Biomedical Engineering junior receives prestigious Goldwater Scholarship

April 6, 2026 — Ahmed Sharara, a Department of Biomedical Engineering junior in the University Honors Program at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, has been recognized as Goldwater Scholars by the Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation.

Ahmed will receive a scholarship worth up to $7,500 for the next academic year.

This prestigious, nationally competitive scholarship is awarded annually to outstanding sophomores and juniors who intend to pursue research-oriented careers in mathematics, the natural sciences and engineering.

Ahmed, of Arden Hills, Minn., fell in love with the science fair in elementary school. He has been investigating research questions and engineering problems ever since. 

In his first semester, he joined Professor Bhairab Singh’s lab and helped to analyze cryoprotective agents that could improve the preservation of donor hearts and engineered tissues. Now, he is planning and executing a project to investigate the mechanisms of maturation in cardiomyocytes, and developing an automated tool to more quickly and accurately analyze fluorescent images of cardiomyocytes.

He has also worked on joint research projects with Professors John Bischof and Brenda Ogle and recently published the results of a study of the evolution of sarcomeric disorganization over time in the development of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. 

On campus, Ahmed is a co-founder and leader of MEDIC, an organization that empowers students to design medical devices through contests and teamwork. He is similarly involved with Engineering World Health and he volunteers in the Emergency Department of Masonic Children’s Hospital. 

He plans to complete a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering and to continue searching for answers and solving problems in his own university lab.