First INL Graduate Fellows for new university partnerships program announced
INL has collaborated with several universities to develop the new INL Graduate Fellowship Program. The first call for the program closed earlier this year and 11 fellows were selected in August. During this pilot call, INL targeted candidates from Center for Advanced Energy Studies (CAES) and National University Consortium (NUC) schools.
The recipients of these competitive fellowships have their tuition and fees covered by their university during their first years of graduate school (years one to three) and their tuition and fees plus a $60,000 annual salary paid by INL during the last two years of their doctoral research performed at the lab.
In the first years of their Ph.D. program, graduate fellows will spend most of their time taking classes at their university. That balance will shift in the last years of their Ph.D. program, where graduate fellows will spend the majority of their time at INL conducting research. The typical graduate fellow program runs between three and five years.
There are mutual benefits for the graduate fellows, universities and the lab. Throughout the program, the graduate fellows will interact and collaborate with both their INL mentor and their university thesis adviser.
The program allows INL to integrate students into the laboratory and provides graduate fellows with work on significant projects that will help them fulfill their thesis research requirements. INL gains access to skilled staff, along with the opportunity to build long-term collaborations with universities, increase recruiting opportunities, and interact with a continuous pipeline of students interning and conducting research at the lab. Both the university and INL have the opportunity for joint publications and intellectual property.
“This program presents an excellent opportunity for everyone involved,” said Dr. Kelly Beierschmitt, INL’s deputy laboratory director for science and technology and chief research officer. “Students receive quality education and an invaluable research experience. Additionally, INL strengthens its partnerships with universities while continuing to develop the next generation of engineers, researchers, scientists, and leaders.”
Graduate fellows were selected in degree fields that closely tie to INL’s three mission areas of innovative nuclear energy solutions, other clean energy options and critical infrastructure.
Congratulations to the following students who were selected as the first INL Graduate Fellows:
The next call for graduate fellows will open in fall 2017 and will be available to all universities. An announcement of recipients for the second round of INL Graduate Fellows is expected in spring 2018. For more information about the program, contact Ali Josephson (208-526-0940) or Michelle Thiel Bingham (208-526-7830).
