Student Resources

This page highlights resources available to students including information about fellowships and other funding opportunities, student competitions, and research award programs. ​

National Level Fellowship, Award, and Competition 

NASA University Student Research Challenge

NASA’s University Student Research Challenge (USRC) invites students to propose new research ideas that could help solve some of the biggest technical challenges facing 21st century aviation.

Dwight David Eisenhower Transportation Fellowship Program (DDETFP) 

The Dwight David Eisenhower Transportation Fellowship Program (DDETFP) awards fellowships to students pursuing degrees in transportation-related disciplines. This program advances the transportation workforce by helping to attract the nation's brightest minds to the field of transportation, encouraging future transportation professionals to seek advanced degrees, and helping to retain top talent in the U.S. transportation industry. DDETFP awards are merit-based and generally result in 150-200 grants annually, subject to the availability of funds. The awards range from $1,500 to $10,000. 

Transportation Research Board Fred Burggraf Award ​

It provides recognition of excellence in transportation research by researchers 35 years of age or younger whose papers have been published under the sponsorship of any Technical Activities Division Standing Group. One such award may be bestowed on eligible authors by any Group Executive Board when warranted.  The award is named in honor of the late Fred Burggraf, who served as the Board's director from 1951 until his retirement in 1964. 

NASA Gateways to Blue Skies Competition

NASA's Gateways to Blue Skies competition invites university students of all academic levels and majors to help NASA tackle significant challenges and opportunities for the aviation industry through a new project theme each year.

ACRP Graduate Research Award Program

This program is intended to stimulate thought, discussion, and research by those who may become the future airport managers, operators, designers, and policymakers in aviation. The focus of this graduate student research program is on applied research on airport and related aviation system issues to help the public sector continue to improve the quality, reliability, safety, and security of the U.S. civil aviation system well into the foreseeable future. Awardees receive a $12,000 stipend, access to a panel of expert advisors in the chosen research area, an opportunity to present at the TRB Annual Meeting following completion of their paper, and the potential to publish that paper in the Transportation Research Record.

ARCP University Design Competition

This Competition focuses on design solutions in the following broad areas: Airport Operation and Maintenance, Runway Safety/Runway Incursions/ Runway Excursions Including Aprons, Ramps, and Taxiways, Airport Environmental Interactions, and Airport Management and Planning. Some specific challenge areas are defined in the Technical Design Challenges section of the guidelines. Students are not limited to the suggested topical areas listed. They are free to propose design solutions based on other topics that fit the four broad challenge areas.

State and Local Fellowship, Award, and Competition ​

Florida Airport Council Scholarship ​

FAC realized the necessity to attract the finest future avia­tion professionals to Florida. Therefore, the FAC Educational Foundation was established in 1990 to (1) Further the professionalism of FAC members so they can effectively perform their duties and responsibilities; (2) Financially assist students pursuing degrees in aviation

Georgia Brosch Memorial Transportation Scholarship 

To assist in that education, and to help attract the best and brightest to careers in transportation, CUTR established the Georgia Brosch Memorial Transportation Scholarship, named in memory of the infant daughter of former CUTR Director Gary Brosch and his wife, Barbara.
CUTR Transportation Scholarship Award
The CUTR Transportation Scholarship competition is open to any current University of South Florida student.  
Students must have completed at least one semester at USF. No student may be awarded more than once. 

ITS Florida Anne Brewer Academic Scholarship

One to a full time undergraduate or Masters' student and two to graduate (PhD) students (at the time of the Scholarship Awards). Students from any accredited Florida University or College are eligible. Principal course work shall include a major in a field directly related to transportation, ITS systems, transportation engineering, or a related field subject to the approval of the Awards Committee.

Public Roads Student Writing Competition

This competition encourages high-school, undergraduate, and graduate students to apply their writing skills and acumen in the field of transportation, including safety, infrastructure, innovation, accessibility, equity, and more. The articles will be judged by Federal Highway Administration directors and program managers, and winning articles will be published in Public Roads journal. 

SUM Lab Student Honors and Awards

  • Congratulate Pengli Zhao and Huang Feng received top honors in the ACRP University Design Competition - Airport Operation and Maintenance category with the design titled, Design the Allocation of External Alternative Aircraft Taxiing System at Airports. Dr. Yu Zhang and Mr. Joseph Post served as faculty advisers. Full design can be view from https://www.trb.org/ACRP/DesignWinners2022.aspx​. 
  • Congratulate Hualong Tang for receiving 2020 Florida Airport Council Scholarship. https://www.floridaairports.org/education-foundation/scholarship-program/​. 
  • Congratulate Hualong Tang and Yuan Wang for receiving Tenth National Aviation System Planning Symposium Graduate Student Participation Grants to participate this symposium May 20-23, 2018 in Anchorage, Alaska. 
  • Congratulate Natalia Barbour for being selected as one of 20 top graduate students in transportation to attend Eno Future Leaders Development Conference, May 20-24, 2018 in Washington D.C. 
  • Congratulate Yuan Wang for being awarded the 2017 Georgia Brosch Memorial Transportation Scholarship.
  • Congratulate Yuan Wang for for receiving the 2017  TRBACRP Graduate Research Award. It is national level award sponsored by FAA and administrated by Transportation Research Board.
  • Congratulate Natalia Barbour for receiving USF Graduate Student Success Scholarship. It is a three-year scholarship covering the tuition and stipend.  
  • Congratulate Nikhil Menon for being awarded the 2015 Georgia Brosch Memorial Transportation Scholarship.
  • Congratulate Makarand Gawade for receiving the 2014 ACRP Graduate Research Award. It is national level award sponsored by FAA and administrated by Transportation Research Board.
  • Congratulate Makarand Gawade for being awarded the 2013 Georgia Brosch Memorial Transportation Scholarship
  • Congratulate Rui Guo for receiving 2012 Anne Brewer Scholarship.
  • Congratulate Qing Wang for being awarded the 2012 Georgia Brosch Memorial Transportation Scholarship
  • Congratulate Makarand Gawade (as the second author with Dr. Yu Zhang) for receiving the Best Paper Award for the airline operations, quality of service and marketing track in 5th International Conference on Research in Air Transportation (ICRAT 2012).
  • Congratulate Nagesh Nayak (as the second author with Dr. Yu Zhang) for receiving 2011 Transportation Research Board's Fred Burggraf Award, which recognizes excellence in transportation research by researchers 35 years of age or under.
  • Congratulate Nagesh Nayak for receiving 2011 Anne Brewer Scholarship.
  • Congratulat Nagesh Nayak for receiving 2010 ACRP Graduate Research Award. It is national level award sponsored by FAA and administrated by Transportation Research Board.
  • Congratulate Hongyun Chen for being awarded the 2010 Georgia Brosch Memorial Transportation Scholarship
  • Congratulate Nagesh Nayak for receiving 2008 Anne Brewer Scholarship. Anne Brewer was a great ITS visionary and leader. The ITS Florida scholarship program renamed in her honor will serve to assist future ITS leaders in Florida and serve as a lasting memory of Anne’s contributions to ITS. ​