Category: Graduate Student Profiles

University of Florida graduate student Douglas Ta grew up in Central Florida with sports at the center of his youth. He played soccer and tennis and contends his time on those teams sharpened a competitive drive that serves him well as a Gator engineering student.

Born and raised in Richmond, Va., Jackson graduated from Virginia Tech in 2020 with a degree in Biological Sciences.

Born and raised in Punjab, India, Komalpreet Singh always knew he wanted to be a scientist and researcher. After completing a master’s degree with a specialization in water resources from Punjab Agricultural University, he came to the University of Florida in 2022 to begin his Ph.D. in environmental health engineering – and become a major Gator football fan.

Britney Hay comes to the University of Florida from Antigua and Barbuda, a twin-island nation in the Caribbean. You can often find Hay riding her bike on campus or enjoying lunch on the picnic tables next to Weil Hall, in the shadow of The Swamp. 

Born in St. Louis and raised in East St. Louis, IL, Kelsey Horace-Herron started her UF journey in the summer of 2018 when a mentor recommended her for UF’s Junior Preview. From there she had the opportunity to participate in UF’s SURF (Summer Undergraduate Research at Florida) program the following summer. Soon thereafter, Horrace-Herron won the Graduate School Preeminence Award and knew “UF was the perfect place for me.”

Hsiao-Hsuan (Renee) Wan Title: Ph.D StudentAdvisor: Dr. Fan RenDepartment: Chemical Engineering  Hsiao-Hsuan, a Ph.D. student in Chemical Engineering under Dr. Fan Ren, is advancing semiconductor and biosensor research. With her foundation from National Taiwan University, Renee’s work spans ultrawide bandgap semiconductors and biosensors for cancer detection. Our graduate students bring a unique blend of passion, […]