National Science Foundation Research Fellowships Awarded to Caltech Students and Alumni

Each year, the National Science Foundation (NSF) selects students to receive Graduate Research Fellowships that fund three years of graduate study in master’s or doctoral programs including research in science or engineering. This year, 34 Caltech alumni and 19 graduates students have received these fellowships.

The Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GFRP) was established to “recruit and support individuals who demonstrate the potential to make significant contributions in STEM, including STEM education” and is designed “ensure the quality, vitality, and strength of the scientific and engineering workforce of the United States.”

Eighteen Caltech alumni were awarded fellowships in 2026 for graduate studies at institutions including Stanford, Harvard, Cambridge, MIT, NYU, Columbia, and UC Berkeley. They are Rohun Agrawal (BS ’25), Abdullah Ateyeh (BS ’23), Amelia H.K. Burns (BS ’24), Yiyi Cai (BS ’25), Aditi Jayaram Chandrashekar (BS ’25), Saumya Chauhan (BS ’25), Harel Dor (BS ’20), Emma Xueqian Isella (BS ’25), Ishaan Kannan (BS ’24), Shalini Kurinchi-Vendhan (BS ’23), Michelle Li (BS ’25), Aramis Josephine Mendoza (BS ’25), Paulina Maria Naydenkov (BS ’25), Payal Nital Patel (BS ’25), Sophie Polidoro (BS ’25), Faiza Nassor Shabibi (BS ’26), Andrei Staicu (BS ’25), and Ayush Varshney (BS ’25).

In addition 16 students from the 2026 graduating class who now attend the Institute as graduate students were awarded fellowships: Aardarsh Balaji, Sujay Champati, Ardra Charath, Kyle Yu Chen, Samuel Foxman, Charvi Goyal, Elisa S. Grillo, Claire Liu Hays, Jamie Ha-Young Kwon, Ethan Lin, Adelynn Tang, Ritvik Sai Teegavarapu, Avinash Vadali, Annika Shanta Viswesh, Austin Kaiji Wang, and Jasmine Wang.

Furthermore, an additional 19 Caltech graduate students were fellowship recipients in 2026: Sean J. Chen (bioengineering), Caroline Dial (biomedical engineering), Dorothy Elizabeth Doughty (materials science), Elsa Matilda Eriksson (condensed matter physics), Justyn M. Friedler (mechanical engineering), Ian Gimino (biomedical engineering), Eli Grossman (geobiology), Emma D. Khorunzhy (chemical engineering), Megan Matthews (developmental biology), Matthew Part (developmental biology), Camille Marion Schubert (chemistry), Anton Nikolov Semerdjiev (chemical engineering), Nilaish Sen (chemical engineering), Caroline Slusar Smith (chemistry), Jake S. Summers (gravitational physics), Thomas Frederick Theiner (materials science), Jessica Wang (chemistry), Mayla Ward (mathematics and artificial intelligence), and Andrew Yang (condensed matter physics).

Information on applying for the GRFP can be found at fasa.caltech.edu.