The fourth annual Frontiers of MSE Undergraduate Symposium is a research conference hosted by NC State University’s Department of Materials Science and Engineering. Designed to highlight exceptional undergraduate work in materials science and related fields, this one‑day event brings together students within two years of graduation to present research posters, network with faculty and peers, and learn about graduate opportunities at NC State. Attendees receive complimentary meals, campus tours, and, if presenting, a waiver of the application fee for the MSE Ph.D. program.
Show off your research
All participants can present research posters
Meet the experts
Network with faculty about state-of-the-art research
When and where is it?
This annual undergraduate research symposium takes place on Centennial Campus: a global hub for education, innovation and public-private partnership and a vital piece of one of the nation’s top public universities, NC State University.
Who should apply?
Domestic undergraduates majoring in materials science and engineering (and related fields)* who have either performed undergraduate research or are interested in graduate research in materials science and engineering, and are within two years of graduation, are eligible to apply (i.e., graduation by summer 2028).
*Examples include Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Chemical Engineering, Biochemistry, and students doing research related to materials science and engineering.
Why participate?
- Students receive complimentary meals during the research symposium in Raleigh, NC.
- All participants are invited to present research posters.
- Participants will have a unique opportunity to network with faculty and peers about state-of-the-art research.
- Selected participants will receive a certificate recognizing their participation.
- The day-long visit includes tours of NC State University.
Program Fast Facts
36
Program graduates since 2023
13
States represented
21
Colleges and universities represented
2025 Gallery
Past Finalists
2025 Finalists
Finalist Name University Research Topic Travis Alegria UNC-Chapel Hill Synthesis of Diphosphino-amine Ligands for Nickel-Hydride Mediated Hydrogen Evolution Avanish Bharadwaj UNC-Chapel Hill High Li+-Conducting Polymer Electrolytes Synthesized via Ring-Opening Metathesis Polymerization Ryan Fasti Purdue University Scalable Perovskite Solar Cells Enabled by Rapid Photonic Annealing and a 2D Organic Semiconducting Passivation Layer Colton King North Carolina State University Advancing Mechanistic Insights of Porous Electrodes Through P2D Modeling: From Voltammetry to Impedance Analysis Senou Kounouho Duke University Quantifying Uncertainty in Additive Manufacturing: Liquid Silicon Infiltration Using CT-Informed Random Porosity Fields Duc Le UNC-Chapel Hill Simulating Hydrogen Uptake in a 3D Electride Material Leo Liu Wake Forest University Investigating Photo-Ionic Responses in the Mixed Ionic-Electronic Conductors Pr Dustin Lowery North Carolina A&T University Strain Transfer and Transfer Efficiency of MoS2 in Commensurate vdW Stacked Layers and Flakes Maria Florencia Nardone UNC-Chapel Hill Eli Rodrigues North Carolina State University Precise Angle Control in the Creation of Strontium Titanate Twisted Bilayers Chi Nguyen Davidson College PSEN1 Upregulation in Ovarian Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts Landon Ottone North Carolina State University Data-Driven Design of Chemically Bonded Ceramics: A Combination of Experiment and Machine Learning George Tarasidis Davidson College Andrew Vargo Davidson College Thiolate-Mediated Silyl Ether Exchanges for Dynamic Polymer Synthesis Sebastian Zaatini North Carolina State University Mapping Multi-Element Alloy Interactions via Graph Theory
2024 Finalists
Finalist Name University Research Topic Lori Fung University of California – Irvine A New Compositional Space for Solid-State Li-ion Batteries via Microwave Synthesis Jessica Gerac Appalachian State University Assessing Reproducibility in 3D Photopolymer Printing with Laser Scanning Confocal Microscopy Genevieve Holliday UNC-Chapel Hill The Effect of Protons on Charge Transfer at TiOx-Coated Photoelectrodes in a Non-Aqueous Environment Sophia Isacco North Carolina State University Characterization and Corrosion Behavior of an Additively Manufactured Nickel-Free Austenitic Stainless Steel Caasi Lampkin North Carolina State University Characterization and Corrosion Behavior of an Additively Manufactured Nickel-Free Austenitic Stainless Steel Cordelia McKelvy North Carolina State University Developing an LM-Based Chip for Targeted Capture and Release of Biological Entities Tianqi Sun Georgia Institute of Technology Structural and Electrical Investigation of AlScN Thin Films Deposited Using Different Sputtering Modes Holden Watson Spring Hill College MAM-LAM Block Copolymer via RAFT-Interchange Zoe Watts North Carolina State University Reversible Alignment of Gold Nanorods in Shape Memory Polymer Films
2023 Finalists
Finalist Name Major University Bryan Birch Physics Centre College Katherine Cauffiel Materials Science & Engineering Georgia Institute of Technology Juliana Davoglio Estradioto Materials Science & Engineering Northwestern University Alexander Gregg Biochemistry and Molecular Biology University of South Carolina Sophia Isacco Materials Science & Engineering North Carolina State University Victoria Kyveryga Chemical Engineering and Chemistry Iowa State University Jakob Nielsen Materials Science & Engineering Texas A&M University Alice Parker Chemistry and Applied Mathematics University of Utah Yi Qie Nanoengineering University of California, San Diego Madison Stewart Chemistry University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill Samuel Swartzendruber Materials Science & Engineering University of Minnesota Ava Zoba Biomedical and Mechanical Engineering Penn State University
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Contact Us
Program Email
Address
911 Partners Way, Room 3002
Engineering Building I
Raleigh, NC 27695-7907
Program Director
This symposium is made possible by funding from the Graduate School and the Department of Materials Science and Engineering.