Penn State recognizes talented graduate students for their contributions to research, teaching, and outreach. The Fox Graduate School administers annual Student Recognition Awards in conjunction with the Graduate Council.
2026-27 Nominations Are Now Closed
Thank you to all who submitted nominations for this year's Student Recognition Awards! The 2026-27 nomination deadline has now passed. Recipients will be announced in late spring.
2025–26 Student Award Recipients
Alumni Association Dissertation Award
- Chad Brunswick, Neuroscience
- Houman Riazi Jorshari, Architecture
- Satwik Kundu, Computer Science and Engineering
- Gasto Lyakurwa, Recreation, Park, and Tourism Management with a Dual Title in Transdisciplinary Research in Environment and Society
- Breneil Malcolm, Learning, Design, and Technology
- Shreya Mathela, Chemistry
- Ioannis Mouratidis, Bioinformatics and Genomics
- Kripa Neupane, Forest Resources
- Alexandra Nusawardhana, Biomedical Sciences
- Shio Sakon, Physics
- Albert Suceava, Materials Science and Engineering
- Esma Yerlikaya, Biomedical Sciences
- Cheyenne Zaremba, Communication Arts and Sciences
AT&T Graduate Fellowship
- Syed Md Mukit Rashid, Computer Science and Engineering
Distinguished Master's Thesis Award
- Mia Esoldo, Entomology
- Nathan D. Manna, Art History
- Andres Mayorga Corleto, Rural Sociology
- Anika Rahnuma, Electrical Engineering
Graduate Student Excellence in Mentoring Award
- Mia Sullivan, Education, Development, and Community Engagement with a Dual Title in International Agriculture and Development
Graduate Student International Research Award
- Sanika Khadkikar, Physics
Harold F. Martin Graduate Assistant Outstanding Teaching Award
- Arezou Darvishi, Dual‑title in French and Francophone Studies, and Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
- Alejandro Giraldo, Geosciences
- Lynsey Medd, Communication Arts and Science
- Madiha Noor, Curriculum and Instruction with a Dual Title in Comparative International Education
- Paul Ruelos, Kinesiology
- Kristin Schoenecker, Geography
- Xiaozhen Song, Energy and Mineral Engineering
- Christine Ta, Anthropology with a Dual Title in Microbiome Sciences
- Nusrat Tabassum, Architecture
- Ying Xiong, Applied Linguistics
Harold K. Schilling Dean's Graduate Scholarship
- Vaibhav Pal, Chemistry
Intercollege Graduate Student Outreach Achievement Award
- Robert Witkowski, Plant Biology
Penn State Alumni Association Scholarship for Penn State Alumni in the Fox Graduate School
- Scout Bucks, Nuclear Engineering
- Samantha Splendido, Mechanical Engineering
Professional Master's Excellence Award
- Yasaman Ghaffarian, Architecture
- Dhrupad Umesh Joshi, Cybersecurity Analytics and Operations
- Jasmeen Kaur Khosa, Forensic Science
- Megan von Abo, Biotechnology
Thomas and June Beaver Fund
- Mohammadreza Shariatmadari, Mechanical Engineering
The Fox Graduate School is proud to sponsor the awards below for our students annually. Learn more about each award and how to nominate a student below.