How to Apply?

Overview of NRT MIDAS and Application information

You can click the link below if you want to see the slides presented by Prof. Jayaraman during the NRT virtual information session on Oct. 5, 2023.

Slides 

Who can apply?

Interested 1st year graduate students (domestic and international) at University of Delaware (UD) or Delaware State who are admitted into the PhD programs of these participating departments:

  • Computer and Information Sciences
  • Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
  • Materials Science and Engineering
  • Biomedical Engineering
  • Chemistry (Del State)

When should these interested students apply?

In November of every year. Due date for applications is November 30 of that year (unless it falls on a holiday or weekend, in which case it is the Friday before November 30.

What is the application process?

  • Application form: The 2023 application is now closed. The deadline to apply was November 30 2023 at 5pm ET.  
  • In future years (2024) we will have a similar application form and deadline. This is the type of information we request in the application form.  NRT MIDAS 2023 Application form
  • When applicants submit their applications, all identifiable data and information is saved in a secure server and will not be shared with anyone outside of the NRT admissions committee composed of selected members from the NRT core faculty.

Selection Process of NSF Trainees 

By December 15 of each year we will complete the selection process and inform the applicants.

Each year we expect to select 3-4 outstanding applicants as NRT-MIDAS (funded) trainees. These trainees will be domestic students and receive tuition, stipend, and benefits for two years and some travel funds to attend one conference from the NSF-NRT grant.  These trainees are expected to participate in every NRT training element as outlined in the trainee timeline. After the two years of NRT grant funding, these trainees will be funded by their graduate programs/primary advisors.

Each year we will also select an additional ~5-7 NRT trainees who are

i) talented international students interested in all elements of the NRT traineeship but by NSF rules cannot be funded by NSF-NRT grant;    or

ii) other talented domestic graduate students (i.e., US citizen or green card holders) who may be interested in some but not all NRT CDST-MIDAS training elements.

These additional UD-based (unfunded by NRT) trainees will receive some travel funds to attend one national conference  and, potentially, partial scholarships (e.g., 1 semester of stipend and tuition) from UD College of Engineering funds, depending on availability of funds. These students will be funded primarily by their home graduate programs/advisors in their graduate programs. These UD-based (unfunded by NRT) trainees must complete some of the NRT elements and opt to participate in additional elements (see trainee timelines).

We will also recruit each year ~1-2 masters/doctoral students from Delaware State University (DSU).

All NRT trainees (unfunded or funded, UD and DSU) will be recruited based on their research interests (how well it is aligned with HPC/DS/Polymers), academic background, and information provided in the application to ensure we bring together a diverse cohort of trainees (domestic and unfunded international) each year.

“Can I participate in NRT training elements even if I am not a trainee?”

This NRT welcomes the participation of graduate students and postdoctoral researchers from HPC, DS and MAT related disciplines from across different science and engineering departments through their enrollment in one or more of the newly developed NRT (hackathon and capstone design) courses, professional workshops, and attendance of the NRT weekly community hour events. These participating students and postdocs are welcome to become part of the expanded network of students that we hope will benefit from the NRT MIDAS training elements.