Honors and Awards

The College of Engineering recognizes outstanding graduate students and research through the Zuhair A. Munir Award, Master’s Thesis Excellence Award, Best Teaching Assistant Awards, and Graduate Student Excellence Awards. 

Zuhair A. Munir Award

Established in 1999, the annual Zuhair A. Munir Award honors the student who has submitted the best doctoral dissertation based on outstanding research conducted in the college. This award also acknowledges the mentorship of the recipient’s major professor(s). The award honors former dean of the college, Zuhair A. Munir, who led the college from 2000 to 2002 and acted as its Associate Dean for Graduate Studies for 20 years. The Zuhair A. Munir Award consists of a $1,000 award and plaque for the student.

  • Eligibility
  • All doctoral students who have filed signed dissertations with the Office of Graduate Studies during the last two years are eligible.
  • Nomination Process
  • Graduate programs/groups in the college will be asked to submit one nomination per program/group.
  • Required Materials
  • Complete nomination packets will include:
    1. A nominating letter (normally written by the major advisor) summarizing the research accomplishments and addressing the review criteria listed below.
    2. At least one other recommendation letter from another member of the dissertation committee or department faculty which also addresses the review criteria.
    3. A letter from the student describing his or her intellectual input to the work and research accomplishments.
    4. A current C.V.
    5. One publication (if any) resulting from the dissertation research (if the publication is multiauthored then additional information clearly stating the student’s contributions to this publication is required).
    6. The abstract of the student's dissertation.
    7. A copy of the dissertation.
  • Selection Committee
  • The College Awards Committee will review the nominations and select the recipient(s), based on review of the submitted materials, will choose the award recipient based on the following criteria: originality of the work, style/method, significance of the work to the discipline (impact, interdisciplinary), and recognition. Nomination letters should address each criterion specifically.
  • Past Recipients
  • 2022: Dr. Jovana Veselinović
    2021Sima Asadi
    2020: Jennifer Nill
    2019Konstantin Zamuruyev
    2018: Diana Gamzina
    2017Eric Berg
    2016Jeni Lee
    2015: Jin Yong Oh
    2014: Taylor Woehl
    2013: Mark Gabel

Jeffery C. Gibeling Award for Best Master’s Thesis

The college established this annual award in 2020-2021 to honor a Master's student who has submitted the best Master's thesis. This award will not only honor the individual student and publicize his/her exemplary research, but will also acknowledge the mentorship of the major professor. The College of Engineering Jeffery C. Gibeling Award for Best Master’s Thesis consists of a $1,000 award and plaque for the student.

  • Eligibility
  • All Master's students who have filed a signed thesis with the Office of Graduate Studies during the last two years are eligible.
  • Nomination Process
  • Graduate programs/groups in the College will be asked to submit one nomination per program/group.
  • Required Materials
  • Complete nomination packets will include:
    1. A nominating letter (normally written by the major advisor) summarizing the research accomplishments and addressing the review criteria listed below.
    2. At least one other recommendation letter from another member of the dissertation committee or department faculty which also addresses the review criteria.
    3. A letter from the student describing his or her intellectual input to the work and research accomplishments.
    4. A current C.V.
    5. The abstract of the student's thesis.
    6. A copy of the thesis.
  • Selection Committee
  • The College Awards Committee will review the nominations and select the recipient(s), based on review of the submitted materials, will choose the award recipient based on the following criteria: originality of the work, style/method, significance of the work to the discipline (impact, interdisciplinary), and recognition. Nomination letters should address each criterion specifically.
  • Past Recipients
  • 2022: Meghna Srivastava
    2021: Suchita Mukherjee

Best Teaching Assistant Awards

The Best Teaching Assistant Awards recognize graduate students who show a strong commitment to the mission and vision of the college and consistently perform above and beyond to train and create the next generation of engineers and leaders. These award recipients were nominated and selected by their respective departments. View past recipients below.

  • 2022
  • Biological and Agricultural Engineering: Kevin Hudnall

    Biomedical Engineerin: Michelle Shimberg 

    Chemical Engineering: Kristen Fawole

    Civil and Environmental Engineering: Mandeep Singh

    Computer Science: Michael Livanos

    Electrical and Computer Engineering: Sadegh Shamsabardeh

    Materials Science and Engineering: Cassondra Brayfield

    Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering: Kevin Ryan Mallon

Graduate Student Excellence Awards

These annual awards honor the meritorious achievements of College of Engineering graduate students. Award recipients receive a $500 award. The following awards are available each year:

  • Excellence in Graduate Student Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Award
  • The goal of the award is to recognize a COE graduate student who has demonstrated exemplary leadership in promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion. Both Master’s and Doctoral students enrolled in a graduate program administered by the College of Engineering are eligible.

    Nominations
    Anyone with direct experience of the student’s efforts to promote diversity, equity, and/or inclusion are invited to submit nominations for the Excellence in Graduate Student Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Award. Self-nominations and departmentally sponsored nominations are permitted. Only those candidates whose accomplishments would place them among the top of their peer group should be nominated. Nominations should take the form of a letter describing the specific accomplishments or efforts of the candidate.

    Evaluation Criteria
    Candidates for the Excellence in Graduate Student Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Award should have a record of accomplishments that clearly demonstrates exemplary service or efforts to advance equity and inclusion within any domain. Examples of such may include, but are not limited to:
    •Organizing and leading events focused on equity, diversity, and inclusion (e.g. mentoring in underserved communities, equity seminar with invited speakers, workshop on improving inclusion)
    •Service in equity, diversity, and inclusion-serving organizations (e.g. Equity in STEM and Entrepreneurship (ESTEME), Diversity in STEM Committee (DISC))
    •Involvement with equity, diversity, and inclusion initiatives and policies (e.g. bridge program for transfer students, removal of standardized test requirements)

    Selection Process
    A review of all nominees occurs in fall quarter. Announcement of the recipient occurs in winter quarter. Nominees who are not selected for an award may be re-nominated in a subsequent year.

    Award Terms
    This award is given annually and is a one-time award for each recipient. Use of the monies from the award is unrestricted.
  • Excellence in Graduate Student Research Award
  • The goal of the award is to recognize a COE graduate student who has made significant contributions to their field of research or discipline. Both Master’s and Doctoral students enrolled in a graduate program administered by the College of Engineering are eligible.

    Nominations
    Anyone with direct experience of the student’s research contributions and/or record of publications are invited to submit nominations for the Excellence in Graduate Student Research Award. Self-nominations and departmentally-sponsored nominations are permitted. Only those candidates whose accomplishments would place them among the top of their peer group should be nominated. Nominations should take the form of a letter describing the specific accomplishments or efforts of the candidate.

    Evaluation Criteria
    Candidates for the Excellence in Graduate Student Research Award should have a record of accomplishments that clearly demonstrates exemplary contributions and/or a record of publications. Examples of such may include, but are not limited to publication or citations in:
    •Scientific journal publications
    •Conference proceedings
    •Conference presentations
    •US patents
    •Significant field work contributions (to be recognized even in the absence of publications)
    •Introduction of novel techniques or research areas for department (to be recognized even in the absence of publications)

    Selection Process
    A review of all nominees occurs in fall quarter. Announcement of the recipient occurs in winter quarter. Nominees who are not selected for an award may be re-nominated in a subsequent year.

    Award Terms
    This award is given annually and is a one-time award for each recipient. Use of the monies from the award is unrestricted.
  • Excellence in Graduate Student Service & Leadership Award
  • The goal of the award is to recognize a COE graduate student who has demonstrated exemplary leadership in their service to their community. Both Master’s and Doctoral students enrolled in a graduate program administered by the College of Engineering are eligible.

    Nominations
    Anyone with direct experience of the student’s leadership or service are invited to submit nominations for the Excellence in Graduate Student Service & Leadership Award. Self-nominations and departmentally-sponsored nominations are permitted. Only those candidates whose accomplishments would place them among the top of their peer group should be nominated. Nominations should take the form of a letter describing the specific accomplishments or efforts of the candidate.

    Evaluation Criteria
    Candidates for the Excellence in Graduate Student Service & Leadership Award should have a record of accomplishments that clearly demonstrates exemplary service. Examples of service or leadership may include, but are not limited to:
    •Organizing and leading community events (e.g. research symposium, interdepartmental social mixer)
    •Positions in community-serving organizations (e.g. Graduate Student Association, department-specific Graduate Student Associations)
    •Involvement with community initiatives and policies (e.g. weekly discussion groups/lectures)

    Selection Process
    A review of all nominees occurs in fall quarter. Announcement of the recipient occurs in winter quarter. Nominees who are not selected for an award may be re-nominated in a subsequent year.

    Award Terms
    This award is given annually and is a one-time award for each recipient. Use of the monies from the award is unrestricted.
  • Excellence in Graduate Student Safety Award
  • The goal of the award is to recognize a COE graduate student who has demonstrated outstanding contributions to promoting and enhancing the safety culture within the College. Both Master’s and Doctoral students enrolled in a graduate program administered by the College of Engineering are eligible.

    Nominations
    Anyone with direct experience of the student’s efforts to enhance the safety culture within their sphere of influence are invited to submit nominations for the Excellence in Graduate Student Safety Award. Self-nominations and departmentally-sponsored nominations are permitted. Only those candidates whose accomplishments would place them among the top of their peer group should be nominated. Nominations should take the form of a letter describing the specific accomplishments or efforts of the candidate.

    Evaluation Criteria
    Candidates for the Excellence in Graduate Student Safety Award should have a record of accomplishments that clearly demonstrates exemplary service. Examples of safety efforts may include, but are not limited to:
    •Organizing and leading safety events (e.g. departmental discussions/info sessions)
    •Positions in safety-serving organizations (e.g. participation in safety committee)
    •Involvement with safety initiatives (e.g. purge of unused lab chemical inventory)
    •Initiating change in safety protocol within lab, group, program, or department

    Selection Process
    A review of all nominees occurs in fall quarter. Announcement of the recipient occurs in winter quarter. Nominees who are not selected for an award may be re-nominated in a subsequent year.

    Award Terms
    This award is given annually and is a one-time award for each recipient. Use of the monies from the award is unrestricted.
  • Past Recipients
  • 2023
    2022
    2021