We invite you to send any questions you have about the application process or the program to the Dean's Scholars listed below. All serve as CNS Honors Ambassadors.
  

ALISHA AHMED
alisha.ahmed63@gmail.com

"Hi, I'm Alisha and I am a third-year Dean's Scholar Neuroscience and Plan II major from Austin! I am currently working in Dr. Mackenzie Howard's neuroscience lab, where I focus on neural circuitry and neuroanatomy in epileptic mouse models. In the future, I hope to go to graduate school! On campus, I am involved in Apricity Magazine, Natural Sciences Council, and Model UN. I'm also a mentor in the Bioactive Molecules FRI stream. In my free time I enjoy hiking, shopping, and making art. Feel free to reach out with any questions!"

ASHISH CHAKRABORTY
ashishchak@utexas.edu 

"I'm a sophomore from Katy, Texas double majoring in Biochemistry and Biomedical Engineering, and am part of the Dean's Scholars and Engineering honors programs on a pre-med track. I am an alumnus of the Aptamer FRI Stream and am currently a part of Dr. Livia Eberlin's clinical mass spectrometry lab. I really enjoy the close-knit feeling of the CNS Honors community that I've experienced so far through mentorship opportunities, seminars, and extracurricular events. Currently, I'm involved on campus as a director in the Student Engineering Council and as the president of UT's Science Olympiad Alumni Association. Please feel free to reach out with any questions!"

ZOE DE BEURS
zdebeurs@utexas.edu

"I was born in Amsterdam, lived in College Station for high school, and am now happy to be in Austin. I'm a physics and astronomy double major and Dean's Scholar. I work as a research assistant in Dr. Andrew Vanderburg's exoplanet lab which seeks to increase our sensitivity to earth-mass exoplanets using machine learning. A few of my research interests include exoplanets, ultra-high energy cosmic rays, and X-ray binaries. I'm also the president of Natural Sciences Council and aspire to make CNS as welcoming and impactful as possible for all students. Other than that, I'm always interested in hearing about anyone's interest and passion for science, coffee, or anything else! Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or are unsure of applying to honors!"

THOMAS DANG
thomas.dang@utexas.edu

“Hello! I am a first-year Dean’s Scholar from Plano, TX majoring in biochemistry and public health. I currently work in Dr. Jessie Zhang’s lab studying transcriptional regulation of RNA polymerase II. I love the uplifting, motivating spirit of the Dean’s Scholars family and hope to pursue an MD/PhD to become a researching physician. Around campus, I’m an editor for the Texas Undergraduate Research Journal and a service coordinator for The Project. Feel free to reach out with any questions!”

LAUREN DO
laurendo@utexas.edu

"Hi! My name is Lauren and I'm a third year Public Health / Plan II double major from Austin. I enjoy doing work for the college through the Dean's Scholars Council and Natural Sciences Council and am also a Texas Spirit. In my free time I like to run, hike, and explore coffee shops around Austin. I was previously in the FRI Bioactive Molecules stream, and now I'm working on the Bridging Barriers project Whole Communities-Whole Health under Dr. Amanda Barczyk. It is focused on improving chronic health issues in the community through direct engagement and involvement of families in the research process. In the future, I hope to attend medical school to get an MD/MPH and split my time between clinical practice and population health research."

DORA GURFINKEL
doracgp@utexas.edu

"I am a junior Dean's and Turing Scholar majoring in Mathematics and Computer Science. I’m originally from Venezuela, but I grew up in Houston. On campus, I am involved in Natural Sciences Council and the Council for Diversity Engagement. I participated in the Nanochemistry FRI stream, but my current interests lie in computer architecture and systems. In the future, I plan on attending graduate school and hopefully becoming a professor or working in civic technology."

MEGHAN MALLYA
meghan.mallya@gmail.com

"I am a junior neuroscience major in Dean’s Scholars and do cognitive neuroscience research in Dr. Jarrod Lewis-Peacock’s lab! In the future, I plan to pursue either medical school or an MD/Ph.D. program in the hope of becoming a psychiatrist."






MAIKE MORRISON
maikem123@gmail.com

"Hello! I am a senior from New Braunfels, TX (originally from MA & RI) in the Dean's Scholars Honors Program. I'm a math major who dabbles in biology. I've divided my time in undergrad between two labs: one in evolutionary biology (exploring how many ecotypes make up the world's most abundant photosynthetic organism: a superabundant marine cyanobacteria, under Dr. Mark Kirkpatrick) and one in mathematical epidemiology (modeling socioeconomic and geographic trends in vaccine exemption rates across Texas, under Dr. Lauren Ancel Meyers). I will be applying to computational/evolutionary biology PhD programs in fall 2019."

JULIAN SENNETTE
jsennette2018@gmail.com

"Hello! I am a second-year Physics and Astronomy major participating in the Dean's Scholar honors program from Frisco, Texas. I am really passionate about increasing diversity within CNS Honors as well as CNS and UT as whole and am part of organizations such as the CNS Honors diversity committee, the Council for Diversity Engagement, the Black Honors Student Association (BHSA) and the Black Student Alliance (BSA)! Outside of school, I love to play tennis, go on hikes, teach myself piano, and work out. Feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns you may have! Hook'em!"

 
SINDHU VENKAT
sindhuvenkat@gmail.com

"I'm a junior chemistry major. I'm a member of Dean's Scholars, and I'm active on DS Council. I work in a lab in the College of Pharmacy, under Dr. Ben Liu. In the future, I hope to attend pharmacy school."