Fourteen Dartmouth students, alumni, and graduate students have been awarded National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowships for 2021, and another nine received honorable mentions.

“We are extremely proud of all of our students who won National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships or were accorded an honorable mention,” says Jon Kull ’88, dean of the Guarini School of Graduate and Advanced Studies and the Rodgers Professor of Chemistry. “Receiving this award is a significant academic milestone that honors students’ hard work and recognizes the potential of their research.” 

The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) helps ensure the vitality of the human resource base of science and engineering in the United States and reinforces its diversity. The program recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students in NSF-supported science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines who are pursuing research-based master’s and doctoral degrees at accredited United States institutions.

The fellowships provide students financial support for three years, including a $34,000 annual stipend and a yearly $12,000 cost-of-education allowance to the graduate institution.

Winners of 2021 Graduate Research Fellowship Awards

• Aldo Angelo Arellano ’17, life sciences—ecology
• Matthew Alan Bossart ’14, Thayer ’15, engineering—electrical and electronic engineering
• Erica Lindsey Busch ’20, psychology—cognitive neuroscience
• Katherine Clayton ’18, social sciences—political science
• Caroline Elizabeth Filan ’18, Thayer ’19, engineering—nuclear engineering
• Lily Hanig ’19, Thayer ’19, engineering—systems engineering
• Lisa Je, Thayer ’19, engineering—chemical engineering
• Hannah Kurka Margolis ’20, life sciences—biochemistry
• Emily Morris, Guarini ’24, life sciences—proteomics
• Ayobami Ogunmolasuyi, Thayer ’24, geosciences—artificial intelligence    
• Kyoung Jin Rhee ’21, social sciences—political science
• Clara Arina Sava-Segal, Guarini ’25 psychology—cognitive neuroscience
• Neerja Bhagwati Thakkar ’19, computer engineering—robotics and computer vision
• Katie Mai Anh Trinh ’16, social sciences—economics

Honorable mentions

• Callum Hoyt Backstrom ’18, geosciences—marine biology
• Georganna Benedetto, Guarini ’24, chemistry—sustainable chemistry
• Ethan Bennett Blackwood ’17, life sciences—neurosciences
• Ana Mercedes Colon ’18, geosciences—geophysics
• Genevieve Mairin Renee Goebel, Guarini ’24, geosciences—biogeochemistry
• Catherine Holland, Guarini ’24, psychology—neuropsychology
• Ryan Hoon Hyon ’17, psychology—social/affective neuroscience
• Jin Shin ’17, psychology—clinical science
• Aylin Garcia Soto, Guarini ’24, physics and astronomy—astronomy and astrophysics