Science and Engineering Scholarships and Fellowships Blog

Awards Still Pouring In For CU-Boulder Graduating Physics Student Ben Safdi

Safdi, who will graduate in May with dual degrees from CU-Boulder in engineering physics and applied mathematics, will study for a Certificate of Advanced Study in Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics at Churchill College at Cambridge. Safdi will work with several high-profile faculty members there, including world-renowned theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, as well as department chair Brian Greene, one of the founders of “string theory.”

In early April, Safdi also was awarded a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, which provides up to $121,000 for up to three years of funding for master’s and doctoral degrees in science, technology, engineering and math fields. Safdi plans to undertake his NSF fellowship at Princeton University after he returns from Cambridge in fall 2009.

In the past year, Safdi also has been the recipient of a $7,500 Goldwater Scholarship and a $10,000 Astronaut Foundation Scholarship — the latter presented to him last November by NASA Mercury astronaut and CU-Boulder alumnus Scott Carpenter. He also received the CU-Boulder Provost’s Award for Academic Achievement in 2005 and has won or placed in several regional and national math competitions.

podcast with Ben Safdi

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