| U.S. Department
of Education Awards Rensselaer $780,000 to Fund Fellowships
Rensselaer has been awarded $780,000 by
the U.S. Department of Education to fund eight fellowships
to enhance interdisciplinary graduate study in areas of
terascale electronics, and photonic materials and devices.
“Rensselaer’s goal
is to train talented, diverse students in our core strength
areas to make revolutionary scientific advancements.
The success of this project depends on a pool of talented
graduate students in addition to our faculty and infrastructure
resources.”
—Gwo-Ching Wang—
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The grant from the Graduate Assistance in
Areas of National Need Program (GAANN) will provide up to
$21,500 annually in individual stipends plus full tuition
for three years. The fellowships, distributed by Rensselaer’s
Department of Physics, Applied Physics, and Astronomy, will
allow students to study with eminent faculty members in
physics, chemistry, materials science, electrical engineering,
and mechanical engineering.
“Rensselaer’s goal is to train
talented, diverse students in our core strength areas to
make revolutionary scientific advancements,” says
Gwo-Ching Wang, professor and chair of the Department of
Physics, Applied Physics, and Astronomy and the principal
investigator of the grant. “The success of this project
depends on a pool of talented graduate students in addition
to our faculty and infrastructure resources.”
Students will be exposed to advanced research
facilities at Rensselaer, such as the Center for Integrated
Electronics, where faculty from physics and many other departments
are among the world's leaders in exploiting the visionary
role of terascale electronics and photonics. This emerging
research holds enormous potential in scientific advances,
such as super-fast computing, data storage, and data transport.
The GAANN funding comes at a time when Rensselaer
is strengthening its research-oriented graduate program
with plans to double the number of doctoral degrees awarded.
The grant also is another way Rensselaer is being recognized
nationally for its prominent interdisciplinary research
in new science and technologies.
Rensselaer continues to enhance its world-class
faculty in addition to its student population. In the coming
year alone, 40 new tenure and tenure-track faculty will
join Rensselaer–15 in entirely new positions.
“The GAANN award also demonstrates
Rensselaer’s desire to achieve greater diversity among
its students,” says Tom Apple, vice provost and dean
of graduate education at Rensselaer. “The GAANN program
supports U.S. citizens, underrepresented groups in particular,
with excellent academic records who plan to pursue the highest
degree available in a field designated as an area of national
need.”
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