Summer fellowships help grad students devote themselves to research, professional development

For the past two years, MSU graduate student Trey Ursillo has juggled his doctoral research with teaching assistantships to cover his expenses.

This summer, however, an EEB summer fellowship allowed the integrative biology student to dedicate more time to his research on Michigan’s urban birds with MSU professor Kevin McGraw — and to worry less about his bills and grading.

“The ability to focus solely on research and prep for my comp exam has been a huge help, especially this year since I'm doing summer fieldwork,” Ursillo said.

“I also have been using the time to work on submitting my portfolio for the Certificate in College Teaching, and am going to submit the first chapter of my dissertation this week.” he added.

Ursillo is one of 16 MSU graduate students across six departments and three colleges selected for EEB summer fellowships, which provide stipends to focus solely on dissertation research, writing, or other career-related activities over the summer.

The competitive $7,500 fellowships include matching support from advisors and are awarded based on applicants’ scholarly accomplishments, progress towards their degree, and engagement in EEB program activities.

“A summer free from teaching or other obligations helps graduate students focus on doing great science and make meaningful progress with fewer distractions,” said EEB Director Elise Zipkin. “We are delighted to partner with the Graduate School to offer this opportunity to early career scholars at MSU.”

For some students, the support arrived at a key time.

Trip Hash, a PhD candidate advised by Carolyn Malmstrom in plant biology, said the fellowship will allow them to stay focused on research just as their previous source of funding was winding down.

“The EEB fellowship has been really helpful this year since the grant I was funded by last year is ending soon,” Hash said.

Hash will use the award to make headway on genetic sequencing and data analysis for their research on viral infections in switchgrass.

Fourth-year PhD student Narda Triviño Silva received a summer fellowship for her work on climate-smart forest management in commercial pine stands. The award will help her cover her summer living expenses while she tackles the final stages of her research in Akihiro Koyama’s lab.

“This fellowship allows me to dedicate the summer to completing the final data analyses, dissertation writing, and preparation of manuscripts for peer-reviewed publications,” Triviño Silva said.

And for Bruna Amaral, a fifth-year student in the Zipkin lab, the fellowship gives her protected time to delve into modeling and data analyses for her research on factors influencing trends in bird abundances in eastern U.S. national parks.

This fellowship offers support “at a critical near-completion stage, allowing me to devote sustained time to analyses that are too computationally and conceptually intensive to complete alongside heavy teaching or other obligations,” Amaral said.

Amaral was one of two top-ranked students, along with Ani Hristova in Barbara Lundrigan’s lab in integrative biology, who was also awarded an additional $1,000 stipend as part of the Don Hall Memorial Fellowship. The Don Hall Endowed Fund is named for the late zoology professor who served as EEB director from 1989 to 2004.

"I'm delighted that EEB summer fellowships have over the years helped so many graduate students develop intellectually and professionally,” said Pero Dagbovie, Dean of the Graduate School. “This partnership aligns with the university's core value of collaboration and MSU 2030's focus on student success."

EEB summer fellowships were also awarded to:

• Kendall Ash, advised by Kendra Cheruvelil in integrative biology
• Zhuo Chen, advised by Henry Chung in entomology
• Seyed Ali Eshtehardian, advised by Christoph Adami in computer science and engineering
• Brooke Jeffrey, advised by Julia Ganz in integrative biology
• Kiara Johnson, advised by Emily Dolson in computer science and engineering
• Caleb Krueger, advised by Fred Janzen in fisheries and wildlife
• Byungho Lee, advised by Kevin Liu in computer science and engineering
• Sara Moledor, advised by Chris Blackwood in plant biology
• Swarnima Mukherjee, advised by Jason Gallant in integrative biology
• Preethi Muruganandam, advised by Kevin Liu in computer science and engineering
• Santiago Rodriguez Castro, advised by Heather Eisthen in integrative biology

In addition, a total of 41 graduate students and postdocs received travel grants to present their research at conferences worldwide, from western Canada to Chile.

For more information about funding opportunities available to current and incoming graduate students and postdocs in EEB, visit https://eeb.msu.edu/graduate-program/funding.aspx.

The EEB Grad/Postdoc Awards Committee was led by PhD student Karli Boer in integrative biology and professor Alisha Shah in integrative biology and KBS. Other members were PhD student James Bingham in plant biology and postdoc Bailey McNichol in forestry, along with professors Eric Benbow in entomology, Charles Ofria in computer science and engineering, and Chris Kozakiewicz in integrative biology and KBS.