The National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students in NSF-supported STEM disciplines who are pursuing research-based master's and doctoral degrees at accredited U.S. institutions.

Thanks to this program, three Arizona State University (ASU) engineering students are striving for exceptional achievements: Alyssa Henning, Samantha Janko and Anjali Mulchandani.

All three graduate students in ASU’s Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering are among the 2016 recipients of the highly sought-after NSF Fellowships. All three are pursuing their doctoral degrees.

Along with the technological and engineering aspects of synthetic biology, Alyssa Henning - who is pursuing a doctoral degree in biological design at ASU - is also interested in exploring the ethical and policy issues involved in the field.

ASU doctoral student Samantha Janko is leading the power subteam responsible for the design and development of the AZLoop power system in the Hyperloop Pod Competition organized by SpaceX, which challenges teams to design and build passenger pods for the high-speed ground transport system that the aerospace company is developing.

With her presentation titled You Flushed the Toilet, Now What? Anjali Mulchandani - who is pursuing a doctoral degree in environmental engineering - teaches students about wastewater-treatment plants, metals that are in foods and personal-care products that end up in sewage, how sewage and waste are currently disposed of, and new sewage-treatment and resource-recovery technologies.

Recipients of NSF Graduate Research Fellowships are seen by the federal agency as potential leaders in research, teaching and innovation in engineering and science. Career success for these students is viewed as critical to the U.S. maintaining its leading role in technological advancement and its strength in national security. The NSF also counts on the students’ future contributions to boost the vitality of the country’s economy.

The Graduate Research Fellows are awarded a three-year annual stipend of $34,000 and a $12,000 cost-of-education allowance for tuition and fees to pursue graduate degrees.

They also have opportunities for internships, professional development and participation in international research projects, and the freedom to do their own research at any accredited U.S. institution of graduate education of their choice.