Student Opportunities


Department of Physics and Astronomy

The Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) invites applications for graduate study beginning in fall 2018.

Graduate students in Physics at UTRGV have opportunities to conduct forefront world-class research in Astrophysics, Biophysics, Computational Physics, Condensed Matter Physics, Gravitational Waves, Optical and Radio Astronomy, Optics and Nano-photonics, Nano-technology and Materials Science. The Center for Gravitational Wave Astronomy has a long and successful history of active participation in the LIGO Scientific Collaboration. Biophysics and Biomedical Physics research has exciting new collaborative opportunities with the UTRGV School of Medicine. STARGATE is a multidisciplinary research center of excellence combining radio astronomy, research commercialization and technological invention.

The Physics graduate study begins with the 2-year program that leads to the MS degree and continues into the 3-year Cooperative PhD program administered jointly by UTRGV and UT Arlington. The graduate program is research intensive and is primarily geared towards a terminal PhD degree. The Department of Physics and Astronomy has competitive financial support for qualified graduate students in the form of teaching assistantship and research assistantship including full tuition coverage, health insurance and fees. For more information please visit http://www.utrgv.edu/physics/academics/index.htm.

Applications should be submitted online to the UTRGV Graduate College under the program MS Physics and should include the Statement of Purpose, GRE (General Test) scores, undergraduate transcripts with cumulative GPA, and three letters of recommendation from qualified referees. Although the initial admission will be made to the Physics MS program all admitted students will be eligible to continue their studies under the Cooperative PhD Program. To be considered for full financial support, complete application must be received by April 15, 2018. For instructions on how to submit the application please visit http://www.utrgv.edu/graduate/index.htm.


Dean’s Graduate Research Assistantships

The Department of Physics at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) invites applications for Dean’s Graduate Research Assistantships beginning from Fall 2017. Since it opened in 2015, UTRGV has been attracting highly competitive faculty members and has been building new research infrastructure with the goal of becoming an emerging research institution. The Department of Physics at UTRGV has 25 full time faculty members conducting research in astrophysics, biophysics, computational physics, general relativity, optics, nanophotonics, condensed matter, and material science. Its Center for Gravitational Wave Astronomy has long and successful history of participation in research conducted by the LIGO Collaboration.

In an effort to enhance the quality of its graduate programs the Dean of the College of Sciences created special Graduate Research Assistantships available to students in Fall 2017. These scholarships are intended to support graduate students specializing in one of the areas of research conducted at the Department. The financial support for the 1st year will be made in the form of pure Research Assistantships and Scholarships to cover tuition and fees. The second and following years will be supported by combination of Research and Teaching Assistantships with tuition and fees also covered.

Applications should be submitted online to UTRGV Graduate College under the program MS Physics and should include the Statement of Purpose, GRE (General Test) scores, undergraduate transcripts with cumulative GPA, and three letters of recommendation from persons not affiliated with UTRGV. Although the initial admission will be made to Physics MS program the admitted students will be eligible to continue their studies under PhD Program. The deadline for submitting applications is March 8, 2017. For instruction on how to submit the application please visit http://www.utrgv.edu/graduate/index.htm.


Other Scholarships and Fellowships


Internships and Research Opportunities


Meetings and Travel


For more information contact:

Dr. Hamidreza Ramezani
Assistant Professor
hamidreza.ramezani@utrgv.edu