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Discover Your Perfect Funding Resource Path with A Custom Guide

September 26, 2024

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About Our Team and Mission

We are participants in the 2024 Emerging Leaders Institute at Duke, divided into project groups with a mission to enhance Duke's environment for graduate students and postdocs. After surveying about 75 stakeholders across Duke's student body, faculty, and staff, our team, consisting of four members—Pasha, Catherine, Alessandro, and Chris—recognized the need for structured and aggregated information to help graduate students and postdocs navigate funding opportunities. To address this, we designed an interactive quiz and created an informative flyer with essential resources. We want to expand people’s access to this information and help our community in every way possible!

Are You Ready to Secure Your Academic and Research Goals at Duke?

Imagine you're working on your master’s thesis on renewable energy solutions, or perhaps you're about to start a project examining social changes in Southeast Asia as a Ph.D. student. Maybe you're a postdoctoral researcher looking to push the boundaries of biomedical engineering. In each scenario, you face the same challenge: finding funding.

You know what you need: resources to travel for fieldwork, funds to access advanced lab equipment, or financial support to cover your living expenses. But where do you start? How do you match your specific needs with the right funding opportunities? What resources can assist you with writing a proposal?

Take our quiz to discover the paths that lead to the resources you need.

This personalized quiz is more than just a set of questions; it's a guided exploration through Duke University’s funding resources just for you. Let us help you walk through your search, refine your funding strategy, and connect with the opportunities that can turn your academic dreams into reality.

Start the quiz now and take the first step toward your funding success at Duke!

Next Steps

Thank you for participating in this quiz! We hope you have found it useful in navigating the funding opportunities available to you at Duke. We encourage you to revisit the resources mentioned, attend upcoming workshops, and schedule consultations with advisors to further strengthen your applications. Keep an eye on websites for updates on new funding opportunities and additional support services. We also created a flyer highlighting essential tools and resources. We welcome your help distributing these flyers to broaden their impact!

Authors

Amir Pasha Zamani, Ph.D. describes himself as having embarked on an interdisciplinary journey, seamlessly merging engineering methodologies across mental, biological, and social systems. With an engineering master’s from SRTTU University of Tehran, a second master's in cognitive sciences from HSE University of Moscow, and a Ph.D. in neuroscience from the University of Barcelona, he explores mind-body enigmas through both reductionist and holistic approaches. As a postdoctoral researcher at Duke, Amir Pasha contributes to a Computational Social Neuroscience project in SSRI, investigating intricacies of interactional synchrony. Beyond academia, he likes to share insights through public engagement, envisioning positive transformations in regions like the Middle East.

Yicheng (Catherine) Wang is a second-year M.S. student in statistical science. Over the past three years, she has contributed to climate change research projects, employing data science and operations research methodologies. Before coming to Duke, she earned her B.S. in mathematics and economics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. At Duke, she serves on the Climate Commitment Advisory Council Research Subcommittee, Graduate and Professional Young Trustee Nominating Committee, and Statistical Science Graduate Consultative Committee. She’s also passionate about diverse jazz fusion dance styles, specializing in Chinese-style jazz and contemporary jazz and studying at HELLODANCE, one of the top Chinese street dance studios.

Christopher Kaminski is a third-year Ph.D. student in mechanical engineering and materials science. Christopher studies in the Aeroelasticity group under the leadership of Dr. Kenneth Hall. He works on harmonic balance analysis for unsteady aerodynamic phenomena in turbomachinery. He hopes that this research will lead to a greater theoretical and practical understanding of phenomena such as Non-Synchronous Vibration for turbomachinery blades, leading to longer turbofan engine lifespans and greater reliability. Christopher received a B.S. in aerospace engineering from the University of Central Florida, and then he worked briefly in the aerospace industry on Florida’s Space Coast.

Alessandro Martinino, M.D. is a first-generation medical doctor and current postdoctoral associate. He is driven by three fundamental principles: ambition, devotion, and passion. These guiding values have played a pivotal role in his journey towards becoming an aspiring academic surgeon. Serving as the president of the Junior Researchers Committee at AISNA and as a trustee for TUGSS reflects his commitment to academic excellence and leadership. He is dedicated to going the extra mile, investing the necessary time and effort to achieve his life goals. In his free time, he channels his enthusiasm into culinary arts and sports.