Awards & Recognition

Read the news articles below to learn about the many honors, awards and recognition received by our College of Engineering faculty, staff and students. Click the buttons to explore awards categorized by faculty, graduate students and undergraduate students, and compiled by year.

A close-up view of SnapBots, a modular robotic device for inspiring STEM-focused learning and play

UC Davis Alum’s Education Company Named Startup of the Month

by Russell Nichols, Comstock’s Magazine
August 12, 2025

Comstock’s Magazine highlights The Make Box, an education startup founded by UC Davis electrical and computer engineering alum Kavya Khare, as this month’s promising startup from California’s Capital Region.

The UC Davis team standing together in front of a screen that says "CITRIS Aviation Prize Winners"

From Concept to Cockpit: UC Davis Team Wins Big at CITRIS Aviation Prize

by Anna Linn, CITRIS and the Banatao Institute, and College of Engineering Communications
August 08, 2025

The UC Davis team was the top award winner at the 2024-25 CITRIS Aviation Prize competition, earning $12,000 for their innovative design of an intercampus air transportation system for UC students, faculty and staff.

UC Davis Students Secure Top Honors with AI-Driven Hardware Hacks

by Matt Marcure
July 29, 2025

Two teams of electrical and computer engineering students have received top honors for their work at hackathons during the 2025 Design Automation Conference, the leading global conference for chips to systems research.

Three individuals are featured in separate portraits arranged side by side against a blue and yellow abstract background. On the left, a woman with shoulder-length dark hair and green highlights smiles with her hands in her pockets, standing in front of a stone wall. In the center, a man in a blazer, glasses, and a cap stands indoors in front of a poster display. On the right, a man in a black shirt and glasses smiles with arms crossed, outdoors with soft natural light and greenery in the background.

Three College of Engineering Projects Receive CITRIS Seed Awards

by College of Engineering Communications
July 28, 2025

Three early-career faculty members from UC Davis are part of three of the four multicampus research teams selected to receive a 2025 Seed Award from the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society and the Banatao Institute, or CITRIS.

Biswanath Mukherjee Receives IEEE Award for Research in Optical Networks

by College of Engineering Communications
July 16, 2025

UC Davis Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Computer Science Biswanath Mukherjee has been selected for the 2026 IEEE Eric E. Sumner Award for his outstanding contributions to the communications technology field, particularly in his work with optical networks and security protocols.

American Ceramic Society Honors Subhash Risbud as Distinguished Life Member

by Amanda Engen, American Ceramic Society and College of Engineering Communications
July 10, 2025

The organization recognizes Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Materials Science and Engineering Subhash Risbud with its highest honor for his prolific contributions to the ceramic and glass fields as a scientist and educator.

Ph.D. Student Earns Prestigious Early Career Researcher Award from Physics in Medicine & Biology

by Tami Freeman, Physics World
July 02, 2025

Ekaterina Shanina, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of California, Davis, has won the Physics in Medicine & Biology Early Career Researcher Award for her research paper describing a novel brain phantom for positron emission tomography (PET).

Alba Alfonso García Earns Young Researcher Award in Optical Technologies

by Matt Marcure
July 01, 2025

The Erlangen Graduate School in Advanced Optical Technologies, or SAOT, has honored Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering Alba Alfonso García for her outstanding research record in optics, photonics and optical technologies.

Rows of people presenting at Engineering Design Showcase at UC Davis

Sandia National Laboratories Celebrates Aggie Engineers with Design Awards

by Matt Marcure
June 27, 2025

For an implantable device improving outcomes of rotator cuff surgery and an IoT waste sorting system, two undergraduate engineering teams have received the Sandia Engineering Design Award for their senior design projects at UC Davis.

Julian Panetta Receives NSF CAREER Award

by College of Engineering Communications
June 16, 2025

The UC Davis assistant professor of computer science has received the prestigious early-career faculty award to advance computational methods for designing high-performance mechanical metamaterials.