anthropology; John Huhn, psychology; Michael Johns, Spanish; Allison Karp, geosciences; Reed Kopp, aerospace engineering; Sharmaine Miller, biology; David Munoz, ecology; Dustin Owen, ecology; Jesus Ruiz-Plancarte, meteorology; Nisha Sheth, materials science & engineering; Troy Steiner, psychology; Ziyu Wang, anthropology; Chanell Nicole Washington, sociology; and Shannon White, ecology.

According to the NSF website, the GRFP is “the oldest graduate fellowship program of its kind with a history of selecting recipients who achieve high levels of success in their future academic and professional careers.” The website states that “fellows benefit from a three-year annual stipend of $34,000 along with a $12,000 cost of education allowance for tuition and fees; opportunities for international research and professional development; and the freedom to conduct their own research at any accredited U.S. institution of graduate education they choose.”

The GRFP annual program solicitation is available on the NSF website. Applications are accepted via Fastlane, the NSF’s official online information and business transaction center. Application deadlines begin at the end of October and vary depending on the field of study. NSF-supported fields of study include chemistry, computer and information science and engineering, engineering, geosciences, life sciences, materials research, mathematical sciences, physics and astronomy, psychology, social sciences, and STEM education and learning research.

For additional information on the GRFP, contact Barbara Struble, director of the Graduate School’s Office of Graduate Fellowships and Awards Administration, at bqs3@psu.edu or 814-865-2514.