Singled out from more than 12,000 applicants nationwide, the National Science Foundation (NSF) has selected a University of Miami College of Engineering (UMCoE) student, as well as a recent alumnus as recipients of their 2019 Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP).
This year’s UMCoE awardee is Swati Narasimhan, BSME ’19, a student leader who served as president of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE). She will be beginning her PhD in materials science and engineering at Stanford University in the fall. The UMCoE alumnus in the 2018 class of Graduate Fellows is Mitchell Hamann, BSME ’18, who since graduating has been working at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. In this area, they design spaceflight mass spectrometers. Due to his research interests, he will continue his work with NASA designing spaceflight mass spectrometers instead of pursuing a graduate degree.
“I am extremely humbled to have been selected to receive the NSF-GRFP. This fellowship will support me as I begin my professional research career, during which I hope to contribute to our understanding of fundamental battery phenomena,” said Narasimhan.
Launched in 1952, the GRFP represents the oldest continuous investment in the nation’s science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) workforce. As one of the most competitive scholastic programs in the U.S., it recruits high-potential, early-career scientists and engineers and supports their graduate research training.
Fellows will receive a $34,000 annual stipend for three years, plus $12,000 annually for three years to defray tuition costs. All told, each scholar will receive up to $138,000. They’re also eligible to participate in international research and career development programs offered by NSF.
“Congratulations, Swati and Mitchell! The National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program is one of the finest and most respected fellowship programs in the U.S.,” said College of Engineering Dean Jean-Pierre Bardet. “Both of these students are proof of the world-class education, resources and faculty mentorship that are available to our students.”
