Pratt Research Fellows

The Pratt Research Fellows Program is a unique, immersive opportunity for undergraduates to conduct authentic research with a faculty member. It’s a deeply engaging and rewarding experience. Typically, Pratt Fellows also graduate with Departmental Distinction and many other honors.

Third-year and advanced second-year students are encouraged to apply. Applications are accepted each fall, with a deadline of October 31.

Program Details

  • Traditional

    • Three (3) independent study semesters. Students earn a total of 3 course credits
    • 10-week, full-time internship experience on campus for one summer
    • Students receive a stipend of $5,000 to cover living expenses incurred during the summer research experience

    Alternative

    • Four (4) independent study semesters
    • Students earn a total of four course credits.
  • Pratt Research Fellows work on projects under the direction of dedicated faculty advisors. Course credit is given in your major in a linked three-semester course sequence:

    • 394: Engineering Undergraduate Fellows Projects
      Intensive research project selected by a Pratt Engineering Undergraduate Fellow. Course credit is contingent upon satisfactory completion of 493 and 494.
    • 493: Engineering Undergraduate Fellows Projects
      Continuation course for Engineering Undergraduate Fellows, contingent upon satisfactory completion of 394
    • 494: Engineering Undergraduate Fellows Projects
      Final course for Engineering Undergraduate Fellows, contingent upon satisfactory completion of 394 and 494
    1. Browse available research projects for your graduating class
    2. Browse samples of possible additional projects from last year’s research projects
    3. Contact and meet with engineering faculty to learn more about their projects
    4. Select up to six (6) research projects
    5. Rank your selected projects in order of preference
    6. Request a reference letter from an engineering faculty member
  • In the research projects section of your application, provide the Project Title and the Faculty name(s) for each preferred project.

    Ensure that your reference letter is submitted as an email attachment to Referen.ausriencbxpyiwd5@u.box.com.

    Complete and submit your application by October 31.

Program Coordinator

Featured Stories

Yi Chen at his piano
5/3/22 Pratt School of Engineering

Yi Chen: Embracing New Challenges

Pratt Fellow Yi Chen switched his major from music to engineering; his research project seeks to squeeze more energy from batteries

2023-2024 Pratt Fellows

Kaden Bock

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: Piotr Marszalek
  • Project Title: Evaluating the mechanical stability of the bioluminescent protein NanoLuc

Sarah Broders

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: Nenad Bursac
  • Project Title: Cardiac Crainbow: A Mouse Model to Study the Use of Oncogenes for Heart Regeneration

Anna Demelo

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: George Truskey
  • Project Title: Investigating Triggers of Muscle Weakness in Juvenile Dermatomyositis

Charlotte Ellis

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: David Katz
  • Project Title: Computational Mass Transport Model of Franz Diffusion Cell

Chloe Freitas

  • Major: Civil Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: Gabriel Katul
  • Project Title: Overland Flow Simulation

Dadmehr Ghasemfar

  • Major: Mechanical Engineering (Aerospace Focus)
  • Faculty Mentor: Boyuan Chen
  • Project Title: BoomBox 2.0 – Simulated Data To Train CNN To “See With Sound”

Emily Gjertsen

  • Major: Environmental Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: Heileen Hsu-Kim
  • Project Title: Lead in Dust in Building Around Campus

Dahlia Halabi

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: Charles Gersbach
  • Project Title: CRISPR-based epigenome editing for the direct reprogramming of astrocytes to neurons

Selena Halabi

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: Zachary Hartman
  • Project Title: Investigation of Mouse and Human Androgen Receptor as Novel Immunological Targets for Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer

Alexandra Hoffman

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering, Computer Science
  • Faculty Mentor: Lingchong You
  • Project Title: Microbial Community Bioengineering

Ritvik Janamsetty

  • Major: Electrical & Computer Engineering, Computer Science
  • Faculty Mentor: Maria Gorlatova
  • Project Title: Environmental Manipulation in Augmented Reality

Benjamin Johns

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: Brenton Hoffman
  • Project Title: Screening the Mechanical Performance of Fluorescent Proteins in Living Cells

Joe Laforet

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering, Computer Science
  • Faculty Mentor: Daniel Reker
  • Project Title: A novel molecular model for the identification of nanoparticle forming drug-excipient pairs

Claire Li

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering, Computer Science
  • Faculty Mentor: Hafeez Dhalla
  • Project Title: Registration of scanning laser ophthalmoscopy images for motion tracking to evaluate a hybrid spiral scan pattern

Kishen Mitra

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: Samuel Adams
  • Project Title: Evaluating Mechanical Properties and Metabolic Activity of 3D Bioprinted Menisci Models

Alaa Osman

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: George Truskey
  • Project Title: Interferon β Reduces Pediatric Skeletal Muscle Differentiation: Insight into Juvenile Dermatomyositis Pathogenesis

Joanna Peng

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: Ashutosh Chilkoti
  • Project Title: Rational engineering of multimeric constructs for ultra-sensitive point-of-care diagnostics against Ebola secreted glycoprotein

David Prada

  • Major: Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science
  • Faculty Mentor: Xiaoyue Ni
  • Project Title: Soft-Robot with Actuation and Embedded Shape Sensing Function

Catherine Price

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: Ashutosh Chilkoti
  • Project Title: Stealth Polymer based Dual Targeting Drug for Type II Diabetes

Samuel “Lucas” Ramirez

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering, Electrical & Computer Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: Sharon Gerecht
  • Project Title: Inhibition of VEGFR2 with Tivozanib in a Mouse Model of Oxygen-Induced Retinopathy

Arya Tschand

  • Major: Electrical & Computer Engineering, Computer Science
  • Faculty Mentor: Dan Sorin
  • Project Title: Rigorous Evaluation of Computer Systems

Mia Woodruff

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering
  • Faculty Mentor: Joel Collier
  • Project Title: Gastrointestinal Delivery of α-helical Supramolecular Peptides

Sophie Wu

  • Major: Biomedical Engineering, Computer Science
  • Faculty Mentor: Zachary Reitman
  • Project Title: Generating primary mouse models of diffuse midline glioma through a combination of the RCAS/tv-a retrovirus system and CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing