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The IBUILD Fellowship
The U.S. Department of Energy, Building Technologies Office (BTO) leads a network of research and industry partners to develop innovative, cost-effective energy efficiency solutions—better products, better new homes, better ways to improve older homes, and better buildings in which to work, shop, and lead our everyday lives. The United States BTO has made significant progress in improving building energy efficiency over the last 30 to 40 years. The Office’s funded research has contributed to significant improvement in building energy efficiency including new technologies in solid-state lighting, energy saving windows, heat pump water heaters, and high-efficiency furnaces and air conditioners. BTO’s research also includes early-stage R&D on grid-interactive efficient building (GEB) technologies and approaches to enable industry and others to develop and deploy buildings capable of connecting with the power grid in new and increasingly adaptive ways to help with overall energy system efficiency, reliability, and resilience.
The Innovation in Buildings (IBUILD) Graduate Research Fellowship, managed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory, aims to strengthen the pool of well-trained PhD scholars with multidisciplinary scientific backgrounds who are equipped for research-intensive building technologies careers in academia, industry, and the national labs. IBUILD Fellows will receive research and educational support to conduct innovative research at their home institution in an area with demonstrated relevance to building energy efficiency. In addition to funding high quality research, the fellowship will provide professional development, mentoring, and networking opportunities.
Important Dates
- Application is now closed
IBUILD opportunity 2024-2025 launched on 9/3/2024 - Information Session
Presented on October 7, 2024 - Application Closed
December 6, 2024 11:59 PM Eastern Time Zone - Virtual interviews
Late February-March 2025 - Award announcements
June 2025 - Fellowships begin
July-September, 2025
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Eligibility
- Must be a US citizen or permanent US resident
- Must intend to enroll or be enrolled full-time in a research-focused PhD program
- Must conduct STEM research in an area with demonstrated relevance to building energy efficiency.
- Cumulative GPA: 3.00 or higher on 4.00 scale
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Benefits
- $35K stipend
- Up to $25K education allowance
- Up to $12K allowance for travel, materials, and supplies
- Up to $16K health insurance allowance
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Fellowship Terms
- Attend IBUILD orientation
- Participate in IBUILD professional development programs including an in-person symposium at Oak Ridge National Laboratory
- Option to present at DOE Building Technologies Office peer review
- Submit written research report