Four Penn juniors named 2026 Goldwater Scholars to pursue STEM research

Four Penn juniors were named 2026 Goldwater Scholars on Friday. 

The Barry Goldwater Scholarship Foundation selected Engineering juniors Ian Peng and Emily Valerio, and College juniors Pranav Sompalle and Shreya Nair from a pool of over 5,000 nominees across 482 institutions of higher education nationwide. The Daily Pennsylvanian spoke with three scholars about their reactions to receiving the award.

Valerio, who is majoring in chemical and biomolecular engineering, expressed that she felt “excitement, but also a bit of relief” when she received award. 

Penn’s Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships is able to nominate four to six candidates for consideration each year, making the internal selection process quite competitive. Students must first receive the University’s nomination before they can be considered for the national award.

“There are so many incredible students at Penn who do awesome research, and I know would be so deserving,” Valerio said. “Penn can only nominate four people, and I felt very relieved that I had been able to do it with the opportunity that I had been given by Penn to compete.”

Sompalle echoed this, describing the nomination process as “very difficult.” 

The scholarship grants students who intend to earn a Ph.D. or master's degree in a STEM field with up to $7,500 annually for a maximum of two years of undergraduate study.

Sompalle, who studies biochemistry and biophysics, conducts research on developing artificial intelligence models to extract clinical information from medical imaging. His work includes predicting the location of prostate cancer tissue from MRI scans, as well as building models to detect fentanyl use from wound images.

“In Philadelphia, there is a very unique endemic problem with the substance use crisis,” Sompalle said, explaining the importance of identifying fentanyl-related wounds early.

Valerio’s research focuses on understanding why the body’s natural defense mechanisms against cancer sometimes fail, with the long-term goal of preventing tumor formation.

“The idea is, if we can get more information about that process, we may be able to prevent cancer from happening in the first place,” Valerio said. 

Peng, who is majoring in bioengineering and pursuing the department’s accelerated master’s degree, explained that the labs he has been involved with contributed to his development as a researcher. 

“The first lab that I joined at Penn was Irwin Jones lab, where they work on a lot of materials about electronic systems, and that’s shaped how I view things,” he added. “Working in that materials lab initially, and then going into neuroscience, gave me a different perspective when I went into a neuroscience heavy project.”

All three interviewed students credited Penn faculty as instrumental to their success. 

“I was … really grateful for all opportunities I’ve had throughout my many experiences in different labs, and the really strong support from all my PIs and mentors from the past,” Peng said. 

Valerio encouraged future applicants to seek out mentorship from professors.

“Your professors can seem definitely very scary and very intimidating, but they are oftentimes so focused on the student experience,” Valerio said. “They want to help you. They want you to love research.”

Sompalle said he hopes prospective applicants view the scholarship as an opportunity to develop a research identity rather than simply as an award.

“It’s less of a way to get $7,500 but more of a way to prep your graduate school or medical school application one year early and understand what makes you unique,” he said. 

Penn has produced 72 Goldwater Scholars since the program’s founding in 1986. In the 2026-27 cycle, 454 scholarships were awarded — the highest number in the program’s history. Applications to be considered for one of the University’s nominations are due in October of each year. The program then evaluates all nominees and announces its final scholars in March.