Project Profile

This Integrative Graduate Education and Traineeship (IGERT) project at Rutgers University and partner Princeton University will establish an interdisciplinary graduate education, research, and training program focused upon scientific, technical, and policy... more »

This Integrative Graduate Education and Traineeship (IGERT) project at Rutgers University and partner Princeton University will establish an interdisciplinary graduate education, research, and training program focused upon scientific, technical, and policy issues related to sustainable and affordable clean energy technologies, emphasizing innovations in nanotechnology. This IGERT project will develop and implement a new interdisciplinary curriculum, Nanotechnology for Clean Energy, featuring novel courses in fundamental (nanoscale) materials science, physics, chemistry, and electrical engineering with specific applications to energy technology development. Graduate trainees will apply this innovative training in a dynamic educational exchange program with select African institutions, promoting development of their global awareness and understanding of challenges involved in scientific and economic development in the developing world. The three objectives of the African international component of this project are: (i) provide IGERT trainees with realistic perspectives of the challenges of energy generation and storage for communities located far from the grid; (ii) foster face-to-face and cyber-enabled exchanges; and (iii), encourage U.S. students, particularly those from underrepresented populations, to enter science and engineering fields to work on critical, real-world problems of relevance to developing countries. Talented undergraduates from underrepresented groups will be aggressively recruited from minority-serving institutions, including students participating in the Research in Science and Engineering Program and the Bridge to the Doctorate Program at Rutgers, designed to prepare students for the rigors of an interdisciplinary Ph.D. program. This IGERT project will help promote development of a diverse, globally aware, and scientifically capable workforce trained in nanotechnology and international development issues, and will also involve students in close interactions with national laboratories and industry partners to translate scientific results into usable and commercially-viable technologies to address real-world energy needs. IGERT is an NSF-wide program intended to meet the challenges of educating U.S. Ph.D. scientists and engineers with the interdisciplinary background, deep knowledge in a chosen discipline, and the technical, professional, and personal skills needed for the career demands of the future. The program is intended to catalyze a cultural change in graduate education by establishing innovative new models for graduate education and training in a fertile environment for collaborative research that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries. « less

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