WASHINGTON, D.C. – Building on the President’s all-of-the-above energy strategy, the Department of Energy today awarded more than $5 million to undergraduate and graduate students in pursuit of nuclear engineering degrees and other nuclear science and engineering programs relevant to nuclear energy. The awards include 57 undergraduate scholarships and 33 graduate-level fellowships for students at American colleges and universities.

“Nuclear energy currently makes up 60 percent of the United States’ non-carbon emitting energy portfolio,” said Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz. “These awards will help our nation’s brightest students have the tools they need to ensure the United States continues as a global leader in nuclear technology.”

Since 2009, the Department of Energy has awarded over $33 million to more than 600 students for nuclear energy-related scholarships and fellowships. Each undergraduate scholarship provides $7,500 to help cover education costs for the upcoming year, while the three-year graduate fellowships provide $50,000 each year to help pay for graduate studies and research. Fellowships also include $5,000 to fund a summer internship at a U.S. national laboratory or other approved research facility to strengthen the ties between students and the Department’s energy research programs.

Ninety-eight percent of the students who have completed nuclear energy-related fellowships have subsequently pursued careers in nuclear energy fields at the Department’s national laboratories, other government agencies, academic institutions or private companies. Six former fellowship winners are now university professors working on nuclear energy related research.

Find additional information about the Department’s nuclear energy scholarships and fellowships awarded today at the Nuclear Energy University Program website.