Student and Alumni News

Awards and accomplishments of our students and alumni

Navametha Ramkumar standing against the backdrop of a pillar and chandelier
Students/Computer Engineering, VLSI, and Circuits, Students/Student and Alumni News

Spotlight: Navametha Ramkumar

Posted

Ramkumar, a master's student and winner of an ECE teaching assistant award shares her experience as a graduate student and TA, and her academic and professional interests.

Vasisht Natamai in a dark suit posing in front of Northrop
Students/Computer Engineering, VLSI, and Circuits, Students/Student and Alumni News

Vasisht Natamai wins Bowers Excellence in Teaching Assistance Award

Posted

Natamai has been honored by the College of Science and Engineering with the 2026 John Bowers Excellence in Teaching Assistance Award.

Zaifu Zhan in a black sweatshirt posing with a peace sign with a yellow bird on his left shoulder in a living room space

Spotlight: Doctoral Dissertation Fellow Zaifu Zhan

Posted

Zaifu Zhan was recently awarded the Graduate School’s 2025-2026 doctoral dissertation fellowship (DDF). Learn more about Zhan and what inspires him.

Hangyu Zhang in a light tan jacket in front of a scenic waterfall and mountains

Spotlight: Doctoral Dissertation Fellow Hangyu Zhang

Posted

Hangyu Zhang was recently awarded the Graduate School’s 2025-2026 doctoral dissertation fellowship (DDF). Learn more about Zhang and what inspires him.

Outdoor path scenery behind Keller Hall
Students/Biomedical and Biological Computational Methods Devices and Systems, Students/Computer Engineering, VLSI, and Circuits, Students/Scholarships and Fellowships

Hangyu Zhang and Zaifu Zhan awarded doctoral dissertation fellowships

Posted

Zhang is working on developing high performance placement methods for chip design, and Zhan is working on developing large language model methods for efficient and accurate natural language processing in biomedical settings.

Robert Chandler in a blue sweater
Students/Communications, Signal Processing, and Networking, Students/Computer Engineering, VLSI, and Circuits, Students/Student and Alumni News

Looking back and moving forward with Robert Chandler

Posted

Robert Chandler, who recently accepted a position at Garmin, reflects back on his time at the University of Minnesota and provides some insight to students on their undergraduate journey.

Two students studying together
Students/Biomedical and Biological Computational Methods Devices and Systems, Students/Communications, Signal Processing, and Networking, Students/Computer Engineering, VLSI, and Circuits, Students/Energy Systems and Power Electronics, Students/Fields, Photonics, and Magnetics, Students/Micro and Nanostructures, Students/Scholarships and Fellowships, Students/Student and Alumni News, Students/Systems and Control

Celebrating our teaching assistants: 2025-2026 ECE Teaching Assistant Awards

Posted

The ECE TA Awards highlight the contributions that teaching assistants make to create a welcoming and effective learning environment.

Portrait of Kai Wu in a dark suit
Students/Biomedical and Biological Computational Methods Devices and Systems, Students/Fields, Photonics, and Magnetics, Students/Micro and Nanostructures, Students/Student and Alumni News

Alumnus Kai Wu receives NSF CAREER Award for room temperature, lightweight neural imaging platform

Posted

Wu's project aims to enable lightweight and wearable neural imaging platforms.

Faculty and students discussing a senior design project
Students/Biomedical and Biological Computational Methods Devices and Systems, Students/Communications, Signal Processing, and Networking, Students/Computer Engineering, VLSI, and Circuits, Students/Energy Systems and Power Electronics, Students/Fields, Photonics, and Magnetics, Students/Micro and Nanostructures, Students/Scholarships and Fellowships, Students/Student and Alumni News, Students/Systems and Control

Discover innovation at the student Design Showcase

Posted

On Tuesday, April 28, from 2:30-5:30 p.m., over 500 students will present a range of projects in electrical, computer, and mechanical engineering from first-year explorations to senior-year projects.

Bryan Chantigian in a blue suit standing at an entrance
Students/Biomedical and Biological Computational Methods Devices and Systems, Students/Micro and Nanostructures, Students/Scholarships and Fellowships, Students/Student and Alumni News

Bryan Chantigian awarded Interdisciplinary Doctoral Fellowship

Posted

The fellowship will support Chantigian's research into the development of an electronic-based seeded amplification assay that will help in the diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases.