And now, Dierking is among 33 current or former Boilermaker students taking their next giant leaps as 2026 winners of the coveted five-year fellowships.

“Now, through my PhD, I look forward to working directly in the space between academia and industry, joining others in building a bridge that connects the two more effectively — work that would have been virtually impossible without the support of the NSF that drove me to choose this degree path,” says Dierking, a native of New Albany in southeastern Indiana. “Being very new to the world of research, I am extremely humbled to have received this award.”

As primary catalysts for Purdue’s research and teaching missions, Boilermaker students continued their impressive run of success: 23 graduate and undergraduate students captured NSF GRFP awards for 2026. Ten recent Purdue alumni received program awards to complete their doctoral studies at other institutions. Another nine current grad and undergrad students and four undergrad alumni achieved honorable mention recognition.

“We are proud of these Boilermakers for earning recognition through such a prestigious fellowship program. Their success reflects their hard work, talent and the strength of the research community here at Purdue,” says Lauren Trondsen, director of fellowships for Purdue’s Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Scholars.

Entering its 75th year as the oldest graduate research fellowship of its kind, the NSF GRFP ranks among the nation’s most esteemed for supporting those in the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. This year, 2,500 program awards were announced, along with 1,470 honorable mention recipients, selected from a highly competitive pool of nearly 14,000 applicants nationwide. The year also marked the highest number of awards since 2023 and is a significant jump from the 1,504 fellowships awarded in 2025. 

List of Purdue 2026 awardees of NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program

Based on overall counts for awarded fellowships, Purdue ranked No. 29 among over 500 public and private universities participating in the program this year. The fellowships are available to incoming and first-year graduate students in STEM fields. The five-year program provides an annual stipend of $37,000 for three years and $16,000 per year for three years toward tuition and fees, subsidizing what their principal investigator or academic department might have to provide.

“This group of Purdue NSF GRFP recipients represents a remarkable group of students who have already distinguished themselves through their curiosity, persistence and commitment to their work,” Trondsen says.