Graduate School Newsblog

Tag: Engineering

Michigan Space Grant Consortium Funding Opportunities

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The Michigan Space Grant Consortium announces funding opportunities in the following categories: Undergraduate Fellowship, Graduate Fellowship, Pre-College Education, Public Outreach, Teacher Training, and Research Seed Grant.

The deadline for proposal packages is no later than Wednesday, Nov. 20, at 5 p.m.

The internal Michigan Tech deadline is noon on Wednesday, Nov. 13.

To read announcements, submission requirements, and to submit a proposal, please visit the MSGC website and click the Fellowship Program tab, the Program tab, or the Research Seed Grant tab.  Note–Proposals that exceed the page limits specified will not be considered.

Specific information regarding Michigan Tech requirements and submission procedures can be found at funding. For more information contact Paige Hackney (phackney@mtu.eduor 487-4371).

Women, underrepresented minorities, and persons with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply to all MSGC funding opportunities.

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East Asia & Pacific Summer Institutes (EAPSI) research program

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NSF’s OIIA/ISE announces opportunity for U.S. graduate students to participate in research experiences in East Asian countries in summer 2014 through the East Asia & Pacific Summer Institutes (EAPSI) program. EAPSI supports 200-205 graduate students each year to do research in the lab of their choice in any of seven locations: Australia, China, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Singapore or Taiwan.

Each institute has a fixed start and end date, and includes a pre-departure orientation near NSF and an in-country language and culture orientation.

An EAPSI award includes a $5,000 stipend and round trip air ticket provided by NSF, and a living allowance provided by NSF’s counterpart funding agency in the host location.

The program is open to U.S. citizens and permanent residents enrolled in research-oriented graduate programs in NSF-funded STEM fields.

The application deadline for summer 2014 is November 25, 2013.

See EAPSI program announcement and more information at: http://www.nsf.gov/eapsi.

EAPSI is an excellent opportunity for U.S. graduate students to advance their research in collaboration with high-caliber scientists and engineers in East Asia and to build professional networks in a scientifically important region of the world. The program is entirely funded by ISE and our international partners: there is no cost to NSF directorates or to your PIs. It’s an excellent opportunity to leverage our resources to advance international research and education opportunities for your community.

Contact: Anne Emig, Program Manager for EAPSI
International Science & Engineering
Office of International & Integrative Activities
National Science Foundation
Phone: 703-292-7241
Email: aemig@nsf.gov
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2014 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship

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The 2014 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) Solicitation has been posted.  Faculty play a critical role in encouraging our most competitive students to apply for fellowship opportunities like the NSF GRFP.  Michigan Tech’s Research Development Office has for the previous three years offered a seminar for all interested applicants.  Based on an internal screening process recommended by the NSF GRFP office, this year the seminar series will only be open to students identified by faculty as competitive applicants.

As you identify students, please keep in mind that competitive applicants are often students who have or will most likely be awarded university teaching or research assistantships. Students who have internal graduate support should still be encouraged to apply.  While fellows benefit from a three-year annual stipend of $32,000 along with a $12,000 cost of education allowance for tuition and fees (paid to the institution), which in turn frees up internal funding for other graduate students, the fellowship is more about prestige.  As the oldest graduate fellowship of its kind, the GRFP has a long history of selecting recipients who achieve high levels of success in their future academic and professional careers.  The reputation of the GRFP follows recipients and often helps them become life-long leaders that contribute significantly to both scientific innovation and teaching.  Likewise, students who receive the GRFP call attention to the high-quality graduate education and research ongoing at Michigan Tech.

Names and emails of faculty-identified students should be emailed to Jodi Lehman (jglehman@mtu.edu) by Wednesday, September 11th.

Eligibility for the GRFP:

  • be a US citizen, US national, or permanent resident
  • be planning to pursue a research-focused Master’s or Ph.D. program in an NSF-supported field
  • be enrolled in an eligible program at an accredited United States graduate institution by Fall 2014
  • have completed no more than twelve months of full-time graduate study (or the equivalent) as of August 1, 2013.

Moreover, competitive students should have:

  • a strong academic record of 3.5 GPA or higher
  • the ability to obtain 3 exceptional reference letters– due November 14th
  • previous professional (e.g., internship/enterprise), research (e.g., SURF),  and educational outreach (e.g., K-12, international, community) experiences
  • future research, professional and outreach goals that will potentially benefit society

Michigan Tech’s Research Development Office will formally invite faculty-identified students to participate in a NSF GRFP seminar series.  This eight-week series will help applicants develop submission material (Personal Statement, Relevant Background and Future Goals and Graduate Research Statement) and request letters of reference in a timely and helpful manner.  Speakers include experienced NSF GRFP reviewers and panel chairs, Dr. Pushpathala Murthy who is currently serving as program officer for the NSF GRFP, and previous NSF fellows.

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Rail Transportation Program Announces AREMA Scholarship Recipients

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The American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association (AREMA) Educational Foundation recently selected the recipients of their 2013 scholarship campaign. Michigan Tech Rail Transportation Program (RTP) students received more awards than any other university with 7 of the 36 scholarships granted to these students:

* Dylan Anderson: Michigan Tech Alumni Scholarship

* Chris Blessing: AREMA Committee 27–Maintenance-of-Way Work Equipment Scholarship

* Anthony Passariello: Michigan Tech Alumni Scholarship

* Sean Pengelly: AREMA Committee 18–Light Density and Short Line Railways Scholarship

* Nicholas Lanoue: REMSA Scholarship

* Hamed Pouryousef: AREMA Educational Foundation Scholarship

* Irfan Rasul: AREMA Committee 30–Ties Scholarship

The AREMA Foundation provides scholarships to engineering students who are specializing in the railway industry and supports other educational and training endeavors that help to ensure the future of the profession.

All scholarship recipients were members of the Railroad Engineering and Activities Club (REAC), a multidisciplinary student organization for those with an interest in rail.

For more information about the club, see REAC.

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Two Michigan Tech Students Win NSF Graduate Research Fellowships

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The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded graduate research fellowships to Michigan Tech students Julie Jarvey and Daniel Cerminaro.  Jarvey, who earned a Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Ecology and Management from Tech, is currently completing a certificate program in Geographic Information Systems and is about to start work toward a master’s degree and a PhD.  Cerminaro will receive his Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering at Commencement May 4.

NSF also named three Michigan Tech students for honorable mentions in the competitive research fellowship program:  Mary Jubinski, chemical engineering; Kendall Gruzul, a science teacher who plans to attend Michigan Tech; and Byrel Mitchell, mechanical engineering.

The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship 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 US institutions.

NSF received more than 13,000 fellowship applications this year and made 2,000 awards. Benefits of the fellowships include three years of support, including a yearly stipend, a $12,000 cost-of-education allowance to the student’s university, international research and professional development opportunities and access to a supercomputer.

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2013 Summer Internship Opportunity with MISNER

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The Michigan Space Grant Consortium announces the Michigan Initiative on Student NASA Exploration Research (MISNER) program. The MISNER program will give undergraduate and/or graduate students the opportunity to work in Exploration Systems Mission Directorate-related industries with the state of Michigan during summer 2013.

* 10-week internship program (within the May-August 2013 time frame)
* Total award: $6,000
* US Citizens Only

Deadline date is Monday, April 15, 2013

Underrepresented minority, women and disabled students are strongly encouraged to apply.

To read the full announcement and application form, visit www.mi.spacegrant.org

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Michigan Tech Graduate Engineering Programs Climb in US News Rankings

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By Jennifer Donovan

Four Michigan Technological University graduate engineering programs rose in the latest US News & World Report graduate school rankings, released today.

Chemical engineering’s graduate program moved up to 60th in the nation, from 91st last year.  Electrical engineering’s ranking rose from 102nd to 89th.  Computer engineering was ranked 80th this year, compared to 91st last year.  And Materials engineering rose to 50th from 51st.

“Chemical engineering is definitely a program on the rise and it’s nice to get the external recognition we deserve,” said Komar Kawatra, chair of chemical engineering.

Dan Fuhrmann, chair of electrical and computer engineering was pleased with the higher rankings of both his programs. “We are delighted to see that our graduate programs in electrical and computer engineering are receiving this recognition,” he said. ” It is a reflection of our deliberate efforts over the past decade to increase the size and improve the quality and visibility of our graduate and research activity.  In particular, we are seeing renewed interest at the master’s degree level in our power programs, which have always been excellent.”

The new graduate school rankings place Michigan Technological University’s graduate engineering programs overall in the top 100 nationwide. The magazine’s latest rankings, released today, list Michigan Tech’s College of Engineering graduate programs at 89th

“This year’s rankings of Michigan Tech’s programs will help some of our programs get the national attention and recognition they deserve,” said Jackie Huntoon, dean of the Graduate School. “The increased ranking of chemical engineering and electrical and computer engineering are particularly notable. These rankings, while dismissed by some as highly imperfect measures of quality, are important because students and their families use the rankings to estimate the potential return on an investment in a Michigan Tech education.“

Michigan Tech’s other engineering programs are ranked as follows in the new report:

Tech’s Biomedical engineering graduate program was not ranked.

“We’ve seen some success in the short time that I’ve been here, and I’m glad for that,” said Bill Worek, dean of the College of Engineering. “The increase in some of the disciplines is encouraging, but there is more work to be done to further enhance the visibility of our graduate programs.”

US News says its rankings are based on two types of data: expert opinions about program excellence and statistical measures of the quality of a school’s faculty, research and students. Graduate programs are reviewed annually in engineering, business, law, medicine and the sciences. This year, 199 engineering schools that offer graduate degrees were evaluated.

Statistical data considered includes the ratio of students to faculty, acceptance rate, average Graduate Record Exam score, the school’s total research expenditure and research expenditure per faculty member, graduate enrollment and number of PhDs granted.

Peer assessment data comes from deans of engineering schools, program directors and senior engineering faculty.

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Graduate engineering students on Copper Country Today radio program

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Graduate engineering students Jen Fuller and Kaye LaFond were interviewed on “Copper Country Today,” a radio program broadcast by WHKB-FM and WOLV-FM in Houghton. They were talking about the Parent-Daughter Engineering Exploration scheduled for next Saturday, Feb. 23, at the Great Lakes Research Center, and about career opportunities and their experiences as women in engineering.

Listen at Women Engineering

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ORNL – Clifford G. Shull Fellowship Program

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The Neutron Sciences Directorate at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), invites applications for the Clifford G. Shull Fellowship Program.

A PhD. in condensed matter physics, chemistry, materials science and engineering, biology, or related field is required.  Each applicant must be no more than three years beyond receiving his/her doctorate degree.  Applicants should not have previously held more than one postdoctoral appointment.  Current ORNL postdoctoral appointees and staff members are not eligible.  Previous experience in neutron or X-ray scattering is highly desired; however, outstanding candidates possessing related expertise are also encouraged to apply.  Strong written and oral communication skills as evidenced by a significant publication record, and the desire to work in a team environment on scientifically challenging problems are required.

Applicants should have a PhD degree conferred on or after January 2010.

For more information regarding the program, and application instructions please visit: http://neutrons.ornl.gov/shullfellowship.

Application deadline is January 31, 2013

In addition to your CV, please include a short research statement and names of at least three professional/academic references.  This position will remain open until a candidate is identified and/or hired. We accept Word(.doc, .docx), Excel(.xls, .xlsx), PowerPoint(.ppt, .pptx), Adobe(.pdf), Rich Text Format(.rtf), HTML(.htm, html) and text files(.txt) up to 2MB in size. Resumes from third party vendors will not be accepted; these resumes will be deleted and the candidates submitted will not be considered for employment.

If you have trouble applying for a position, please email ORNLRecruiting@ornl.gov.  Al Ekkenbus, Ph. D

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Enterprise Students Help 3M Build a Better Taillight

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Drivers of many new cars will have better taillights, thanks to a partnership between Michigan Technological University students and 3M.

Michigan Tech’s Consumer Products Manufacturing and Blue Marble Security Enterprise–teams of students that take on challenges faced by industry–tested 3M’s Uniform Lighting Lens (ULL), investigating the optical properties of the material. Four years later, that material is now on the market and will be debuting on more cars in the near future.

The project was “a good example of getting students involved with problems of interest to industry,” said Brett Spigarelli, a PhD candidate is chemical engineering at Michigan Tech and advisor to the Consumer Products Manufacturing Enterprise. on Mountain native, said. “It’s a lot of what you do when you get out there on the job,” explained Spigarelli, an Iron Mountain native who worked on the 3M project as an undergraduate at Michigan Tech.

ULL is designed to better disperse the light of LEDs (light emitting diode), increasing effectiveness while still enjoying the same energy savings compared to halogen bulbs. The challenge was in applying ULL, a film, in industrial applications and ensuring that it would hold up to the manufacturing process. This was where 3M asked Michigan Tech students to step in early in 2009.

For the full story, see taillight.

Published in TechToday by Kevin Hodur, creative writer

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