7 Pitt students won a nationally competitive research fellowship

Graduate Research Fellowships from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to perform graduate research in science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields. This year’s awardees include students across disciplines like physics, neuroscience, electrical engineering and the social sciences.

The awards, which are open to senior undergraduates and first- and second-year graduate students, have been offered since 1952 and are among the most prestigious and competitive fellowships open to U.S. student researchers — this year, only 1,000 awardees were chosen nationally.

The fellowships aim to “ensure the quality, vitality and strength of the scientific and engineering workforce of the United States,” according to the NSF. They provide three years of financial support to students, including a $37,000 stipend and an additional cost of education allowance.

Below are this year’s Pitt awardees.

Undergraduate

Santiago Cane, physics and astronomy, Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences

Nishka Edlabadkar (A&S ’24), chemistry, Dietrich School

Darin Fields (A&S ’24), psychology and sociology, Dietrich School

Heather Phillips, electrical engineering, Swanson School of Engineering

Graduate

Rebecca Marla Bhik-Ghanie, neuroscience, Dietrich School

Courtney Medina, psychology, Dietrich School

Katelin Rahn, biomedical engineering, Swanson School