Nuclear Regulatory Commission Awards Training Grants to UCI

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has awarded the Samueli School’s Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science two major training grants for students who plan on future careers in the nuclear field. The grants, totaling $600,000 over four years, will fund graduate fellowships and undergraduate scholarships.

The NRC is committed to increasing the capability of U.S. universities and colleges to educate and train a new workforce that can conduct research and development in the field of energy demand and safe and efficient nuclear energy.

“This is a great opportunity for UCI engineering students interested in nuclear energy,” says Mikael Nilsson, an assistant professor and the principal investigator (PI) for the grants. “It builds on our existing research programs and offers students enhanced career options.” 

Extramural funding awarded to the school for nuclear related-research over the last four years was $4.6 million, supporting programs on nuclear security and detection, design of advanced nuclear fuel, nuclear separations and radioisotopes for medical applications.  In addition, UCI was recently recognized with an official student chapter of the American Nuclear Society.

“A critical factor in winning the graduate fellowships was UCI’s Graduate Division support of our commitment to diversity, and the stellar quality of our graduate students,” states Professor Martha Mecartney, co-PI on the grants. “Active collaborations with national laboratories and strong research ties with faculty and students at minority-serving institutions were also key aspects in both proposals.”