The National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) provides three years of financial support for graduate study. It aims to keep the nation a global leader in advancing science and engineering research and innovation. Recipients receive a $37,000 annual stipend and $16,000 education allowance from NSF, plus the UW–Madison Graduate School contributes toward fringe benefits.
“The NSF-Graduate Research Fellows Program is a highly competitive award that draws from student talent across the nation,” states Graduate School Dean William J. Karpus. “The program leads to great outcomes. Awardees not only benefit from the financial support of the fellowship, but also have the long-term benefit of becoming more competitive for future funding and gaining access to opportunities for research collaboration and professional development through NSF programs.”
The fellowship is awarded to individuals in the early stages of their graduate study, who intend to pursue research-based graduate studies in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Fellows are free to use their fellowship at any university, college, or non-profit academic institution of higher education accredited in, and having a campus located in, the United States, its territories, or possessions, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico that grants a graduate degree in STEM fields.
Fellowship benefits
- Five year fellowship period with three years of full funding, including tuition, fees, and health insurance benefits
- Annual stipend of $37,000
- Cost of Education allowance of $16,000 to the institution
- No service requirement
- Access to supplemental funding to sustain research while on medical deferral (e.g. maternity/paternity leave)
Eligibility requirements
- U.S. citizen, national, or permanent resident
- No more than one completed year of graduate studies
- Enrollment in research-focused STEM or STEM-education program
Read more about this competitive fellowship at the NSF website.
For Applicants
The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) is one of the oldest and most prestigious fellowships in the country. The University of Wisconsin–Madison is proud to be a leading university in GRFP recipients and strongly encourages senior undergraduates, and early-career graduate students to apply to this fellowship. The GRFP is fundamentally an investment in graduate students as future researchers, not in a specific research project.
Application materials
- Personal information
- CV
- Transcripts
- Proposed field of study
- Graduate school information
- 2-3 letters of reference
- Personal, relevant background and future goals (3 pages maximum)
- Graduate research plan statement (2 pages maximum including figures and citations)
Key criteria to address in both written sections and letters of reference
- The broader impacts of your work as a researcher, or the potential of your research to improve social outcomes
- Your intellectual merit as a researcher, or potential to advance knowledge in your field
If you have questions about the GRFP or would like support with your application, please contact the Graduate School at funding@grad.wisc.edu.
The Writing Center is also available as a resource for applicants.
Past Awardees
- 2024 Awardees
- 2023 Awardees
- 2022 Awardees
- 2021 Awardees
- 2020 Awardees
- 2019 Awardees
- 2018 Awardees
- 2017 Awardees
Nineteen graduate students were offered the Graduate Research Fellowship in 2024. Seven undergraduates were also offered the award for their graduate study. Another 33 UW–Madison students were recognized with honorable mentions from NSF.
The 2024 UW–Madison graduate student awardees and their proposed field of study are:
- Abigail Cordiner, Biomedical Engineering
- Brian Foster, Sustainable Chemistry
- Rory Greenhalgh, Genetics
- David Hardy, Chemical Catalysis
- Angel Hernandez Viera, Microbial Biology
- Samuel Johnstone, Chemical Engineering
- James Kosmopoulos, Microbial Biology
- Zach Lewis, Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Joyce Lin, Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Marcus Lindsey, Biophysics
- Shaan Nagy, Formal Methods, Verification, and Programming Languages
- Selymar Pena-Rivera, Microbial Biology
- Charles Smith, Economics
- James Summers, Hydrology
- Ebony Taylor, Ecology
- Joseph Walston, Systematics and Biodiversity
- Mallory Wilson, Chemistry of Life Processes
- Jackson Wysocki, Chemistry of Life Processes
- Skye Xollo, Sociology
The UW-Madison undergraduate awardees and their proposed field of study are:
- Joshua Baston, Metallic Materials
- Eric Dubberstein, Computer Architecture
- Andrew Engedal, Mathematical Biology
- Amory Griffin, Chemical Synthesis
- William Jarvis, Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Brooke Kotten, Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Lucille Steffes, Astronomy and Astrophysics
Forty-seven continuing UW–Madison graduate students were awarded the Graduate Research Fellowship in 2023. Five undergraduates were also offered the award for their graduate study. Another 19 UW–Madison students were recognized with honorable mentions from NSF.
The 2023 UW–Madison graduate student awardees and their areas of study are:
- Fernando Acosta-Pérez, Industrial Engineering
- Erin Alberts, Genetics
- Sam Anderson, Botany
- Angel Banuelos, Genetics
- Michaela Barber, Chemistry
- Vanessa Barton, Mechanical Engineering
- Maia Bates, Chemistry
- Katie Braun, Geography
- Jennifer Bui, Electrical & Computer Engineering
- Myron Child, Genetics
- Brandon Cortez, Electrical & Computer Engineering
- Kevin Dao, Mathematics
- Jess Davidson, Biochemistry
- Molly DeLuca, Medical Physics
- Alex Dobrila, Microbiology
- Julie DuClos, Molecular & Cellular Pharmacology
- Allison Erena, Astronomy
- Zac Faitz, Chemistry
- Savannah Finley, Environmental Chemistry & Technology
- Garrett Fullerton, Medical Physics
- Uriel Garcia, Chemistry
- Sara Hartke, Civil & Environmental Engineering
- MegAnn Haubold, Cancer Biology
- Samuel Hori, Physics
- Andrea Houck, Medical Physics
- Ivan Hu, Computer Sciences
- Carlos Huang-Zhu, Chemical Engineering
- Angel Ibarra, Chemistry
- Hailey Johnson, Computer Sciences
- Megan Kelly, Chemical Engineering
- Angelica Lang, Genetics
- Clairine Larsen, Cellular & Molecular Biology
- Arielle Link, Integrative Biology
- Ryan Martinez, Genetics
- Ryan McDonnell, Chemistry
- Grace Melone, Entomology
- Nayanna Mercado-Soto, Microbiology
- Alana Meyer, Chemistry
- Alyssa Olszewski, Chemistry
- Gerardo Quintana Cintron, Chemistry
- Chris Roberts, Pharmaceutical Sciences
- Alysa Rogers, Physics
- Estephani Torres Villanueva, Astronomy
- Elvis Umana, Chemical Engineering
- James Unzaga, Materials Science and Engineering
- Isabela Velasquez Gutierrez, Wildlife Ecology
- Rayne Wolf, Industrial Engineering
Twenty-six continuing and incoming UW–Madison graduate students were awarded graduate research fellowships in 2022. Another 17 UW–Madison undergraduates were awarded fellowships to graduate programs at other institutions. Thirty-four UW–Madison undergraduates and prospective graduate students received honorable mentions from reviewers.
The 2022 UW–Madison graduate student awardees and their areas of study are:
- Lauren Ehehalt, Chemistry
- Kristel Forlano, Chemistry
- Samuel Garcia, Nuclear Engineering
- Joshua Gasick, Mechanical Engineering
- Anna Gregory, Microbiology
- Dane Gollero, Mathematics
- Evan Heeg, Geological Engineering
- Miette Hennessy, Plant Pathology
- Damielle Hieber, Food Science
- Tessa Hoffman, Biochemistry
- Natalie Jones-Kerwin, Political Science
- Garrett Knowlton, Integrative Biology
- Jessamine Kuehn, Molecular & Cellular Pharmacology
- Unni Kurumbail, Chemical Engineering
- Isaac Laseter, Astronomy
- Joie Ling, Microbiology
- Kayley Manuel, Microbiology
- Adrian Matthews, Chemistry
- Holly Nichols, Microbiology
- Grant Nickles, Cellular & Molecular Biology
- Stephanie Oliveras Santos, Chemistry
- Kyra Ricci, Ecology
- Damayanti Rodriguez-Ramos, Microbiology
- Irene Stoutland, Chemistry
- Christopher Triggs, Chemistry
- Sophia Vogelsang, Chemistry
Thirty-one continuing and incoming UW–Madison students were awarded graduate research fellowship in 2021. Another 35 continuing students received honorable mentions from reviewers.
The 2021 UW–Madison awardees and their program of study are:
- Aldo Arellano, Microbiology
- Nina Bonde, Biochemistry
- Emma Brann, Physics
- Kyle Chin, Chemical Engineering
- Emily Eix, Microbiology
- Amy Enright, Microbiology
- Tabitha Faber, Botany
- Abigail Ferris, Engineering Physics
- Kaitlyn Gruber, Chemistry
- Riley Hale, Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Ashley Hiebing, Biomedical Engineering
- Dionel Jaime, Mathematics
- Dean Jarois, Chemistry
- Lisa Je, Chemical Engineering
- Edgard Lebron Rodriguez, Chemical Engineering
- Cassandra Leech, Cellular and Molecular Biology
- Christine Lucky, Chemical Engineering
- Rosanne Luu, Educational Psychology
- Cody Martin, Microbiology
- Rachel McClure, Astronomy
- Tara Mittelberg, Agricultural and Applied Economics
- Uyen Nguyen, Microbiology
- Brooke Propson, Soil Sciences
- Zoe Rechav, Physics
- Kalina Reese, Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology
- Ross Soens, Biochemistry
- Jennifer Stafford, Astronomy
- Jenna Swenson, Environmental Chemistry and Technology
- Sofia Taylor, Electrical Engineering
- AnnaBeth Thomas, Chemistry
- Helaina Von Bank, Cellular and Molecular Biology
In 2020, 31 students from UW–Madison were awarded the fellowship, with another 35 UW–Madison students recognized with honorable mentions.
The 2020 UW–Madison awardees are:
- Ruby Bafu, PhD student, Sociology
- Jonathon Blank, PhD student, Mechanical Engineering
- Tianen Chen, PhD student, Electrical Engineering
- Rachel Czerwinski, PhD student, Chemistry
- Megan Dixon, PhD student, Microbiology
- Matthew Genzink, PhD student, Chemistry
- Kate Griffin, BS ’19, Biomedical Engineering (Current: Research Intern, UW Department of Surgery)
- Peyton Higgins, PhD student, Chemistry
- Christine Hustmyer, PhD student, Biochemistry
- Eric Kohn, PhD student, Chemistry
- Alexius Lampkin, PhD student, Molecular & Cellular Pharmacology
- Anne-Sophie Mancha, PhD student, Biomedical Engineering
- Arvin Raj Mathur, PhD student, Anthropology
- Sarah McCarthy, PhD student, Physics
- Kate McGinn, PhD student, Wildlife Ecology
- Rylie Morris, PhD student, Chemistry
- Megan Nieszala, PhD student, Chemistry
- Rahul Parhi, PhD student, Electrical Engineering
- Aicha Quamine, PhD student, Cellular & Molecular Biology
- Anika Rice, MS student, Geography
- Rebecca Roembke, PhD student, Mechanical Engineering
- Trevor Seets, PhD student, Electrical Engineering
- Joseph Skarlupka, PhD student, Microbiology
- Paul Slaughter, Undergraduate student, Mechanical Engineering
- Madeline Smerchansky, PhD student, Biomedical Engineering
- Mackinsey Smith, PhD student, Chemistry
- Laura Stegner, PhD student, Computer Science
- Isabelle Tigges-Green, BS ’19, Chemistry and Spanish (Current: Faculty Assistant and Chemistry Outreach Specialist, UW Department of Chemistry)
- Jessica Turner, MS student, Environment and Resources
- Soleil Young, PhD student, Microbiology
- Madison Youngblom, PhD student, Microbiology
Of about 12,000 applicants nationally, 2,050 received awards in the 2019 competition, including 40 UW–Madison students. Another 29 UW–Madison students were given honorable mentions.
The 2019 UW–Madison awardees are:
- Theodore Agbi, PhD student, Chemical Engineering
- Shaan Amin, PhD student, Political Science
- Garrett Anstreicher, PhD student, Economics
- Benjamin Bachman, PhD student, Chemistry
- Desia Bacon, PhD student, Psychology
- Connor Blankenship, PhD student, Pharmaceutical Sciences
- Miriam Bohlmann Kunz, PhD student, Chemistry
- Katie Bultman, PhD student, Microbiology
- Joseph Burns, PhD student, Biomedical Engineering
- Mariama Carter, PhD student, Plant Pathology
- Aryel Clarke, PhD student, Biochemistry
- John Crandall, PhD student, Genetics
- Michael Davies, PhD student, Computer Sciences
- Rebekah Dix, BA student, Economics
- Kieran Farrell, PhD student, Chemistry
- Maia Gumnit, PhD student, Comparative Biomedical Sciences
- Mackenzie Hewes, PhD student, Anthropology
- Zena Jensvold, PhD student, Cellular & Molecular Biology
- Conlain Kelly, BS student, Applied Mathematics, Engineering and Physics
- Lauren Laufman, BS student, Astronomy – Physics
- Justin Mabin, PhD student, Cellular & Molecular Biology
- Audrey Marsh, PhD student, Genetics
- Bethany McCarty, PhD student, Chemistry
- Patrick Monari, PhD student, Psychology
- Zachary Morrow, PhD student, Cellular & Molecular Biology
- Kathleen Nickson, PhD student, Chemistry
- Katherine Parrish, PhD student, Chemistry
- Jennifer Peotter, PhD student, Biochemistry
- Bella Reichardt, BS student, Biomedical Engineering
- Daniel Salgueiro, PhD student, Chemistry
- Dylan Schmitz, PhD student, Mechanical Engineering
- Katherine Senn, PhD student, Biochemistry
- Emily Setton, PhD student, Zoology
- Thomas Shannon, BS student, Environmental Studies and English
- Trevor Simmons, BS student, Chemical Engineering
- Seth Spawn, PhD student, Geography
- Julia Thomas, PhD student, Sociology
- Nathan Wang, BS student, Chemical Engineering
- Brian Weaver, PhD student, Biophysics
- Meng Xu, PhD student, Chemistry
In total, the NSF named 2,000 students as recipients of 2018’s GRFP awards, selected through peer review process from over 12,000 applicants.
The twenty-seven UW-Madison awardees are:
- Tesia Janicki, PhD student, Chemistry
- Edna Chiang, PhD student, Microbiology
- Juan Camilo Bohorquez, PhD student, Physics
- Benjamin Gastfriend, PhD student, Chemical Engineering
- Audrey Evans, PhD student, Electrical Engineering
- Michael Aristov, PhD student, Chemistry
- Mitchell Ledwith, PhD student, Cellular & Molecular Biology
- Stephanie Blaszczyk-Beasley, PhD student, Chemistry
- Curran Gahan, PhD student, Chemical Engineering
- Delia Scoville, PhD student, Biochemistry
- Kristin Brunk, MS student, Wildlife Ecology
- Bryan Lakey, PhD student, Genetics
- Nathan Murray, PhD student, Biochemistry
- Katherine Mueller, PhD student, Cellular & Molecular Biology
- Aidan McKenzie, PhD student, Biochemistry
- Natalie Duncombe, PhD student, Economics
- Camilo Machuca, PhD student, Astronomy
- Christopher McAllester, PhD student, Genetics
- Jhewelle Fitz-Henley, PhD student, Pharmaceutical Sciences
- Gabriela Negrete-Garcia, BS Degree, Chemistry
- Kiersten Haffey, undergraduate, Biomedical Engineering
- Emily Jewell, undergraduate, Engineering Mechanics
- Hunter Johnson, undergraduate, Biomedical Engineering
- Celeste Keith, General Course – BS Degree
- Taylor McKenna Marohl, undergraduate, Biomedical Engineering
- Lucas Oxtoby, BS Degree, Chemistry
- Elizabeth Rose Penn, undergraduate, Geological Engineering
In total, the NSF named 2,000 students as recipients of 2017’s GRFP awards, selected through peer review process from over 13,000 applicants.
The twenty-one UW-Madison awardees are:
- Bayleigh Benner, PhD student, Microbiology
- Brian Carrick, PhD student, Biochemistry
- Patrick Cervantes, PhD student, Cellular and Molecular Biology
- Julie Davis, PhD/Master’s student, Astronomy
- Alexandra DiNicola, PhD student, Botany
- Leah Escalante, PhD student, Genetics
- Christine Isabella, PhD student, Biochemistry
- Taylor Keding, PhD student, Neuroscience
- Jesse Kidd, PhD student, Chemistry
- Samantha Knott, PhD student, Chemistry
- Elizabeth Laudadio, PhD student, Chemistry
- Nicole Piscopo, PhD student, Biomedical Engineering
- Paige Piszel, PhD student, Chemistry
- Kyle Robinson, PhD student, Biochemistry
- Taylor Scott, PhD student, Cellular and Molecular Biology
- Matthew Styles, PhD student, Chemistry
- Edwin Suarez-Zayas, PhD student, Neuroscience
- Sydney Thomas, PhD student, Cellular and Molecular Biology
- Daniel Vigil, BS student, Chemical Engineering
- Thejas Wesley, BS student, Chemical Engineering
- Randee Young, PhD student, Genetics