
Graduate Students' Achievement Award






The Graduate Students' Achievement (GSA) Award is intended to recognize significant achievement in any research or creative activity by full or part-time graduate students making satisfactory progress in their degree program.
The GSA Award will recognize graduate students from each degree-level and their outstanding accomplishments during the course of their studies – Master’s degree student award(s) and Doctoral degree student award(s).
For purposes of this award, achievement is specifically defined as completed works that have been recognized externally to the department and university. Completed works means the work is finished and has occurred prior to submission for this award (e.g., the showcase or presentation is complete, written work is published or accepted for publication).
Examples of scholarly or creative activities include:
- A graduate student has a creative activity or scholarly work accepted at a professional meeting external to Miami. The professional organization has a formal review process and does not accept all papers submitted (i.e., it is a competitive process).
- A graduate student is specifically invited to display art works at an exhibit at another university.
- A graduate student has a book manuscript or scholarly/creative manuscript accepted for publication in a professional periodical or outlet. There is a formal review process that is selective in nature (i.e., the outlet does not accept all submissions).
- A graduate student is a PI or CO-PI on an externally funded grant or receives an external fellowship.
All applications are due by Nov. 1 at 5:00 p.m. for Fall awards and by Apr. 1 at 5:00 p.m. for Spring awards.
Application Guidelines
To Be Provided by the Applicant
Personal Information
Provide your name, address, email address, department, degree program, and banner ID.
Description of the Achievement
Describe the achievement using non-technical language for a non-specialist audience in no more than 300 words. A supporting document may be uploaded (e.g., a journal article, or letter of acceptance to an exhibit) but is not required.
"Award Worthiness" of the Achievement
The applicant must provide a brief, clearly written statement indicating why the one selected achievement is deserving of an award using three criteria:
- Quality of the work (maximum, 200 words).
- Significance of the work (maximum, 200 words).
- The stringency of criteria for acceptance for presentation/publication/exhibit (maximum, 100 words). These statements should be informative and intelligible to non-specialists on the committee.
Previous Graduate Student Achievement Awards
All previous Graduate Student Achievement Awards received, if any, must be listed by title and year of the award.
Applicant Submission Process:
Applicants should use the following Qualtrics link to submit their application form.
To Be Provided by the Department Chair, Major Professor, or Program Director
Department Recommendation
Applications should be endorsed by either the Department Chair or the student’s Major Professor. Recommendations should address the:
- Quality of work (maximum, 200 words).
- Significance of work (maximum, 200 words).
- Stringency of criteria (such as review process; maximum, 200 words).
- Verification of publication/presentation of the work and place of presentation.
Application Submission
The Department Chair or Major Professor supporting the graduate student's application should use the following Qualtrics link to submit their application form.
Evaluation of Applications
Completed applications will be reviewed by the Graduate Student's Achievement Award Committee using the following criteria:
- Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.
- The judgment of the committee resulting from individual readings of the completed applications submitted. The committee recognizes and accepts the responsibility of making decisions, which are based on merit considerations. Accordingly, departmental endorsements of students' achievements are both necessary and vital. Listed below are the specific criteria used by the committee in the evaluation of applications:
- Quality of evidence presented regarding the significance of the achievement.
- Quality of departmental endorsement.
- Quality of the written presentation.
- Nature of recognition of the achievement.
- Evidence regarding independence of work.
- The committee will make only one award to an individual applicant during each round of competition.
- In the situation where achievement involves a joint presentation or publication with a faculty member, a statement must be included which indicates:
- The primary contribution to the project has been made by the applicant.
- The nature and degree of the faculty member's contribution.
- If your work is an original piece of art (picture, jewelry, sculptures, etc.) please submit electronic photos along with your application.
Recipients of Achievement Awards
Thanks to generous alumni donations, the Graduate Achievement Fund gives awards to students who excel in their field each year. These donations support student research, conference attendance, and other tools to strengthen the graduate education experience. To receive an award from the Graduate Student Achievement Fund, students must complete a rigorous application and describe in depth why they are deserving of these esteemed prizes.
2022 Winners
John A. "Austin" Cobb, master's student in English
Selime R. Salim, doctoral student in Psychology
2021 Winners
Andrew Cannizzaro, doctoral student in Biology (EEEB)
Weihao Chen, doctoral student in Cellular, Molecular, and Structural Biology
Mirand Corpora, doctoral student in Social Gerontology
Niki Hayatbini, doctoral student in Psychology
James Hollenbeck, master's student in English
Lauren Jones, doctoral student in Psychology
Masoomeh Kousehlar, doctoral student in Geology
Carter McMaster, master's student in Physics
Sean Monroe, doctoral student in Psychology
Feven Ogbaselase, doctoral student in Psychology
Elizabeth Pettit, doctoral student in Psychology
Natalee Price, doctoral student in Psychology
Gul Muhammad Rind, doctoral student in Educational Leadership
Monica Rahman, doctoral student in Chemistry and Biochemistry
Shiwanka Wanasinghe, doctoral student in Chemistry and Biochemistry
Caitlyn Thomas, doctoral student in Chemistry and Biochemistry
Na Sun, doctoral student in Gerontology
2020 Winners
Calvin J. Anderson, doctoral student in Geology
Elizabeth A. Sneddon, doctoral student in Psychology
Athena N. Koumoutzis, doctoral student in Social Gerontology
Lianne C Velazquez Santana, doctoral student in Geology
Anjali T. Jain, doctoral student in Psychology
2019 Winners
Kevin M. Burridge, doctoral student in Chemistry
Ashley L. Carroll, master's student in Art
Progyateg Chakma, doctoral student in Chemistry
Watuthanthrige Nethmi De Alwis, doctoral student in Chemistry
Joseph Fredrick, doctoral student in Psychology
Lasith S. Kariyawasam, doctoral student in Chemistry
Viraj Kirinda Liyanage Don, doctoral student in Chemistry
Joe W. Kovac, master's student in Music
Stephanie Padula, doctoral student in Cellular, Molecular, & Structural Biology
Md Nishan Parvez, master's student in Mechanical Engineering
Natalie M. Perkins, doctoral student in Psychology
Asif Rashid, master's student in Mechanical Engineering
Sara E. Stemen, doctoral student in Social Gerontology
Shannon M. Thompson, doctoral student in Psychology
Isuru M. J. Wanigasooriyage, doctoral student in Chemistry
Ruoling Zhang, doctoral student in Chemistry
2018 Winners
Pankhuri Aggarwal, doctoral student in Psychology
Prachi Bhuptani, doctoral student in Psychology
Mojtaba Edalatpour, master's student in Mechanical Engineering
Dustin Hornbeck, doctoral student in Educational Leadership
Lasith Kariyawasam, doctoral student in Chemistry
Katelyn Palmer, master's student in Educational Psychology
Rachel Pilla, doctoral student in Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology
Justin Pratt, doctoral student in Chemistry
Jessica Smith, master's student in English
Brenda Tyrrell, doctoral student in English
Elizabeth Weeks, master's student in English
Nicolyn Woodcock, doctoral student in English
Thaiesha Wright, doctoral student in Chemistry
2017 Winners
Tasneem Amatullah, doctoral student in Educational Leadership
Aeriel Ashlee, doctoral student in Student Affairs in Higher Education
Wladyslaw Betkowski, doctoral student in Geology
Lauren Forrest, doctoral student in Psychology
Winona Landis, doctoral student in English
Amy McDonnell, doctoral student in Psychology
Ellen Parsons, doctoral student in Psychology
Marissa Smith-Millan, doctoral student in Psychology
2016 Winners
Annabelle Arbogast, doctoral student in Gerontology
Jsaon Deska, doctoral student in Psychology
Shannon Fasola, master's student in Geology and Earth Science
Melissa Fuesting, doctoral student in Psychology
Anne Kalomiris, doctoral student in Psychology
Kathryn Mancini, doctoral student in Psychology
Mary Munroe, doctoral student in Psychology
Minqian Shen, doctoral student in Cell, Molecular, & Structural Biology
Jieming, Shi, doctoral student in Cell, Molecular, & Structural Biology
Robert Skoumal, doctoral student in Geology and Earth Sciences