National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships Awarded to 14 Science Terps

Fourteen current students and recent alumni of the University of Maryland’s College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences (CMNS) received prestigious National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowships, which recognize outstanding graduate students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

Across the university, 22 undergraduates and recent alumni were among the fellowship winners announced by the NSF. The college’s 14 awardees include six current graduate students, four current undergraduates and four recent alumni.

CMNS graduate student fellowship recipients:

• Joshua Davis, computer science graduate student
• Ashley Hanna, geology graduate student
• Katya Leidig, astronomy graduate student
• James Mullen, computer science graduate student
• Joel Rajakumar, computer science graduate student
• Max Springer, applied mathematics & statistics, and scientific computation graduate student

CMNS undergraduate student fellowship recipients:

• Steven Jin, mathematics major
• Naveen Raman, computer science and mathematics double major
• Ela Rockafellow, physics major
• Abigail Svoysky, biochemistry, biological sciences, and Russian language and literature triple-degree student

CMNS alumni fellowship recipients:

• Ethan Cheng (B.S. ’21, biological sciences; B.S. ’21, computer science)
• Brandon Johnston (B.S. ’21, chemistry)
• Savannah Speir (B.S. ’18, biological sciences)
• Colin Yancey (B.S. ’21, physics; B.S. ’21, biological sciences) 

NSF fellows receive three years of support, including a $34,000 annual stipend, a $12,000 cost-of-education allowance for tuition and fees and access to opportunities for professional development available.

The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program 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 U.S. institutions.

Since 1952, NSF has funded more than 60,000 Graduate Research Fellowships out of more than 500,000 applicants. At least 42 fellows have gone on to become Nobel laureates and more than 450 have become members of the National Academy of Sciences.

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