CISTAR Graduate Fellows

Graduate students engaged with CISTAR research across all sites are called CISTAR Graduate Fellows. Our Fellows have unique opportunities to not only engage in cutting edge research but also have access to professional development opportunities, mentoring and outreach experience, and industry connections through the Center. Fellows are mentored to develop an Individual Development Plan (IDP) to identify career interests, strengths, and areas of challenges to meet their goals and become future leaders in the hydrocarbon economy.

CISTAR Undergraduate Fellows Upcoming Events & Webinars Career Opportunities CISTAR Fellows Directory View Past Brown Bag Seminar Recordings

CISTAR Fellow presenting poster to Industry

CISTAR Fellows working together at Fellows Institute event

Overview

Opportunities are available at Purdue University, University of New Mexico, Northwestern University, University of Notre Dame, and the University of Texas at Austin for graduate students studying chemical engineering, materials engineering, or chemistry. As a CISTAR Fellow, students are enrolled in a specialized CISTAR course that focuses on hydrocarbon-derived energy. Students also participate in the annual CISTAR Fellows Institute for specialized training to become excellent communicators and ethical leaders as well as interact with members from industry and CISTAR colleagues.

CISTAR Fellow benefits:

Participating in relevant research projects in catalysis, separations, and process design.
Collaborating with a wide network of world-class researchers, advisors, and peers across five partner universities.
Networking with CISTAR industrial partners from across the oil and gas value chain.

Opportunities to explore international research opportunities with optional global exchanges, research experiences, and industrial internships.

Student Leadership Council

CISTAR’s Student Leadership Council (SLC) consists of graduate student representatives from each partner appointed by the faculty to represent the student body of the center. They work collaboratively with the Engineering Workforce Development team to plan professional development opportunities such as the Brown Bag Luncheons, and activities during the annual Fellows Institute, and provide their input to the National Science Foundation during site visits.

Apply To CISTAR Partner Universities Graduate Programs

• CISTAR at Purdue University Application Process

• CISTAR at University of New Mexico Application Process

• CISTAR at Northwestern University Application Process

• CISTAR at University of Notre Dame Application Process

• CISTAR at The University of Texas at Austin Application Process

Onboarding Process for New Fellows

Coming soon!

CISTAR Fellows News

CISTAR PhD Student Luke Pretzie Awarded Prestigious DOE SCGSR Fellowship to Conduct Research at Argonne National Laboratory

Luke Pretzie, a fourth-year PhD student in Professor Jeffrey Greeley’s research group at Purdue University, has been accepted into the highly competitive U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science Graduate Student Research (SCGSR) Program. Pretzie will conduct research at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) under the mentorship of Dr. Cong Liu from June 9, 2025, to June 8, 2026.

Congratulations to our 2024 CISTAR Biannual Meeting Poster and Poster Pitch Winners!

At each biannual meeting, CISTAR Fellows take part in the Poster Pitch competition, where they have 90 seconds to present their research to industry professionals and faculty members, inviting them to explore their work further during the subsequent poster session. The winner of the competition will represent CISTAR at the next NSF ERC Biennial meeting, competing against other ERC students for a $5,000 grand prize.

Congratulations to our 2023 Poster Pitch and Poster Winners!

CISTAR Congratulates the following students for their outstanding poster pitch and posters at the 2023 CISTAR Biannual Meeting.

CISTAR Fellow Luke Denoyer Wins UNM Pitch Deck Competition

CISTAR's Featured Fellow: Ricem Diaz Arroyo, Student Leadership Council 2023 Chair

2022 CISTAR Poster Pitch Winners

CISTAR Congratulates Ricem Diaz Arroyo and Sopuru A. Ezenwa on CISTAR Fellowships

Congratulations to our 2021-2022 CISTAR Fellowship Winners, Ricem Diaz Arroyo and Sopuruchukwu (Sopuru) A. Ezenwa. CISTAR awards two fellowships annually – both of which are funded by Purdue Chemical Engineering alumni: Dick Reitz and Bill Murray.

Announcing CISTAR's 2021 Biannual Meeting Perfect Pitch Winners

CISTAR's 2021 Biannual Meeting took place virtually October 13-15, 2021

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View Graduate Student Recruiting Flyer

Student Leadership Council Members

Asha Ramanujam
2025 SLC Chair
Purdue University
aramanuj@purdue.edu

Tiffany Jeng
Student Leadership Council
2025 Co-Chair
The University of Texas at Austin
tjeng@utmail.utexas.edu

Alba Scotto d'Apollonia
Student Leadership Council
Professional Development Chair
University of Notre Dame
ascottod@nd.edu

Andrew Weidner
Student Leadership Council
Industry Liaison
Northwestern University
andrewweidner2027@u.northwestern.edu

Brandon Burnside
Student Leadership Council
Outreach Chair
University of New Mexico
bburnside24@unm.edu