Graduate Student Awards and Fellowships

MSE Departmental Graduate Student Awards

Nominations due July 1 (5:00 pm) – jump to Nomination Instructions

	Go for the Gold Research Prize Awarded annually to an MSE student for the most exciting breakthrough materials research carried out in the academic year. The award is a $1,000 cash prize and a certificate. Eligibility criteria: Full time enrollment in an MSE Graduate Program during the academic year which ends on the award date. Student’s POSC form is approved and on file in the Graduate College electronic system. Past Recipients: 2020 – Andrew Martin 2021 – Tyler Del Rose 2022 – Emily Rinko 2023 – Victor Torres
	The McGee-Wagner Materials Science and Engineering Scholarship Awarded annually to an MSE graduate student with a focus in the area of Ceramics Engineering. The award provides funds in the amount of $10,000 per year to support graduate student assistantship stipend and tuition scholarship. Eligibility criteria: Full time enrollment in the MSE Ph.D. Program Primary research focus in Ceramics Engineering Successful completion of the preliminary oral examination prior to nomination due date Student’s POSC form is approved and on file in the Graduate College electronic system. Fun-time enrollment in the Ph.D. program for the upcoming academic year (Fall-Spring). Past Recipients: 2019 – Skye Supakul 2020 – Madison Olson 2021 – Matthew Marauder 2022 – Odin Taylor 2023 – Jacob Wheaton
	The Wayne G. Basler Graduate Scholarship Awarded annually to an MSE graduate student who exemplifies an exceptionally high level of dedication to education, demonstrating “the desire and work ethic it takes to be the best they can be.” The scholarship will be awarded annually in the amount of $5,000 (distributed as $2,500 in Fall and $2,500 in Spring). Eligibility criteria: Enrollment in an MSE Graduate Program Full-time graduate enrollment for the upcoming academic year (Fall-Spring). Student’s POSC form is approved and on file in the Graduate College electronic system. Past Recipients: 2020 – Winnie Kiarie 2021 – Scott Blazanin 2022 – Amam Ilogebe 2023 – Manish Kumar
	The Rohit Trivedi Best Paper Award Awarded annually to an MSE student for the most outstanding journal publication in the field of Materials Science and Engineering. The awardee will receive a cash prize of $500 and a certificate. Eligibility criteria: Enrollment in an MSE Graduate Program Full-time graduate enrollment at some time during 12-months preceding the due date. The journal publication associated with the nomination must have been accepted for publication within the 12-month period preceding the nomination due date. Student’s POSC form is approved and on file in the Graduate College electronic system. Past Recipients: 2007 – Jun Xu 2008 – Xiaohui Zhao 2009 – Min Zhou 2010 – Myunghwan Byun 2011 – Cheng Ma 2012 – Joel Reiken 2013 – Llwebn Wan 2014 – Hangzheng Guo 2016 – Xiaoming Liu 2020 – Yifan Li 2021 – Tyler Del Rose 2022 – Jacob Wheaton 2023 – Noah Welch

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Nomination Instructions:

General Nomination Procedures

Major professors may nominate their students by sending the nomination materials to gradmse@iastate.edu by the stated due date. Students may assist their faculty in the preparation of nomination materials, but the package should be delivered from the major professor. The nomination package should be sent as a single PDF file (exceptions apply), and should include:

• A cover letter from the nominating faculty (one page, maximum), including the title of the award, the date of nomination, the full name of the student nominee with complete contact information, the name of the major professor or research supervisor, and a headline-style statement of the breakthrough research, properly listing collaborators.
• a current Résumé or CV for the student
• Additional materials as specified in the award description

Addition Nomination Materials required (award-specific)

Karl Gschneider “Go for Gold” Award

• A written narrative (maximum length of two pages with 1-inch margins) describing the research accomplishments along with the significance and potential impact of the work. A brief title (15 words maximum) stating the “breakthrough” must be included. If the work is collaborative, the student’s individual contributions and accomplishments must be delineated. The research may have developed over several prior years, but the “exciting breakthrough” must have occurred in the academic year for which the award will be given. The narrative must have a descriptive title and may include graphs, illustrations, tables, and formulae as long as the document does not exceed two pages. Publications, patents, talks may be listed in the narrative, but these are not necessary or essential. If they are listed, they are expected to fit within the page limitations. The narrative must be written solely by the student, and the quality of this communication will be considered in the evaluation.
• A brief letter of support (one page, maximum) from the major professor or research supervisor, affirming that the research described in the narrative was carried out by the student in the noted time frame. Additional pertinent information may be provided to support the nomination, within the one-page limit.

McGee-Wagner Scholarship

• A letter from the nominee’s major professor highlighting the student’s qualifications, summarizing accomplishments to date, and explaining the potential impact of the ongoing work in the field of Ceramics Engineering.
• A copy of the public presentation given at the preliminary exam (may be attached as a separate file, e.g. pptx).

Wayne G. Basler Scholarship

• An essay written by the student nominee (maximum length of two pages with 1-inch margins) describing the importance of education in the nominee’s life and career plans.
• Two letters of recommendation, one from an ISU faculty member and one from a reference external to ISU

Rohit Trivedi “Best Paper” Award

• A copy of the paper (published version, if available; preprint or final submission copy otherwise)
• A brief letter of support (one page, maximum) from the major professor or research supervisor, describing the student nominee’s contributions to the paper. Additional pertinent information may be provided to support the nomination, within the one-page limit.