Contact: Allison Matthews
STARKVILLE, Miss.--Biomedical engineering major Emily Smith's undergraduate work at Mississippi State University is earning her more than the bachelor's degree she will receive Friday [April 29].
Smith also is a selection for an annual $30,000 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, which she will receive for the next three years. The award also includes a $10,500 cost-of-education allowance. The Trussville, Ala., native will enroll this fall in the joint biomedical engineering program of the University of North Carolina and North Carolina State University.
Smith said her academic plans include pursuing a doctoral degree in biomedical engineering with a focus in biomechanics. She plans for a career path in academia.
The fellowship selection criteria involve three essays, including a personal statement and descriptions of previous research and proposed research, Smith said. A major advantage of the fellowship is the flexibility it permits to choose from a number of research projects to work on during her graduate studies, she added.
Smith, whose parents are engineers, said both she and her younger sister, a sophomore civil engineering major, chose to attend MSU because of the Bagley College of Engineering.
"I've thoroughly enjoyed my time at Mississippi State. I've enjoyed the family-like atmosphere at MSU, and my department is like that as well. All of my professors are very supportive," Smith said.
Smith worked as an undergraduate teaching assistant and tutor and an engineering camp counselor. In the summer of 2010, she participated in an NSF research experience for undergraduates. During a 10-week research project at the University of Alabama, she studied bone-implant interface strength of dental implants.
Beyond the classroom, Smith is chair of MSU's Honors Council and vice president of the Engineering Student Council. In 2011, she was named Outstanding Honors Student of the Year, Outstanding Biological Engineering Senior of the Year, and a selection for the Bagley College's Student Hall of Fame.
Smith, a graduate of Jefferson County International Baccalaureate in Irondale, is the daughter of Andy and Lisa Smith of Huntsville.
For more information about Mississippi State University, see http://www.msstate.edu/.