One of Alabama’s top engineering universities – the University of Alabama in Huntsville – has $1 million in new scholarships for financially disadvantaged transfer students.

Students in the program will be working on engineering research in subjects such as ion thrusters, 3D printed materials and UAV butterfiles.

UAH graduate and current PhD student Destin Sandlin, whose science website Smarter Every Day has 5.5 million subscribers, explained some of the research possibilities in a new YouTube video for the university.

The scholarship program is called MATRIX (Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Assistance for Transfer Improvement and Excellence), and UAH announced it today. It is funded by the National Science Foundation.

“Those selected for MATRIX will receive scholarships about $10,000 per year for up to two consecutive years beginning with their first fall semester at UAH,” assistant professor and program manager Dr. Kavan Hazeli said in a statement.

“Their first year in the program will focus on community building and undergraduate research, and their second year will focus on professional development, networking, and internships,” Hazeli said. “They will also have the possibility of staying in the program for a third year based on their performance.”

UAH’s engineering program promotes its roles in aerospace research at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center and military research at contractors working for the Army centers based Redstone Arsenal.

“Another major benefit of this program is the professional development, networking, and internship opportunities available to our MATRIX students, thanks in large part to our long-standing partnership with engineering companies here in the Tennessee Valley,” Hazeli said. “The internships in particular will provide these aspiring engineers with valuable hands-on experience, which will give them a competitive edge when they enter the professional workforce after graduation.”