Informatics Ph.D. student Katherine Lo has received a Graduate Research Fellowship from the National Science Foundation (NSF GRFP). The highly selective fellowship program awards fellows a three-year annual stipend of $34,000, a $12,000 cost of education allowance, and opportunities for international research and professional development.


“The Graduate Research Fellowship Program is a vital part of our efforts to foster and promote excellence in U.S. science, technology, engineering and mathematics by recognizing talent broadly from across the nation,” said Joan Ferrini-Mundy, NSF assistant director for education and human resources, in a press release. “These awards are provided to individuals who have demonstrated their potential for significant research achievements, and they are investments that will help propel this country’s future innovations and economic growth.”

This year saw 2,000 fellows from 488 baccalaureate institutions, culled from a pool of nearly 17,000 applicants. “The group is diverse, including 1,077 women, 424 individuals from underrepresented minority groups, 62 persons with disabilities, 35 veterans and 627 senior undergraduates,” the NSF notes in the press release.

NSF graduate research fellows work in a variety of disciplines—Lo herself works in STEM education and learning research. “NSF Fellows are anticipated to become knowledge experts who can contribute significantly to research, teaching, and innovations in science and engineering,” the NSF GRFP website says. “These individuals are crucial to maintaining and advancing the nation’s technological infrastructure and national security as well as contributing to the economic well-being of society at large.”