August 10, 2009

• One of only 17 funded U.S. physics programs

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The U.S. Department of Education has funded the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Department of Physics at $522,564 for three years, 2009-12, to support the department's doctoral students in their academic pursuits. The physics department is part of the UAB College of Arts and Sciences.

The federal funds have been released through the fiscal year 2009 Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need (GAANN) program. UAB's funding proposal for doctoral fellowships in nanoscale materials and computational physics was selected because it demonstrated that the physics doctoral students develop the skills necessary to fill science and technology jobs deemed future national needs by the federal government, according to Yogesh Vohra, Ph.D., professor of physics and UAB's GAANN project director.

"The Department of Education knows that our UAB physics doctoral students are hard-working and worthy of this investment, which will enable them to focus their energies on the work inside laboratory and classroom rather than fiscal pressures or other concerns beyond campus," Vohra said.

Vohra said the UAB physics doctoral program includes individualized course work, supervised research experiences, opportunities for industrial internships and development of teaching and communication skills, as well as comprehensive evaluation of teaching performance. This roadmap for student development convinced the GAANN review board that UAB will produce physicists skilled in either teaching or research of nanoscale materials and computational physics, Vohra said.

"This is a highly competitive award, and the recognition speaks to the national reputations of UAB and the Department of Physics," Vohra said.

The GAANN funding will support five physics Ph.D. students at a stipend level of $30,000 each per year through 2012. It also provides an annual educational payment of $13,552 per student, which will fund both tuition and research costs. The UAB physics program is one of 17 university physics programs nationwide to receive funding through GAANN, according to Department of Education public records.

The first round of GAANN funding will be disbursed to the UAB doctoral students for the fall semester.

Vohra's co-sponsors on the GAANN funding proposal were Department of Physics faculty members James Martin, Ph.D.; Mary Ellen Zvanut, Ph.D.; and David Shealy, Ph.D., who also is department chair.

About UAB

The Department of Physics offers courses in astronomy, physical science and physics for non-majors. Biophysics and physics education-degree tracks are available to undergraduate physics majors planning an interdisciplinary career. The Graduate Program in Physics offers training in the basic and applied skills necessary for interdisciplinary research in academia, national laboratories and industry.