2025 Graduate Scholarship Awardees
Nandini Periyapalayam Sekar
University of California, Berkeley-University of California, San FranciscoPS Nandini is a PhD candidate in the UC Berkeley-UCSF Joint Bioengineering Graduate Program. She is passionate about advancing humanity’s approach to neurological and neuropsychiatric care by creating affordable and scalable neurotechnological solutions for brain disorders. She holds a Bachelor of Technology in Biotechnology from SASTRA University, India and an MS in Neuroscience from Charite Universitatsmedizin-Berlin, Germany and Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, with the Erasmus Mundus Scholarship given by the European Union. She is pursuing her PhD under the mentorship of Dr. Edward Chang and Dr. Ankit Khambhati at UCSF and developing closed-loop neurostimulation therapy for patients with treatment-resistant depression. She is currently working on using time-series analysis and machine learning to unravel long term trends in the brain and behavior of these patients, and developing tools to predict mood many days in advance. Nandini is also interested in exploring the ethical implications and global societal consequences of such emerging neurotechnologies. Toward this goal, Nandini has been named a Quad Fellow (awarded by the Governments of USA, Australia, Japan and India). Outside of academics, Nandini is the Founder of The Keni Project, a student-run Non-Profit Organization that has so far set up 12 libraries in underprivileged schools in 4 cities in Tamil Nadu. She is also a Carnatic vocalist and Veena player, and an avid painter and artist for which she received the National Balshr
Shih-Hung Chiu
University of California, BerkeleyShih-Hung Chiu is a PhD candidate in the Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) Department at the University of California, Berkeley. He holds a bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering from National Taiwan University and a master's degree from UC Berkeley’s CEE Systems Engineering Program. His research focuses on strengthening underground water infrastructure resilience by integrating Distributed Fiber Optic Sensing (DFOS) technology and machine learning models to enhance the monitoring, maintenance, and rehabilitation of aging water distribution systems. With pipelines increasingly vulnerable to failures from seismic activity, climate change, and material degradation, Shih-Hung aims to develop proactive infrastructure management solutions. A key aspect of his work involves strategically placing DFOS sensors near seismic fault lines to continuously monitor strain, temperature changes, and acoustic signals of water leakage, enabling utility owners to detect early signs of failure and mitigate risks before they escalate. Additionally, recognizing that many existing pipelines lack modern monitoring systems, he gathers and analyzes environmental and historical data to develop machine learning models that predict pipeline degradation. Shih-Hung is creating predictive tools that would help utility owners to assess pipeline conditions, optimize replacement schedules, and minimize service disruptions, ultimately contributing to more resilient and sustainable water infrastructure.
Graduate Scholarship Award
Application deadline for 2026 award: January 15, 2026
About the Award
The Silicon Valley Engineering Council Engineering Education awards recognize graduate engineering and technology students for their dedication, focus, and commitment to engineering. Engineering and Technology. The one-time award is $1,000 and students may receive an SVEC Education award only once.
Criteria
– The applicant should be studying or residing in one of the following 8 counties: San Francisco, San Mateo, Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, Monterey, San Benito and Santa Cruz.
– The applicant’s program of study is directly focused towards engineering or technology. - The applicant has shown involvement in STEM activities (e.g., engineering, science, math, computing, or technical organizations).
– The applicant has shown involvement in community and/or social services activities. - The applicant has letters of recommendations from two adults: faculty, organizational leaders or club leaders who can speak to applicant’s activities and performance in the above areas.
– The student exhibits strong academic performance as shown by GPA in the major and overall, as well as strong recommendations from faculty advisors.
Granting of Awards Awardees will be notified through e-mail by January 31, 2026, and will be awarded at the SVEC Engineers Week Banquet in February, 2026. It is expected but not required that awardees attend the banquet. Each recipient and one companion will be SVEC guests.
Questions?
If you have more questions, please send your inquiry to education-awards@svec-ca.org Please put “SVEC Education Awards” in the email title. Please do not input or upload documents showing private information such as social security number.