DEGS 2021

Monday, April 26 & Tuesday, April 27, 2021

Research to Tackle Emerging Challenges

The Graduate Student Association (GSA), in partnership with the Graduate College and Office of Research and Innovation, hosted the fifth annual Drexel Emerging Graduate Scholars (DEGS) Conference, a free, student-run, University-wide conference highlighting Drexel's graduate student research enterprise.

All students, postdocs, faculty, professional staff, alumni, and guests of the University were invited to attend virtually!

The 2021 theme was Research to Tackle Emerging Challenges. Challenges emerge in every field and require creative and innovative thinking and methodology to discover potential solutions. We are incredibly proud of you, our graduate students, and your ability to adapt and adjust this past year as you continue important work, advance your field of study, and impact positive change. We enjoy showing off your work at all levels and stages at the DEGS conference.

About the Conference

The annual conference provides opportunities for graduate students to participate in professional development workshops, showcase their research (at any level) to those outside of their academic discipline, engage with student peers, postdocs, alumni, faculty and professional staff from across the University and compete for monetary awards.

2021 Conference Highlights 

• Keynote speaker, Joseph Amon, PhD, MSPH, Clinical Professor and Director of the Office of Global Health, Community Health and Prevention Department, Dornsife School of Public Health
• Graduate student research poster presentations and oral research presentations
• Drexel's own Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) Competition, based on the international Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) Competition founded by the University of Queensland
• Choose-your-own professional development workshops
• Opportunities for digital networking and engagement
• Distribution of monetary awards

2021 Conference Schedule & Recordings

Click here to view the 2021 conference schedule and view session recordings.

2021 Award Winners

Click below to see the list of 2021 conference award winners!

2021 Award Winners

2021 Conference Planning Committee

• Chair: Md Rasheduzzaman, Vice President of Academic Affairs, Graduate Student Association & PhD Program in Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering
• Divya Kamireddi, Academic Chair, Graduate Student Association & PhD Program in Materials Science and Engineering, College of Engineering
• Luis Rebollar Tercero, President, Graduate Student Association & PhD Program in Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering
• Amy Honnig, Vice President of Operations, Graduate Student Association & PhD Program in Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering
• Devon Carrow, Vice President of Communications, Graduate Student Association & Master's in Health Care Administration Program, College of Nursing and Health Professions
• Danesha Chisholm, Vice President of Finance, Graduate Student Association & DBA Program, LeBow College of Business
• Sandra Strang, Director of Communications and Events, Graduate College
• Natalie Chernets, Director of Postdoctoral Affairs & Professional Development
• Anne Converse Willkomm, Assistant Dean, Graduate College, Assistant Clinical Professor, Goodwin College of Professional Studies
• Kimberly David-Chung, Assistant Vice President, Virtual Student Experience, Drexel University Online, Student Life and Graduate College
• Tsz Kwok, Associate Director, Graduate College, Adjunct Faculty, Westphal College of Media Arts & Design
• David Kim, Administrative Coordinator, Graduate College
• Reina Lopez, Manager, Events and Conferences, Drexel University Online
• Michelle Layone, Coordinator, Events and Conferences, Drexel University Online
• Melissa Richman, Executive Director of Online and Graduate Financial Services and Planning, Graduate College
• Emily Geschke, Executive Director, Student Life, Campus Engagement, Enrollment Management, and Student Success
• Jennifer Tifone, Assistant Director, Finance and Administration, Enrollment Management & Student Success
• The Executive Board of the Graduate Student Association
• The Professional Staff of the Graduate College
• The Professional Staff of Drexel University Online

Accommodation Requests

If you have a documented disability and would like to request accommodations, please contact Disability Resources at 215.895.1401 or disability@drexel.edu. We greatly appreciate 72 hours of advance notice for these requests.

Conference Archives

Support the Conference

Click to Make a Gift and help support this annual student-run conference, now in its fourth year. Read conference testimonials.