Nuclear engineering doctoral candidate Enrique Medici was one of five selected college students this summer to attend the prestigious U.S. Air Force’s SMART Scholar Program.
The annual program awards full-tuition, merit-based scholarships to hundreds of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral candidates who are pursuing degrees in science, technology, engineering and math. The program ran on June 2 at the Air Force Technical Applications Center (AFTAC) in Brevard County.
“This is a scholarship-for-service program,” said Medici, a nuclear engineering major. “They commit to funding my Ph.D. for a maximum of five years. For the years I have been funded, I will work for my sponsoring facility, AFTAC. I am extremely eager to begin my work with them, pre- and post-grad, to contribute to their mission of global nuclear weapons monitoring.”
SMART, which stands for science, math and research for transformation, is a comprehensive career-development program. The elite program offers mentorship and a network of U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) professionals.
Once a student’s application is accepted, the scholars are paired with scientists and professional engineers to help prepare them for full-time employment that ultimately leads to guaranteed employment with a federal agency. The students commit to a service agreement with the DoD as civilian employees after graduation.
“Enrique stood out for sustained academic excellence, technical rigor and a genuine commitment to public service, exactly the qualities the SMART program looks for. Selection as a SMART Scholar is a national, merit-based honor that covers full tuition, provides a substantial stipend and mentoring, and culminates in a civilian DoD position,” said Professor Kyle C. Hartig of UF’s nuclear engineering program.
Hartig called the experience a “career-defining launch pad” for Medici.
“For UF nuclear engineering,” he said, “it affirms our growing pipeline to national-security partners and the impact our students are ready to make.”
AFTAC is the DoD’s nuclear surveillance organization charged with monitoring nuclear treaties worldwide, while also managing the Air Force’s largest multi-domain sensor network. The center is consistently “on the hunt” to employ the best and brightest STEM minds, noted Susan A. Romano of AFTAC Public Affairs.
“Some of the main goals of the program are to recruit, educate, employ and foster future DoD civilians,” said Tammy McKone, AFTAC’s Deputy Director of Manpower & Personnel. “It serves as a pathway to create the technically proficient and innovative talent pool we need to maintain our technical edge to meet U.S. national security needs.”
Born in a small town in Italy, Medici has lived in Florida since he was 11 years old. At UF, he has been working with Hartig’s research group for about three years.