DAAD RISE Program
Humboldt University of Berlin is one of several top German universities or research institutions that will host University of Rochester undergraduate students taking part in this summer’s DAAD RISE internship program. (Getty Images photo)
University of Rochester undergraduates regularly number among those selected to participate in the DAAD RISE summer research program in Germany.
The DAAD RISE program offers undergraduates from North America, Great Britain, and Ireland summer research internships at top German universities and research institutions. Students are matched with a host university or institute based on their area of interest (biology, chemistry, physics, earth sciences, engineering, or a closely related field) and work with PhD student mentors or researchers.
DAAD is the German Academic Exchange Service, and RISE stands for Research Internships in Science and Engineering. The government-funded program was established in 2005 and provides students with a monthly stipend for three months to cover living expenses. The working language is English.
Learn more about DAAD RISE and other fellowship, scholarship, and award opportunities available to Rochester students.
Recent DAAD RISE Recipients
Congratulations to the most recent DAAD RISE recipients from the University of Rochester!
Marlena Berger ’27
Clausthal University of Technology, Institute of Electrical Information, Clausthal-Zellerfeld
Area of study: Optical engineering (BS)
The Rochester, New York resident will work on a project called "Optimization of an Optical System for Long-Distance Light Focusing Using a Telescope.”
Erhan Ertekin ’26
Technical University of Munich, Chemistry Department, Garching
Area of study: Chemistry (BS)
Ertekin, from Sütlüce, Cypress, will complete a research project titled "Chromophore Activation by Lewis Acid Coordination – Application of New Arene Chromophores in Photoreactions.”
Leo Liang ’26
Technical University of Dortmund, Dortmund
Areas of study: Applied math and computer science (BS)
Liang will work on a research project titled “Optimization and learning in AI-powered warehouse automation.”
Lily Matt ’26
University of Hamburg, Institute of Geology, Hamburg
Area of study: Environmental science (BS)
Matt, from Santa Barbara, California, will work on a project titled "Using microfossils to quantify marine ecosystem collapse during the Permo-Triassic climate crisis".
Katherine Neyland ’26
Albert Ludwigs University of Freiburg Institute for Biology, Freiburg
Area of study: Biochemistry (BS)
Neyland is from Brighton, New York, and will be completing a project titled “Early determinants of heterocyst differentiation in multicellular cyanobacteria.”
Misha Parikh ’27
European Forest Institute, Resilience Program-Biodiversity team, Bonn
Area of study: Computational biology (BS)
The Clifton, New Jersey, resident will work on a project titled "Rewilding mammals in Europe: Analyzing wildlife camera trap data and collecting data for modelling species distributions."
Ngoc Mai Pham ’27
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Mechanical Engineering faculty, Karlsruhe
Area of study: Data science (BS)
Hanna Wang ’26
University of Duisburg-Essen, Department of Nuclear Medicine, Essen
Area of study: Molecular genetics (BS)
The Acton, Massachusetts, resident will work on a project focused on preclinical cancer theranostics.
DAAD RISE Professional
This program offers summer research internships in Germany to master’s and PhD students from the US, Canada, Great Britain or Ireland, at companies and non-university research institutions with strong relations to industry.
Hailemariam Mitiku ’23 (MS)
Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental, Safety and Energy Technology UMSICHT
Area of study: Chemistry (doctoral candidate)
Maria Lizarazo Rojas
Dechema Research Institute, chemical technology division, Frankfurst
Area of study: Chemistry (doctoral candidate)
Past DAAD RISE Recipients
2024 Recipients
2024 Scholars
Robert Ghetiu ’26
Clausthal Technical University in Clausthal-Zellerfeld
Area of study: Chemistry (BS)
Emerson Jenen ’26
Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology in Plön
Area of study: Molecular genetics (BS)
Daniel Kesler ’25
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Karlsruhe
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
Priscilla Peters ’25
Westphalian University of Münster in Münster
Areas of study: Health, behavior, and society and chemistry (BA)
Jensen Sminchak ’26
Ulm University in Ulm
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
2023 Recipients
2023 Scholars
Adarsh Mavathaveedu ’24
University: Julius Maximilian University in Würzburg
Area of study: Neuroscience (BS)
Xijue “Jade” Wu ’23, ’24 (T5)
University: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
Areas of study: Chemistry (BS), music (BA)
2021 Recipients
Note: In 2021, some students offered research positions were unable to participate due to COVID-19 restrictions, while others completed their projects remotely.
2021 Scholars
Jenna Diamico ’22
University: Forschungszentrum Jülich (Remote)
Area of study: Geomechanics (BS)
Minor: Sustainability
Befikadu Mekonnen ’22
University: Friedrich-Schiller Universität Jena
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
Thien Hung Nguyen ’21, ’22 (T5)
University: Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH (remote)
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
Hristijan Stojkovic ’23
University: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
Area of study: Optical engineering (BS) (Remote)
Navya Uberoi ’22
University: Technische Universität Dortmund (Remote)
Area of study: Physics and astronomy (BS)
2021 Scholars-Elect
Abdelraham Nahar ’22
Area if study: Mechanical engineering (BS)
Minor: Japanese
Priscila Passerotti Vaciski Barbos ’22
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
Minor: Business and chemical engineering
2020 Recipients
Note: The 2020 program was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and some students worked remotely.
2020 Scholars-Elect
Karim Abdelmaqsoud ’22
University: Kaiserslautern
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
Mauricio Araiza Canizales ’22
University: Sulzbach-Rosenberg
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
Andrew Balogh ’21
University: Wilhelmshaven*
Area of study: Electrical and computer engineering (BS)
Ognjen Bosic ’22
University: Wolfsburg
Area of study: Mechanical engineering (BS)
Anis Idrizovic ’22
University: Kaiserslautern
Area of study: Optical engineering (BS)
Hana Kalco ’22
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
Eli Kosson ’22
University: Braunschweig
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
Sufian Mushtaq ’22
University: Kassel
Area of study: Computer science (BS)
Thien Hung Nguyen ’21
University: Jülich
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
Edmund Sepeku ’22
Area of study: Physics (BA)
Joshua Sobel ’21
University: Saarbrücken
Area of study: Computer science (BS) and mathematics (BA)
Navya Uberoi ’22
University: Dortmund
Area of study: Physics and astronomy (BS)
Jiayin Zhang ’21
University: Hamburg
Area of study: Mechanical engineering (BS)
Sylvia Zhong ’21
University: Würzburg
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
2019 Recipients
2019 Scholars
Melissa Chang ’20
University: Paderborn
Area of study: Neuroscience (BS) and psychology (BA)
Jack Dalton ’20
University: Neustrelitz
Area of study: Mechanical engineering (BS)
Minor: Computer science
Nivedita Iyer ’21
University: Erlangen
Area of study: Biochemistry (BS)
Bartlomiej Jezierski ’21
University: Konstanz
Area of study: Computer science (BS)
Kimberly Llajaruna Peralta ’20
University: Karlsruhe
Areas of study: Mechanical engineering (BS) and studio arts (BA)
Renee Niles ’19
University: Hannover
Area of study: Chemistry (BS)
Patrick Phillips ’21
University: Hamburg
Areas of study: Computer science (BS) and engineering science (BA)
Stephen Savchik ’20
University: Potsdam
Area of study: Data science (BS)
Minors: German, music, and linguistics
Aman Shrestha ’21
University: Saarbücken
Area of study: Computer science (BS)
Leonor Teles ’21
University: Kaiserslautern
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
Minor: Chemical engineering
Jisoo Woo ’20
University: Ulm
Area of study: Chemistry (BS)
Bryce Yahn ’20
University: Berlin
Area of study: Brain and cognitive sciences (BS)
Minor: Mathematics
2018 Recipients
2018 Scholars
Diwas Gautam ’20
University: Hannover
Area of study: Mechanical engineering (BS)
Collin R. Gwilt ’20
University: Hamburg-Eppendorf
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
Muhammad Hadi ’19
University: Hamburg
Area of study: Mechanical engineering (BS)
Carley S. Haft ’19
University: Berlin
Areas of study: Health, behavior, and society (BA) and biology (BA)
Shemmar F. Jackson ’20
University: Dortmund
Area of study: Mechanical engineering (BS)
Megan G. Kice ’20
University: Leipzig
Area of study: Microbiology (BS)
Yunke “Claudia” Ren ’20
University: Kaiserslautern
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
Adina Ripin ’20
University: Kaiserslautern
Area of study: Physics (BS)
Erin G. Sumfleth ’20
University: Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen
Area of study: Optical engineering (BS)
Lauren C. Testa ’20
University: Tübingen
Area of study: Molecular genetics (BS)
Minor: Spanish
Aime Laurent Twizerimana ’20
University: Jülich
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
Isaac Wong ’19
University: Berlin
Areas of study: Computational biology (BS) computer science (BA)
Sifan Ye ’20
University: Saarbrucken
Area of study: Computer science (BS)
Victor Z. Zhang ’19
University: Stuttgart
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
Minor: Clinical psychology
Dingzhe Zheng ’19
University: Giessen
Area of study: Optical engineering (BS)
2018 Scholar-Elect
Javon J. Walker ’19 (declined)
Area of study: Electrical and computer engineering (BS)
2017 Recipients
2017 Scholars
Rachel A. Clune ’18
University: Darmstadt
Areas of study: Chemistry (BS) and applied math (BA)
Lei Ding ’18
University: Jena
Area of study: Optical engineering (BS)
Rui Gao ’18
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
Zunran Guo ’17
University: Göttingen
Area of study: Applied math (BS) and physics (BS)
Weidi Liu ’18
University: Hamburg
Area of study: Optical engineering (BS)
Stephanie S. Viteri ’18
University: Erlangen
Area of study: Cell and developmental biology (BS)
2017 Scholars-Elect
Janson Ho ’18 (declined)
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
Sue Zhang ’18 (declined)
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
2016 Recipients
2016 Scholars
Austin Bailey ’17
University: Heidelberg
Area of study: Chemistry (BS)
Raymond Chin ’18
University: Leipzig
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
Eric Holmgren ’17
University: Mainz
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
Haberly Kahn ’18
University: Hamburg-Harburg
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
John Jacobs ’17
University: Paderborn
Area of study: Computer science (BS)
Minor: Optics
Natalie Jara ’18
University: Freiburg im Breisgau
Areas of study: Electrical and computer engineering (BS) and studio arts (BA)
Marina May ’17
University: Berlin
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
William Porter ’17
University: Kaiserslautern
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
Minor: Math
Ge Song ’17
University: Erlangen-Nürnberg
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
Clara Wolfe ’18
University: Magdeburg
Area of study: Biochemistry (BS)
2015 Recipients
2015 Scholars
Luke P. Daily ’16
University: Erlangen
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
Claire R. W. Kaiser ’17
University: Bonn
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
Tianyi Liu ’16
University: Jülich
Area of study: Mechanical engineering (BS)
Zhaoyu Nie ’17
University: Münster
Area of study: Optics (BA)
Nathaniel S. Potrepka ’17
University: Bonn
Areas of study: Computer science (BS) and audio and music engineering (BS)
Zhenzhi Xia ’16
University: Erlangen
Area of study: Optical engineering (BS)
So Han Florence Yip ’17
University: Jena
Area of study: Mechanical engineering (BS)
2014 Recipients
2014 Scholars
Corey M. Garyn ’15
University: Göttingen
Area of study: Cell and developmental biology (BS) and philosophy (BA)
Austin M. Mottola ’15
University: Dresden
Area of study: Biochemistry (BS)
Minor: Chemistry
Seth L. Schober ’16
University: Kaiserslautern
Area of study: Electrical and computer engineering (BS)
Minor: Spanish
Natalie Y. Tjota ’16
University: Münster
Areas of study: Biomedical engineering (BS) and East Asian studies (BA)
Steven B. Torrisi ’16
University: Hamburg
Areas of study: Physics (BS) and math (BA)
2013 Recipients
2013 Scholars
Kristin N. Abramo ’15
University: Göttingen
Area of study: Molecular genetics (BS)
Kevin C. Allan ’14
University: Langen
Area of study: Neuroscience (BS)
Alexandra M. Born ’15
University: Dresden-Rossendorf
Areas of study: Microbiology (BS) and chemistry (BA)
Sarah Koniski ’14
University: Jülich
Area of study: Chemistry (BS)
Minor: Business
Louis J. Papa, III ’14
University: Jena
Areas of study: Biochemistry (BS) and chemistry (BS)
Robert A. Rietmeijer ’15
University: Tübingen
Areas of study: Biochemistry (BS)
Zhongwu Shi ’15
University: Aachen
Area of study: Applied math (BS)
Qianli Sun ’15
University: Kaiserslautern
Areas of study: Applied math (BS) and physics (BA)
Jamie M. Strampe ’15
University: Ulm
Area of study: Microbiology (BS)
Minor: German
2012 Recipients
2012 Scholars
Katie M. Bredbenner ’13
University: Göttingen
Areas of study: Molecular genetics (BS) philosophy (BA)
Amanda Chen ’14
University: Bremen
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
Minor: Chemical engineering
Maria V. Guano Zapata ’14
University: Jülich
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
2012 Scholar-Elect
Justin L. Roncaioli ’13 (declined)
Area of study: Molecular genetics (BS)
Minors: Psychology and chemistry
2011 Recipients
2011 Scholars
Ashley M. Haluck-Kangas ’12
University: Greifswald
Area of study: Biology (BA)
Minors: Psychology and political science
David A. Narrow ’12
University: Berlin
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
2011 Scholar-Elect
Jonathan Raybin ’12 (declined)
Areas of study: Chemistry (BS) and physics (BA)
2010 Recipients
2010 Scholars
Emily F. Hart ’12
University: Heidelberg
Area of study: Chemistry (BS)
Caityln Rose Kennedy ’11
University: Dortmund
Area of study: Chemistry (BS)
Mark D. Levin ’12
University: Braunschweig
Area of study: Chemistry (BS)
Minor: Math
Joseph P. Shapiro ’12
University: Heidelberg
Area of study: Biochemistry (BS)
2009 Recipients
2009 Scholars
Matthew R. Golder ’10
University: Berlin
Area of study: Chemistry (BS)
Minor: Biology
Alexander G. Hajduczok ’11
University: Halle
Area of study: Biochemistry (BS)
Minor: Economics
Stephen Keeley ’11
University: Heidelberg
Areas of study: Physics (BS) and neuroscience (BS)
Minor: Math
Kirsten E. Ross ’11
University: Berlin
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
David Reiner ’10
University: Frankfurt
Area of study: Neuroscience (BS)
Minor: Psychology
2008 Recipients
2008 Scholars
Victoria A. Chu ’09
University: Bonn
Area of study: Chemistry (BS)
Minor: Japanese
Colleen A. Kellenberger ’09
University: Jülich
Area of study: Chemistry (BS) and molecular genetics (BS)
Zachary J. Kozick ’08
University: Kaiserslautern
Area of study: Physics (BA)
Minor: Math
Matthew S. Merriman ’09
University: Düsseldorf
Area of study: Chemistry (BS)
Minor: Biology
Justin J. Peczkowski ’09
University: Berlin
Area of study: Chemical engineering (BS)
Minor: Environmental engineering
Kristina V. Siliunas ’10
University: Cologne
Areas of study: Psychology (BA) and biology (BA)
2007 Recipients
2007 Scholars
Nicholas E. Brown ’09
University: Berlin
Area of study: Mechanical engineering (BS)
Minor: German
Marc D. Karasek ’08, ’09 (T5)
University: Ilmenau
Area of study: Mechanical engineering (BS)
Joseph R. Lust ’07, ’08 (T5)
University: Münster
Area of study: Biomedical engineering (BS)
Minor: Optics
Timothy E. Stacey ’08
University: Berlin
Area of study: Chemistry (BS)