NDSEG Program Conference kicks off in San Diego

ARLINGTON, VA — The National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship Program (NDSEG) hosted its first annual conference in San Diego, California for the former and current 2019 class awardees. For the first time, fellows were gathered from all across the country for the opportunity to network, discuss and learn more about the Department of Defense.

The NDSEG conference featured interactive workshops, career fairs, and an exclusive tour of DOD facilities. Fellows also had the opportunity to showcase the extensive research being practiced in their respective disciplines in a series of poster presentations.

Established in 1989, NDSEG has successfully granted 3,600 fellowships to United States citizens from over 58,000 applicants. “NDSEG has been very beneficial to me, it has given me the extra motivation and confidence that I deserve it and the financial aspects have made graduate school much easier so I am very grateful to them for that,” said NDSEG Fellow Mitchell Albrecht.

The Fellowship is sponsored by The Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Army Research Office, and the Office of Naval Research under the direction of the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. Fellowships are awarded to applicants pursuing doctoral degrees within 15 areas of DOD interest.

The future minds of science and engineering were challenged in the opening ceremonies by Deputy Director of Research, Technology and Laboratories, Dr. JihFen Lei.

“You are the future that we depend on to build the next capability for our warfighter,” Lei said.

Throughout the week former fellows, program officers and representatives from AFOSR, ARO, and ONR engaged in compelling discussions and tackled inquiries about the resilient mission at hand.

Graduate fellows join a premier class of former fellows who have used the program as a stepping stone to continue extraordinary research in the Science and Engineering community.

National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship Program kicked off with a welcome reception followed by poster presentations from the Class of 2019 fellows. (U.S. Air Force photo/Brianna Hodges)