2025 Grad December Newsletter (2)
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Announcement for the Month| Grants, Scholarships, & Fellowships |Events| Career & Networking| Previous Issue
Important Dates: 
| Date | Event |
| December 11th – 18th | Final exams |
| December 18th | Fall 2025 term ends |
| December 18th | Degree conferral date |
| January 14th, 2026 | First day of Classes (Spring 2026) |
Spring 2026 Semester Advising Hours
Days and times for spring 2026 OAS advising will be sent out via email in early January.
Announcements for the month
VinUniversity Assistant Professorships (VAP) program
Through this initiative, VinUniversity seeks to empower exceptional early-career academics as they pursue innovative research and develop solutions to some of today’s most pressing global challenges. More information about this program is available here.
EAS 5500 Applying your Thesis to the Real World (for Ph.D. Students)
We wanted to make you aware of a new course that will be taught by Professor Vanessa Chan, who was the former Chief Commercialization Officer at the US Department of Energy and now the inaugural Vice-Dean of Innovation & Entrepreneurship at Penn Engineering. Through this course, you will be connected to the industry and learn what it takes for your thesis topic to be translated into the real world. The course will meet on Wednesdays from 1.45-4.45 and be capped at 15 people. The course description is below:
In this course, we will be taking your Ph.D. Thesis and exploring the way in which your research could make an impact in the real world. The course will build the foundation from which a chapter in your thesis can be written that articulates the challenges and opportunities your thesis topic brings to make a difference in society. Each student will also be paired with an external mentor from industry who will be a sounding board on the work that you are doing. The foundation of this class will be based on the Adoption Readiness Level framework developed by the Office of Technology Commercialization to identify non-technical barriers that must be overcome for a technology to be fully deployed in the marketplace. ARLs are a qualitative assessment that helps researchers articulate and explore barriers that would prevent their technology from being adopted in the real world. By putting your Ph.D. Through the ARL framework, you will have a better understanding of what it takes to commercialize technologies.
If you are interested in the course, you must apply through this link by December 1. The prerequisite is that you must have a well-defined thesis topic (which often is when you are in your third year). Application acceptances will be based on the ability to pair you with the right industry mentor and will be processed on a rolling basis.
EAS5490 Engineering Entrepreneurship Lab – develop a high-tech venture based on your research
EAS5490 applies the principles of engineering and engineering entrepreneurship to a real-world problem of your specific field of study or professional interest. Students will develop a venture based on a high-tech product or service concept and present the concept to a panel of venture capitalists and entrepreneurs. For PhD candidates, we are waiving the prerequisite. To register for the course:
- Obtain permission from your advisor
- Complete the concept and team survey
- Email your course permission request to Ashley Dailey, daileya@seas.upenn.edu
Paid Summer Learning Experience for Science & Technology Students
A unique summer opportunity for students in the School of Engineering and Applied Science: American Foundation for the Blind’s Digital Accessibility Bootcamp.
This is a 3-month paid summer experience that challenges students to consider accessibility early in the design and development process by understanding how people with disabilities access and use digital products and experiences every day. Students will explore the evolving landscape of digital accessibility, how common assistive technologies work, and how to use assistive technology like screen readers to navigate and test a user interface.
Below are additional resources:
- Learn more: Access our Digital Accessibility Bootcamp information sheet
- Program Information: Program runs June 1 through August 28, 2026, approximately 20-25 hours per week, entirely virtual. $1,000 Midpoint Milestone award and $2,000 Scholarship award upon successful program completion.
- Application Information: Applications are open now and close January 30, 2026. Apply with this link
- Connect with AFB: Follow us on Handshake, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
- Application Forms Deadline: Friday, January 30, 2026
Grants, Scholarships & Fellowships
Paid Summer Learning Experience for Science & Technology Students
A unique summer opportunity for students in the School of Engineering and Applied Science: American Foundation for the Blind’s Digital Accessibility Bootcamp.
This is a 3-month paid summer experience that challenges students to consider accessibility early in the design and development process by understanding how people with disabilities access and use digital products and experiences every day. Students will explore the evolving landscape of digital accessibility, how common assistive technologies work, and how to use assistive technology like screen readers to navigate and test a user interface.
Below are additional resources:
- Learn more: Access our Digital Accessibility Bootcamp information sheet
- Program Information: Program runs June 1 through August 28, 2026, approximately 20-25 hours per week, entirely virtual. $1,000 Midpoint Milestone award and $2,000 Scholarship award upon successful program completion.
- Application Information: Applications are open now and close January 30, 2026. Apply with this link
- Connect with AFB: Follow us on Handshake, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
- Application Forms Deadline: Friday, January 30, 2026
Events
Irish Christmas in America
Make merry this holiday season with the enchanting sounds of Ireland’s finest traditional artists. Returning for the first time since 2017, this special 20th anniversary concert features vocal star Caitríona Sherlock in her Philadelphia debut as well as the local talent of McAleer-Paulson School of Irish Dance.
Student tickets are only $10.
Friday, December 19th
7:30 pm – 9:00 pm
Penn Live Arts
Click here to register
Career & Networking
Raise Ambassador Position
Help prevent campus sexual violence as a RAISE Ambassador for Penn! Click here to apply
Global Research & Internship Program 2026 Applications Now Open
The Global Research & Internship Program offers outstanding undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to intern or conduct research with a variety of organizations and companies abroad for 8 to 12 weeks over the summer.
Program Features and Facts:
- A wide variety of internship placements across many career industries, including business, engineering, sustainable development, healthcare, community development, and more.
- Research placements that offer the opportunity to develop hands-on research skills under leading international researchers and faculty PIs affiliated with a university abroad.
- Generous guaranteed funding awards to help accepted students offset travel and internship-related expenses.
Application Deadline: Wednesday, January 7, 2026, at 12:00 pm (EST)
