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35 Sloane Physics Laboratory, 203.432.3605 http://physics.yale.edu M.Phil., Ph.D.

Chair Karsten Heeger

Director of Graduate Studies Daisuke Nagai ( [email protected] )

Professors Charles Ahn ( Applied Physics ), Yoram Alhassid, Thomas Appelquist, Charles Bailyn ( Astronomy ), O. Keith Baker, Charles Baltay ( Emeritus ), Sean Barrett, Joerg Bewersdorf ( Cell Biology ), Helen Caines, Hui Cao ( Applied Physics ), Richard Casten ( Emeritus ), Flavio Cavanna ( Adjunct ), Paolo Coppi ( Astronomy ), Sarah Demers, Michel Devoret ( Applied Physics ), Thierry Emonet ( Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology ), Paul Fleury ( Emeritus ), Marla Geha ( Astronomy ), Steven Girvin, Larry Gladney, Leonid Glazman, Walter Goldberger, Jack Harris, John Harris ( Emeritus ), Karsten Heeger, Victor Henrich ( Emeritus ), Jonathon Howard ( Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry ), Francesco Iachello ( Emeritus ), Sohrab Ismaill-Beigi ( Applied Physics ), Steve Lamoreaux, Andre Levchenko ( Biomedical Engineering ), Reina Maruyama, Simon Mochrie, Vincent Moncrief, Daisuke Nagai, Priyamvada Natarajan ( Astronomy ), Andrew Neitzke ( Mathematics ), Corey O’Hern ( Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science ), Vidvus Ozolins ( Applied Physics ), Ornella Palamara ( Adjunct ), Peter Parker ( Emeritus ), Daniel Prober ( Applied Physics ), Nicholas Read, Peter Schiffer ( Applied Physics ), Robert Schoelkopf ( Applied Physics ), John Schotland ( Mathematics ), Jurgen Schukraft ( Adjunct ), Ramamurti Shankar, Witold Skiba, A. Douglas Stone ( Applied Physics ), Hong Tang ( Engineering ), Paul Tipton, Thomas Ullrich ( Adjunct ), C. Megan Urry, Frank van den Bosch ( Astronomy ), Pieter van Dokkum ( Astronomy ), John Wettlaufer ( Earth and Planetary Sciences ), Robert Wheeler ( Emeritus ), Werner Wolf ( Emeritus ), Michael Zeller ( Emeritus )

Associate Professors Damon Clark ( Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology ), David C. Moore, Michael Murrell ( Biomedical Engineering ), Nikhil Padmanabhan, David Poland, Peter Rakich ( Applied Physics ), Alison Sweeney

Assistant Professors Charles Brown, Meng Cheng, Eduardo da Silva Neto, Yu He ( Applied Physics ), Benjamin Machta, Owen Miller ( Applied Physics ), Ian Moult, Nir Navon, Laura Newburgh, Shruti Puri ( Applied Physics ), Diana Qiu ( Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science )

Lecturers Sidney Cahn, Mehdi Ghiassi-Nejad, Caitlin Hansen, Stephen Irons, Steven Konezny, Rona Ramos, Adriane Steinacker

Fields of Study

Fields include atomic physics and quantum optics; nuclear physics; particle physics; astrophysics and cosmology; condensed matter; biological physics; quantum information physics; applied physics; and other areas in collaboration with the School of Engineering & Applied Science and the departments of Applied Physics; Astronomy; Chemistry; Earth and Planetary Sciences; Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry; and Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology.

Integrated Graduate Program in Physical and Engineering Biology (PEB)

Students applying to the Ph.D. program in Physics may also apply to be part of the PEB program. See the description under Non-Degree-Granting Programs, Councils, and Research Institutes for course requirements, and http://peb.yale.edu for more information about the benefits of this program and application instructions.

Special Requirements for the Ph.D. Degree

To complete the course requirements, students are expected to take a set of seven full-term courses: six foundational courses and one elective. The six core courses ( PHYS 500 , Advanced Classical Mechanics; PHYS 502 , Electromagnetic Theory I; PHYS 506 , Mathematical Methods of Physics; PHYS 508 , Quantum Mechanics I; PHYS 510 , Quantum Mechanics II; and PHYS 512 , Statistical Physics I) serve to complete the student’s undergraduate core training in classical and quantum physics. For the seventh course, students select from the list of graduate elective courses offered by the Physics or Applied Physics departments, or courses offered by other departments with the approval of the director of graduate studies (DGS). In addition, all students are required to engage in a research project by taking PHYS 990 , Special Investigations. First-year students are also required, in addition to their core courses, to take PHYS 515 , Topics in Modern Physics Research, in the fall, and PHYS 590 , Responsible Conduct in Research for Physical Scientists, in the spring. Certain equivalent course work or successful completion of a pass-out examination may allow for the substitution or waiver of core courses for individual students.

All students must participate in a two-part qualifying event by their second year of study. Part one is a qualifying event in research consisting of an oral presentation on their research completed during PHYS 990 , Special Investigation. Part two is a written qualifying event, taken by all students at the beginning of the third term, consisting of four separate written components on classical mechanics, electromagnetic theory, statistical mechanics, and quantum mechanics. Students take each component; the components are marked and returned to the student, who is expected to correct any errors and resubmit in a week. For subjects the students have not yet encountered in graduate courses, the event serves as a pre-test. It is not a pass/fail exam, but rather a learning milestone. Students may take the written qualifying event before the research qualifying event. Both events must be completed by the end of the student's second year.

Before the end of students‘ third year of study, they must submit their thesis prospectus, as presented to and approved by their core thesis committee. Students who have completed their required course credits with satisfactory grades (two Honors and an overall High Pass average), taken the qualifying events, and submitted an acceptable thesis prospectus are recommended for admission to candidacy and to receive their M.Phil en route. Students entering the program with a master's degree in physics or a related field may waive equivalent graduate-level core courses, with approval from the DGS, without the requirement of replacing course credits. These student can advance to candidacy, after completing all other requirements, without receiving an M.Phil from the department.

There is no foreign language requirement in the physics program, but students whose first language is not English must receive, at a minimum, 25 or above on the TOEFL speak test. Admitted students who fall below this threshold will be required to take an ESL class prior to being able to teach. The teaching experience is regarded as an integral part of the graduate training program. During their studies, students are expected to serve four terms as teaching fellows, usually in the first two years. Students who require additional support from the Graduate School must teach additional terms, if needed, after they have fulfilled this teaching requirement.

Formal association with a dissertation adviser normally begins after the fourth term, after the qualifying event has been passed and required course work has been completed. An adviser from a department other than Physics can be chosen in consultation with the DGS, provided the dissertation topic is deemed suitable for a physics Ph.D.

Master’s Degrees

M.Phil. Students who have successfully advanced to candidacy qualify for the M.Phil. degree.

M.S. Students who withdraw from the Ph.D. program may be eligible to receive the M.S. degree if they have met the requirements and have not already received the M.Phil. degree. For the M.S., students must successfully complete all six core courses listed above, in addition to completing either PHYS 990 , Special Investigations, or an advanced elective (all with a satisfactory record). Certain equivalent course work or successful completion of a pass-out examination may allow individual students to substitute an elective course for a required one.

Program materials are available upon request to the Director of Graduate Studies, Department of Physics, Yale University, PO Box 208120, New Haven CT 06520-8120; email, [email protected] . 

PHYS 500a, Advanced Classical Mechanics   Yoram Alhassid

Newtonian dynamics, Lagrangian dynamics, and Hamiltonian dynamics. Rigid bodies and Euler equations. Oscillations and eigenvalue equations. Classical chaos. Introduction to dynamics of continuous systems. TTh 11:35am-12:50pm

PHYS 502b, Electromagnetic Theory I   Walter Goldberger

Classical electromagnetic theory including boundary-value problems and applications of Maxwell equations. Macroscopic description of electric and magnetic materials. Wave propagation. MW 11:35am-12:50pm

PHYS 504b, Modern Physics Measurements   Laura Newburgh and Sidney Cahn

A laboratory course with experiments and data analysis in soft and hard condensed matter, nuclear and elementary particle physics. TTh 2:30pm-5:20pm

PHYS 506a, Mathematical Methods of Physics   Walter Goldberger

Survey of mathematical techniques useful in physics. Includes vector and tensor analysis, group theory, complex analysis (residue calculus, method of steepest descent), differential equations and Green’s functions, and selected advanced topics. MW 10am-11:15am

PHYS 508a, Quantum Mechanics I   Thomas Appelquist

The principles of quantum mechanics with application to simple systems. Canonical formalism, solutions of Schrödinger’s equation, angular momentum, and spin. MW 1pm-2:15pm

PHYS 510b, Quantum Mechanics II   Meng Cheng

Approximation methods, scattering theory, and the role of symmetries. Relativistic wave equations. Second quantized treatment of identical particles. Elementary introduction to quantized fields. MW 10am-11:15am

PHYS 512b, Statistical Physics I   Yoram Alhassid

Review of thermodynamics, the fundamental principles of classical and quantum statistical mechanics, canonical and grand canonical ensembles, identical particles, Bose and Fermi statistics, phase transitions and critical phenomena, enormalization group, irreversible processes, fluctuations. TTh 11:35am-12:50pm

PHYS 515a, Topics in Modern Physics Research   Charles Brown and Karsten Heeger

A comprehensive introduction to the various fields of physics research carried out in the department and a formal introduction to scientific reading, writing, and presenting. F 10am-11:15am

PHYS 517b / ENAS 517b / MB&B 517b / MCDB 517b, Methods and Logic in Interdisciplinary Research   Corey O'Hern and Emma Carley

This half-term PEB class is intended to introduce students to integrated approaches to research. Each week, the first of two sessions is student-led, while the second session is led by faculty with complementary expertise and discusses papers that use different approaches to the same topic (for example, physical and biological or experiment and theory). Counts as 0.5 credit toward graduate course requirements.   ½ Course cr MW 6pm-7:15pm

PHYS 522a, Introduction to Atomic Physics   Nir Navon

The course is intended to develop basic theoretical tools needed to understand current research trends in the field of atomic physics. Emphasis is given to laser-spectroscopic methods including laser cooling and trapping. Experimental techniques discussed when appropriate. MW 1pm-2:15pm

PHYS 523a / CB&B 523a / ENAS 541a / MB&B 523a, Biological Physics   Yimin Luo

The course has two aims: (1) to introduce students to the physics of biological systems and (2) to introduce students to the basics of scientific computing. The course focuses on studies of a broad range of biophysical phenomena including diffusion, polymer statistics, protein folding, macromolecular crowding, cell motion, and tissue development using computational tools and methods. Intensive tutorials are provided for MATLAB including basic syntax, arrays, for-loops, conditional statements, functions, plotting, and importing and exporting data. TTh 1pm-2:15pm

PHYS 524a, Introduction to Nuclear Physics   Reina Maruyama

An introduction to a wide variety of topics in nuclear physics and related experimental techniques including weak interactions, neutrino physics, neutrinoless double beta decay, and relativistic heavy-ion collisions. The aim is to give a broad perspective on the subject and to develop the key ideas in simple ways, with more weight on physics ideas than on mathematical formalism. The course assumes no prior knowledge of nuclear physics and only elementary quantum mechanics. It is accessible to advanced undergraduates. TTh 9am-10:15am

PHYS 526b, Introduction to Elementary Particle Physics   David Poland

An overview of particle physics, including an introduction to the standard model, experimental techniques, symmetries, conservation laws, the quark-parton model, and open questions in particle physics. MW 1pm-2:15pm

PHYS 548a / APHY 548a / ENAS 850a, Solid State Physics I   Yu He

A two-term sequence (with APHY 549 ) covering the principles underlying the electrical, thermal, magnetic, and optical properties of solids, including crystal structures, phonons, energy bands, semiconductors, Fermi surfaces, magnetic resonance, phase transitions, and superconductivity. TTh 1pm-2:15pm

PHYS 549b / APHY 549b / ENAS 851b, Solid State Physics II   Sohrab Ismail-Beigi

A two-term sequence (with APHY 548 ) covering the principles underlying the electrical, thermal, magnetic, and optical properties of solids, including crystal structures, phonons, energy bands, semiconductors, Fermi surfaces, magnetic resonance, phase transitions, and superconductivity. TTh 11:35am-12:50pm

PHYS 561a / MB&B 561a / MCDB 561a, Modeling Biological Systems I   Thierry Emonet

Biological systems make sophisticated decisions at many levels. This course explores the molecular and computational underpinnings of how these decisions are made, with a focus on modeling static and dynamic processes in example biological systems. This course is aimed at biology students and teaches the analytic and computational methods needed to model genetic networks and protein signaling pathways. Students present and discuss original papers in class. They learn to model using MatLab in a series of in-class hackathons that illustrate the biological examples discussed in the lectures. Biological systems and processes that are modeled include: (i) gene expression, including the kinetics of RNA and protein synthesis and degradation; (ii) activators and repressors; (iii) the lysogeny/lysis switch of lambda phage; (iv) network motifs and how they shape response dynamics; (v) cell signaling, MAP kinase networks and cell fate decisions; and (vi) noise in gene expression. Prerequisites: MATH 115  or  116 ,  BIOL 101 – 104 , or with permission of instructors. This course also benefits students who have taken more advanced biology courses (e.g.  MCDB 200 ,  MCDB 310 , MB&B 300/301). TTh 2:30pm-3:45pm

PHYS 562b / AMTH 765b / CB&B 562b / ENAS 561b / INP 562b / MB&B 562b / MCDB 562b, Modeling Biological Systems II   Joe Howard

This course covers advanced topics in computational biology. How do cells compute, how do they count and tell time, how do they oscillate and generate spatial patterns? Topics include time-dependent dynamics in regulatory, signal-transduction, and neuronal networks; fluctuations, growth, and form; mechanics of cell shape and motion; spatially heterogeneous processes; diffusion. This year, the course spends roughly half its time on mechanical systems at the cellular and tissue level, and half on models of neurons and neural systems in computational neuroscience. Prerequisite: a 200-level biology course or permission of the instructor. TTh 2:30pm-3:45pm

PHYS 570b / ASTR 570b, High-Energy Astrophysics   Paolo Coppi

A survey of current topics in high-energy astrophysics, including accreting black hole and neutron star systems in our galaxy, pulsars, active galactic nuclei and relativistic jets, gamma-ray bursts, and ultra-high-energy cosmic rays. The basic physical processes underlying the observed high-energy phenomena are also covered. MW 2:30pm-3:45pm

PHYS 600a / ASTR 600a, Cosmology   Nikhil Padmanabhan

A comprehensive introduction to cosmology at the graduate level. The standard paradigm for the formation, growth, and evolution of structure in the universe is covered in detail. Topics include the inflationary origin of density fluctuations; the thermodynamics of the early universe; assembly of structure at late times and current status of observations. The basics of general relativity required to understand essential topics in cosmology are covered. Advanced undergraduates may register for the course with permission of the instructor. MW 11:35am-12:50pm

PHYS 603a, Euclidean-Signature Semi-Classical Analysis for Quantum Mechanics and Quantum Field Theory   Vincent Moncrief

The textbook WKB (or semi-classical) approach to solving quantum eigenvalue problems has been significantly improved and generalized in scope in recent years. New techniques offer advantages, not only over the very circumscribed, classical WKB (Wentzel, Kramers, Brillouin) methods (which are mostly limited to elementary, one dimensional quantum mechanical problems), but also over conventional perturbation theory. The corresponding “Euclidean-Signature Semi-Classical Program” is undergoing rapid, continuing development and has significant applications, not only to higher dimensional quantum mechanical problems but also to interacting quantum field theories. Unlike conventional perturbation theory this approach does not require the decomposition of a quantum Hamiltonian operator into a solvable (e.g., free field) component and its “perturbation” and, in the case of gauge theories, can maintain full, non-abelian gauge invariance at every order of a calculation. Prerequisite: PHYS 440 or 441 . A basic understanding of textbook perturbation theory and WKB techniques is strongly advised. The methods developed in this course build on and revise both of these fundamental techniques of quantum approximation theory. TTh 1pm-2:15pm

PHYS 609a, Relativistic Field Theory I   Ian Moult

The fundamental principles of quantum field theory. Interacting theories and the Feynman graph expansion. Quantum electrodynamics including lowest order processes, one-loop corrections, and the elements of renormalization theory. MW 11:35am-12:50pm

PHYS 610b / APHY 610b, Quantum Many-Body Theory   Leonid Glazman

Identical particles and second quantization. Electron tunneling and spectral function. General linear response theory. Approximate methods of quantum many-body theory. Dielectric response, screening of long-range interactions, electric conductance, collective modes, and photon absorption spectra. Fermi liquid; Cooper and Stoner instabilities; notions of superconductivity and magnetism. BCS theory, Josephson effect, and Majorana fermions in condensed matter; superconducting qubits. Bose-Einstein condensation; Bogoliubov quasiparticles and solitons. TTh 11:35am-12:50pm

PHYS 624b, Group Theory   Witold Skiba

Lie algebras, Lie groups, and some of their applications. Representation theory. Explicit construction of finite-dimensional irreducible representations. Invariant operators and their eigenvalues. Tensor operators and enveloping algebras. Boson and fermion realizations. Differential realizations. Quantum dynamical applications. HTBA

PHYS 628a / APHY 628a, Statistical Physics II   Meng Cheng

An advanced course in statistical mechanics. Topics may include mean field theory of and fluctuations at continuous phase transitions; critical phenomena, scaling, and introduction to the renormalization group ideas; topological phase transitions; dynamic correlation functions and linear response theory; quantum phase transitions; superfluid and superconducting phase transitions; cooperative phenomena in low-dimensional systems. TTh 2:30pm-3:45pm

PHYS 630b, Relativistic Field Theory II   Ian Moult

An introduction to non-Abelian gauge field theories, spontaneous symmetry breakdown, and unified theories of weak and electromagnetic interactions. Renormalization group methods, quantum chromodynamics, and nonperturbative approaches to quantum field theory. TTh 9am-10:15am

PHYS 633b / APHY 633b, Introduction to Superconductivity   Yu He

The fundamentals of superconductivity, including both theoretical understandings of basic mechanism and description of major applications. Topics include historical overview, Ginzburg-Landau (mean field) theory, critical currents and fields of type II superconductors, BCS theory, Josephson junctions and microelectronic and quantum-bit devices, and high-Tc oxide superconductors. MW 11:35am-12:50pm

PHYS 634a / APHY 634a, Mesoscopic Physics I   Michel Devoret

Introduction to the physics of nanoscale solid state systems, which are large and disordered enough to be described in terms of simple macroscopic parameters like resistance, capacitance, and inductance, but small and cold enough that effects usually associated with microscopic particles, like quantum-mechanical coherence and/or charge quantization, dominate. Emphasis is placed on transport and noise phenomena in the normal and superconducting regimes. MW 9am-10:15am

PHYS 635a, Quantum Entanglement in HEP   Keith Baker

Basic principles and applications of quantum entanglement and quantum information science at GeV to TeV energies in particle and nuclear physics are covered. Topics include: quantum superposition, quantum entanglement, entanglement entropy, quantum computing, quantum algorithms, Bell’s inequality tests, and quantum sensors. MW 1pm-2:15pm

PHYS 650a / APHY 650a, Theory of Solids I   Leonid Glazman

T 3:30pm-5:20pm

PHYS 670a, Special Topics in Biophysics   Benjamin Machta

The aim of the course is to introduce students to the approaches, methods, major results, and open questions in modern biological physics. Topics include non-equilibrium statistical physics, with applications to kinetic proof-reading and understanding molecular motors, information theory with applications to cellular signaling and phase transitions as they occur in living systems. The course is designed for graduate students in physics or a closely related field, otherwise, permission of the instructor is required. TTh 4pm-5:15pm

PHYS 675a / APHY 675a, Principles of Optics with Applications   Hui Cao

Introduction to the principles of optics and electromagnetic wave phenomena with applications to microscopy, optical fibers, laser spectroscopy, nanophotonics, plasmonics, and metamaterials. Topics include propagation of light, reflection and refraction, guiding light, polarization, interference, diffraction, scattering, Fourier optics, and optical coherence. TTh 11:35am-12:50pm

PHYS 676a / APHY 676a, Introduction to Light-Matter Interactions   Peter Rakich

Optical properties of materials and a variety of coherent light-matter interactions are explored through the classical and quantum treatments. The role of electronic, phononic, and plasmonic interactions in shaping the optical properties of materials is examined using generalized quantum and classical coupled-mode theories. The dynamic response of media to strain, magnetic, and electric fields is also treated. Modern topics are explored, including optical forces, photonic crystals, and metamaterials; multi-photon absorption; and parametric processes resulting from electronic, optomechanical, and Raman interactions. MW 4pm-5:15pm

PHYS 678b, Computing for Scientific Research   Larry Gladney

This hands-on lab course introduces students to essential computational and data analysis methods, tools, and techniques and their applications to solve problems in physics. The course introduces some of the most important and useful skills, concepts, methods, tools, and relevant knowledge to get started in scientific research broadly defined, including theoretical, computational, and experimental research. Students learn basic programming in Python, data analysis, statistical tools, modeling, simulations, machine learning, high-performance computing, and their applications to problems in physics and beyond. F 1:30pm-3:20pm

PHYS 679a, Nonlinear Optics and Lasers

Fundamental principles of nonlinear optics and lasers. Nonlinear optical susceptibilities; wave propagation and coupling in nonlinear media; harmonic, sum, and difference frequency generation; parametric amplification and oscillation; phase conjugation via four-wave mixing; self-phase modulation and solitons. Stimulated and spontaneous emission, interaction of two-level atoms with light, optical amplification. Optical resonators and threshold conditions for laser oscillation. Semiclassical laser theory, nonlinear and multi-mode lasing. Noise and quantum effects in lasers (time permitting). MW 1pm-2:15pm

PHYS 691a / APHY 691a, Quantum Optics   Shruti Puri

Quantization of the electromagnetic field, coherence properties and representation of the electromagnetic field, quantum phenomena in simple nonlinear optics, atom-field interaction, stochastic methods, master equation, Fokker-Planck equation, Heisenberg-Langevin equation, input-output formulation, cavity quantum electrodynamics, quantum theory of laser, trapped ions, light forces, quantum optomechanics, Bose-Einstein condensation, quantum measurement and control. TTh 2:30pm-3:45pm

PHYS 990a or b, Special Investigations   Staff

Directed research by arrangement with individual faculty members and approved by the DGS. Students are expected to propose and complete a term-long research project. The culmination of the project is a presentation that fulfills the departmental requirement for the research qualifying event. HTBA

PHYS 991a / ENAS 991a / MB&B 591a / MCDB 591a, Integrated Workshop   Corey O'Hern

This required course for students in the PEB graduate program involves a series of modules, co-taught by faculty, in which students from different academic backgrounds and research skills collaborate on projects at the interface of physics, engineering, and biology. The modules cover a broad range of PEB research areas and skills. The course starts with an introduction to MATLAB, which is used throughout the course for analysis, simulations, and modeling. MW 2:30pm-3:45pm

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You are here

Applying through applied physics, below is a step-by-step guide on how to apply to peb through the applied physics department:.

At the Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Application Portal , enter your PIN number and password to start your application. Once in the application, navigate to “Program of Study” (using the left menu bar). Then:

1) Select “Applied Physics” as the department or program to which you wish to apply.

2) Select “Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)” as the degree option.

3) Select “Full-Time” for attendance status.

4) Select “Physical and Engineering Biology (PEB)” as a subfield, concentration or track.

Leading Supply Chain Innovation Program

Drive innovation across the supply chain life cycle by leveraging new technologies..

Strategic innovation in supply chain management is crucial to secure a competitive advantage. Today’s supply chain leaders must embrace curiosity and intentionality in steering their organizations toward efficient, transformative digital solutions.

The Leading Supply Chain Innovation Program equips you to effectively integrate new technologies into your supply chain operations.

Over six weeks, you’ll discover practical methods for fostering resilience, promoting sustainability, and creating value by incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) into your supply chains.

You’ll also explore hands-on case studies, offering profound insights into the decision-making approaches of leaders who’ve dealt with the intricate challenge of transforming a supply chain organization.

Walk away with insights you can instantly apply in your context, enabling you to lead transformations across the entire supply chain life cycle using AI and IoT. 

Program Dates

Registration closes: July 09, 2024

Start date: July 17, 2024

Program Details

Length: 6 weeks (excluding orientation), online

Commitment: 6–8 hours per week

Fee: $2,800

Outcome: Learn to lead innovation and tech integration within your supply chain.

Yale SOM developed this program to be administered by our program collaborator, GetSmarter. Please direct all program-related inquiries, including questions about fees and registration, to GetSmarter.

About the Program

What to expect.

• Gain real-world tools, frameworks, and techniques for reinventing your supply chain through the adoption of disruptive technologies
• Bolster your organization’s resilience with a practical toolkit for navigating unexpected supply chain disruption
• Grow your organization’s competitive advantage by enhancing your ability to strategically create value across the supply chain life cycle
• Learn to transform your supply chain organization with hands-on insights from leaders who’ve successfully transformed theirs 
• Develop your ability to construct future-ready supply chains with a strong commitment to environmental sustainability and social responsibility 

Who Should Attend

• Current supply chain leaders who already have around a decade’s experience working with the key functions of the supply chain life cycle
• Leaders or high-level managers working within a supply chain organization who wish to take charge of overseeing the strategic adoption of new technologies
• Professionals working within a supply chain company who are interested in progressing into upper-level management or a leadership role 
• Operations or logistics managers, change management experts, and growth strategists who have a particular interest in the digitization of supply chains  
• Orientation module
• Module 1: Enabling supply chain management excellence
• Module 2: Creating value through supply chain innovation
• Module 3: Reinventing supply chain operations with AI and IoT
• Module 4: Building resilient supply chains
• Module 5: Building responsible supply chains
• Module 6: Leading supply chain transformation 

Program Convener

Professor of Operations Management

Areas of Expertise: Analytics, Manufacturing, Operations, Operations Research, Service Operations, Strategy, Supply Chain, Sustainability, Technological Innovation

Sang Kim is a Professor of Operations Management at the Yale School of Management. Professor Kim specializes in supply chain management and service operations, with a particular interest in management of business process failures. He develops analytical models based on operations research and game theory to study practice-driven problems. His recent research interests include managing low-probability/high-impact disruptions in supply chains, sustainable operations, and social responsibility in supply chain management. Using the risk management framework, he has studied problems in application areas such as aftermarkets in the aerospace and defense industry, environmental regulation, and social enterprises in developing economies. Kim’s research has been published in top management journals including  Management Science, Operations Research,  and  Marketing Science . Currently he serves as an associate editor at  Management Science  and  Manufacturing & Service Operations Management . Professor Kim received his PhD degree in Operations and Information Management from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, MS in Scientific Computing & Computational Mathematics from the Stanford University, and BA in Physics from the University of Pennsylvania.

Registration Information

Registration closes:  July 09, 2024 Program starts with orientation:  July 17, 2024

There are no prerequisites for this program. Register to get started. Our online program partner, GetSmarter, will welcome you and guide you through the steps to secure your place in the program.

Program Fee Assistance

A program fee reduction of 15% is available for those working in the nonprofit or government sectors; Yale University alumni; small groups of 3-6; and those who have previously participated in a Yale Executive Education program with Yale SOM or 2U/GetSmarter.*

*Discounts cannot be combined

This program does not qualify for veteran financial aid or veterans benefits at this time.

Program Collaborator

This program is presented entirely online in collaboration with leader in digital education, GetSmarter , part of edX. Technology meets academic rigor in GetSmarter’s people-mediated model, which enables lifelong learners across the globe to obtain industry-relevant skills that are certified by the world’s most reputable academic institutions. This interactive, supportive teaching model is designed for busy professionals and results in unprecedented certification rates for online programs. 

View the online Leading Supply Chain Innovation Program on the GetSmarter website.  

Modules are released on a weekly basis and can be completed in your own time and at your own pace.  

Wright Laboratory

Exploring the invisible universe, asian americans and stem conference held at yale.

The interdisciplinary conference Asian Americans and STEM 2024 was held at Yale’s Greenberg Conference Center on May 10. The meeting brought together over 60 people from 18 institutions.  The attendees were scholars from the humanities and STEM fields who are actively engaged in exploring the history of race and racialization in their respective fields, with a particular focus on the shaping and impact of lived experiences and scholarship of Asian and Asian American scientists and their respective fields. The conference also examined the ways in which the work of these scientists has been remembered, obfuscated, or erased in standard histories of scientific discovery and invention. 

The opening keynote address was delivered by Dr. Howard Kyongju Koh,  Harvey V. Fineberg Professor of the Practice of Public Health Leadership and  former United States Assistant Secretary for Health for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  There were also three panels focusing on physics, life sciences, and computer science. Each panel consisted of scholars from the STEM fields, humanities, and social sciences.

Eun-Joo Ahn, postdoctoral associate at the Yale Center for the Study of Race, Indigeneity, and Transnational Migration (RITM), one of the co-organizers of the conference, and a member of Yale’s Wright Lab said, “The attendees appreciated having a space to meet and discuss with those across disciplines. There was also the general expectation from the attendees that this conference will not be a one-off but continue, and we organizers hope that this meeting can be the inaugural conference of future ones.”

In addition to Ahn, the conference organizing committee included Wright Lab member and professor of Physics Reina Maryuma;  associate professor of  Computer Science  Theodore Kim; professor of American Studies and of History Mary Lui; Physics graduate program coordinator Rona Ramos; and Computer Science postdoctoral associate Yoehan Oh. Wright Lab senior administrative assistant Camille Simeone provided logistics support, and Wright Lab graduate students Ridge Liu and Emily Pottebaum volunteered their time to assist at the event.

For more information and the agenda, please see the conference website .

The Asian Americans and STEM 2024 conference was organized by the Asian Americans and STEM initiative at Yale and co-sponsored by Yale Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS), Yale School of Engineering & Applied Science (SEAS), Yale Center for the Study of Race, Indigeneity, and Transnational Migration (RITM), Traphagen Alumni Speakers Series , Yale College Office of Student Affairs.

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Fellowship Application FAQs

Hi Everyone,

Fellowship application season is here, so this morning I’m going to tackle FAQs for current and future candidates.

What do fellowships look for? Programs want candidates who will work hard and contribute to their program. They seek fellows with the potential to become faculty. Selection committees look for evidence of clinical excellence, scholarship, citizenship, and interpersonal skills- emotional intelligence, professionalism, willingness to work hard, reliability, and kindness.

Am I competitive? You’re all competitive, but you need to match your interests with the right program. Some programs seek physician scientists, so if your focus is education, you may need to look elsewhere. Some specialties are especially competitive—particularly GI, cardiology, and heme-Onc—and the most sought after programs seek candidates with deep research and leadership portfolios. Faculty and residency leadership are here to guide you.

Where should I apply? Focus on programs that meet your professional and personal needs. Compared to residencies, which generally offer strong, broad education, fellowships often vary in their specific strengths. For example, some PCCSM programs are leaders in asthma or global health, while others are known for excellence in critical care, ILD, or sleep.* For more information, you should tap into the expertise of Yale faculty as well as alumni, who have trained throughout the country. Be sure to consider geography, particularly if you have a partner with work restrictions or you wish to train near family.

How many programs should I apply to? The answer varies by applicant and specialty, but considerations include specialty competitiveness, geographic restrictions, and whether you’re applying as a couple. You should only apply to programs that you’re sincerely considering. If your application has glitches (e.g., lower USMLEs, less scholarship, clinical struggles), you should include less competitive programs on your list. Many applicants get more interview invitations than they can accept. For candidates applying to competitive fields, 10-12 interviews should be enough.

Do I need to plan for coverage during interview season? Yes. By now, you should already have requested a non-backup elective and/or vacation during late summer or early fall. We will provide you with backup for one day during interview season if you have to interview while on a clinical rotation. For additional coverage, you will need to arrange swaps with colleagues.

How many letter writers do I need? Check fellowship websites for instructions, but most programs want four: a program director’s letter, a clinical letter in your specialty, a scholarship letter (e.g., from Research-in-Residency, a Quality Improvement Project, or a Distinction Project), and a wildcard. The latter will usually be a second clinical letter, for example from a longitudinal outpatient experience to complement an inpatient letter. You may also consider a second research letter if you’re applying to research-focused programs.

Who should I ask to write a letter: Ask faculty who know you well. Although letters are confidential, your MedHub evaluations will give you a sense of what would go into your recommendation. If you haven’t asked for letters yet, do it now. Once a faculty member agrees to write a letter, send them your CV, a draft of your personal statement, and an offer to meet with them to discuss your plans (not all letter writers need to meet with you, but it doesn’t hurt to ask). Get letter writers the information they need from ERAS to upload letters and let them know the deadlines.

What’s included in the program director’s letter? My letters are written according to APDIM guidelines (see the attached template). The letter provides information about our residency; assesses your clinical performance, medical knowledge, teaching ability, professionalism, and communication skills; highlights your scholarship and extracurricular contributions; and ends with an assessment of your fellowship potential.

How important is the personal statement? Very (see my prior Program Director’s Notes on this topic). Aim to excite fellowship directors about your candidacy: What drew you to the specialty? How do your past experiences show your potential? What do you hope to gain from training? What do you seek in a program? How do you hope to contribute to the field? What do you see yourself doing after training?

Should I apply this year? Hmm. Many residents apply at the end of their PGY2 year, but there are no rules. A Chief year can offer clinical and leadership experience and bolster any application. Experience as a hospitalist or primary care physician can add to your clinical maturity (I spent a year as an emergency medicine physician before fellowship). Waiting a year or two can give you more research and leadership opportunities as well as more time to decide which field to pursue. After spending time as a hospitalist or primary care physician, many graduates learn that general internal medicine is their true calling. The bottom line is you can apply now if you’re ready, but there’s no rush.

What do I do now? Good question. If you’re applying this year:

• Tell me, so I can start working on your letter. With 30+ letters to write, I need to start.
• Send me your CV and “talking points” to highlight in your PD letter.
• Send me a draft of your personal statement, which I’ll gladly review.
• Attend Fellowship Application Night this Wednesday, May 22 at 6:30P in Fitkin Amphitheater, hosted by Dr. Gupta. Fellowship Directors will be sharing their advice and I’ll be zooming in from Nova Scotia.
• Identify and confirm letter writers.
• Check ERAS’s website for deadlines. Note: it can take up to five business days to process uploaded materials, so don’t wait for the last minute!

If you have more questions, ask away. You’re a talented group and we’re going to have another successful year.

Enjoy your Sunday, everyone. Today, I’ll be driving to Nova Scotia for one more week of retreat.

*IMHO, Yale PCCSM is strong in all these areas... 😊

P.S. What I’m reading:

• As Bird Flu Looms, the Lessons of Past Pandemics Take On New Urgency
• How to Create a Society That Prizes Decency
• From the Embers of an Old Genocide, a New One May Be Emerging
• God’s Doctors

P.P.S. Acadia Pics:

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Five MIT faculty elected to the National Academy of Sciences for 2024

Guoping feng, piotr indyk, daniel kleitman, daniela rus, senthil todadri, and nine alumni are recognized by their peers for their outstanding contributions to research..

The National Academy of Sciences has elected 120 members and 24 international members, including five faculty members from MIT. Guoping Feng, Piotr Indyk, Daniel J. Kleitman, Daniela Rus, and Senthil Todadri were elected in recognition of their “distinguished and continuing achievements in original research.” Membership to the National Academy of Sciences is one of the highest honors a scientist can receive in their career.

Among the new members added this year are also nine MIT alumni, including Zvi Bern ’82; Harold Hwang ’93, SM ’93; Leonard Kleinrock SM ’59, PhD ’63; Jeffrey C. Lagarias ’71, SM ’72, PhD ’74; Ann Pearson PhD ’00; Robin Pemantle PhD ’88; Jonas C. Peters PhD ’98; Lynn Talley PhD ’82; and Peter T. Wolczanski ’76. Those elected this year bring the total number of active members to 2,617, with 537 international members.

The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit institution that was established under a congressional charter signed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863. It recognizes achievement in science by election to membership, and — with the National Academy of Engineering and the National Academy of Medicine — provides science, engineering, and health policy advice to the federal government and other organizations.

Guoping Feng

Guoping Feng is the James W. (1963) and Patricia T. Poitras Professor in the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences. He is also associate director and investigator in the McGovern Institute for Brain Research, a member of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, and director of the Hock E. Tan and K. Lisa Yang Center for Autism Research.

His research focuses on understanding the molecular mechanisms that regulate the development and function of synapses, the places in the brain where neurons connect and communicate. He’s interested in how defects in the synapses can contribute to psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders. By understanding the fundamental mechanisms behind these disorders, he’s producing foundational knowledge that may guide the development of new treatments for conditions like obsessive-compulsive disorder and schizophrenia.

Feng received his medical training at Zhejiang University Medical School in Hangzhou, China, and his PhD in molecular genetics from the State University of New York at Buffalo. He did his postdoctoral training at Washington University at St. Louis and was on the faculty at Duke University School of Medicine before coming to MIT in 2010. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2023.

Piotr Indyk

Piotr Indyk is the Thomas D. and Virginia W. Cabot Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. He received his magister degree from the University of Warsaw and his PhD from Stanford University before coming to MIT in 2000.

Indyk’s research focuses on building efficient, sublinear, and streaming algorithms. He’s developed, for example, algorithms that can use limited time and space to navigate massive data streams, that can separate signals into individual frequencies faster than other methods, and can address the “nearest neighbor” problem by finding highly similar data points without needing to scan an entire database. His work has applications on everything from machine learning to data mining.

He has been named a Simons Investigator and a fellow of the Association for Computer Machinery. In 2023, he was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Daniel J. Kleitman

Daniel Kleitman, a professor emeritus of applied mathematics, has been at MIT since 1966. He received his undergraduate degree from Cornell University and his master’s and PhD in physics from Harvard University before doing postdoctoral work at Harvard and the Niels Bohr Institute in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Kleitman’s research interests include operations research, genomics, graph theory, and combinatorics, the area of math concerned with counting. He was actually a professor of physics at Brandeis University before changing his field to math, encouraged by the prolific mathematician Paul Erdős. In fact, Kleitman has the rare distinction of having an Erdős number of just one. The number is a measure of the “collaborative distance” between a mathematician and Erdős in terms of authorship of papers, and studies have shown that leading mathematicians have particularly low numbers.

He’s a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and has made important contributions to the MIT community throughout his career. He was head of the Department of Mathematics and served on a number of committees, including the Applied Mathematics Committee. He also helped create web-based technology and an online textbook for several of the department’s core undergraduate courses. He was even a math advisor for the MIT-based film “Good Will Hunting.”

Daniela Rus

Daniela Rus, the Andrew (1956) and Erna Viterbi Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, is the director of the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL). She also serves as director of the Toyota-CSAIL Joint Research Center.

Her research on robotics, artificial intelligence, and data science is geared toward understanding the science and engineering of autonomy. Her ultimate goal is to create a future where machines are seamlessly integrated into daily life to support people with cognitive and physical tasks, and deployed in way that ensures they benefit humanity. She’s working to increase the ability of machines to reason, learn, and adapt to complex tasks in human-centered environments with applications for agriculture, manufacturing, medicine, construction, and other industries. She’s also interested in creating new tools for designing and fabricating robots and in improving the interfaces between robots and people, and she’s done collaborative projects at the intersection of technology and artistic performance.

Rus received her undergraduate degree from the University of Iowa and her PhD in computer science from Cornell University. She was a professor of computer science at Dartmouth College before coming to MIT in 2004. She is part of the Class of 2002 MacArthur Fellows; was elected to the National Academy of Engineering and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; and is a fellow of the Association for Computer Machinery, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence.

Senthil Todadri

Senthil Todadri , a professor of physics, came to MIT in 2001. He received his undergraduate degree from the Indian Institute of Technology in Kanpur and his PhD from Yale University before working as a postdoc at the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics in Santa Barbara, California.

Todadri’s research focuses on condensed matter theory. He’s interested in novel phases and phase transitions of quantum matter that expand beyond existing paradigms. Combining modeling experiments and abstract methods, he’s working to develop a theoretical framework for describing the physics of these systems. Much of that work involves understanding the phenomena that arise because of impurities or strong interactions between electrons in solids that don’t conform with conventional physical theories. He also pioneered the theory of deconfined quantum criticality, which describes a class of phase transitions, and he discovered the dualities of quantum field theories in two dimensional superconducting states, which has important applications to many problems in the field.

Todadri has been named a Simons Investigator, a Sloan Research Fellow, and a fellow of the American Physical Society. In 2023, he was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences

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Six faculty members honored for their commitment to teaching.

Left to right, Yale College Dean Pericles Lewis with prizewinners Carlos Eire, John Lafferty, Adriane Steinacker, David Blight, and Margherita Tortora. Not pictured: Sarah Demers. (Photo by John Dempsey)

Six members of the Yale faculty were named recipients of Yale College’s teaching prizes, which recognize exceptional undergraduate teaching.

The prizewinning teachers, all from Yale’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences, are David Blight, Sterling Professor of History and African American Studies; Sarah Demers, professor of physics; John Lafferty, the John C. Malone Professor of Statistics & Data Science; Adriane Steinacker, senior lecturer in Physics; Margherita Tortora, senior lector II in Spanish; and Carlos Eire, the T. Lawrason Riggs Professor of History and Religious Studies. 

They were recognized by Yale College Dean Pericles Lewis during a reception at the Humanities Quadrangle on April 29.

Among this year’s recipients are distinguished researchers and educators, some of who are the winners of previous teaching prizes: Demers was awarded the 2013-2014 Provost’s Teaching Prize, and Steinacker was awarded the Poorvu Family Fund for Academic Innovation Award in 2019.

Lewis praised all the recipients for their commitment to teaching undergraduates and to undergraduate education. He closed the formal presentation with a toast, quoting Chaucer’s words about the clerk of Oxenford: “gladly would he learn and gladly teach.”

The citations for the prizewinners follow:

David Blight, the Sidonie Miskimin Clauss Prize Awarded for teaching excellence in the humanities

“ David Blight, Sterling Professor of History and African American Studies, your students call your courses ‘legendary,’ they find your telling of history to be ‘illuminating’ and ‘gripping’ and they find your excitement for your subject matter ‘infectious.’ Your students have shared that with everything you bring to your teaching — primary sources, maps, personal diaries, public newspaper clippings and the thorough weaving of these sources in your lectures — they are surprised when you are eager to hear their [students’] perspectives and invite them to challenge your sources and ideas.

“ One student shared: ‘I would’ve sat in my seat in Civil War and Reconstruction for as long as he wanted to speak to us. His eloquence in articulating this time period in history not only demonstrated why it speaks to him, but why it should speak to us…He had me at: ‘we are the only species who can write our own past.’

“ Another said: ‘With his unmatched enthusiasm, Professor Blight is theatrical at the lectern, yelling, whispering, and even, yes, singing, when he sees fit. And with this, the war becomes funny, moving, and much, much sadder than any text could make it.’

“ You are known for your scholarship and your courses examining the Civil War and African-American History. Students have raved about your lectures and the way you are able to bring history to life, making it fun, particularly to those who are new to the discipline. In large lectures, you have dazzled large cohorts of undergraduates with your ‘storytelling abilities, critical insights, and dry sense of humor’ while simultaneously exhibiting ‘kindness, grace and dedication.’

“ Characteristics that make you particularly fitting for this prize are also those that are seen in smaller settings — the time that you carve out for individual students, mentoring their theses one-on-one, guiding them in a Directed Reading course, giving your time when your time is limited.

“ One student spoke to your ‘personal leadership and constant encouragement’ particularly well, sharing: ‘My interactions with him… constitute the single most formative experience I have had at Yale. When the Yale Admissions crew talks to prospective students about the incredible opportunities at Yale, this is what they mean. Blight goes above and beyond for his students in addition to teaching knock-out lectures. He could so easily retreat to his office, but he makes a point of interacting with undergrads and encouraging them to follow their academic pursuits.’

“ For your dedication to your students and their intellectual and personal growth, Yale College proudly awards the Sidonie Miskimin Clauss ’75 Prize for Teaching Excellence in the Humanities to you, Professor David Blight.”

Sarah Demers , the Dylan Hixon ’88 Prize Awarded for teaching excellence in the natural sciences

“ Sarah Demers, Professor of Physics, you are recognized as a leading researcher in your field, and you also have the unique ability and a solid reputation of dazzling students with your teaching. You have taught hundreds of students taking Physics for the Life Sciences as a pre-requisite for majors in the Biological Sciences and/or medical school — making the material enjoyable with your infectious enthusiasm.  Your innovative pedagogy and collaboration resulted in an interdisciplinary course examining ‘The Physics of Dance.’ Though the students in these courses are unlikely to become Physicists, with some saying, ‘I’m taking physics because I have to, not because I want to,’ you have helped many of them enjoy your courses, some of them to the point where they ‘fall in love with physics’ as a result of your teaching.

“ One student shared that ‘she fosters an environment that facilitates superlative learning…she exuded a positive energy that made learning topics in an arduous class, such as physics, an enjoyable experience — a rarity in modern education… she was able to bring lively anecdotes, stories, and interactions into her teachings… As the course progressed and the topics started to get more abstract, it was evident that she took the time to slow down and reiterate key points to make sure people were understanding them… Her emphasis on the importance of collaboration helped pushed me out of my comfort zone to work with other people on the problem sets. Working with others not only helped me get through the problems but also showed me that I wasn’t the only one struggling through these challenging problems. Knowing I wasn’t the only one struggling helped elevate how I felt about myself and aided in my personal growth.’

“ You have been able to build an inclusive environment in a large lecture course, seeking and incorporating feedback in real-time as your courses progress and fostering a collaborative environment among your students. One student said it well: ‘Her love for the subject is inspiring and contagious, and it manifests in the way she takes such good care of her class and students.’ Another shared: ‘She stayed late, went in early, took her class to the next level, and we are all the better for it. While taking a midterm, I vividly remembered her re-explaining a concept to me during class, and that made all the difference in the way I answered the question (and got it correct!).’

“ You bring that same enthusiasm and individual guidance to your role as Director of Undergraduate Studies, advising students in the major, facilitating student/mentor research relationships and ensuring that students ultimately cross the finish line.

“ For your inclusivity, patience and engaging classroom presence which instills passion in your students, Yale College is delighted to bestow the Dylan Hixon ‘88 Prize for Teaching Excellence in the Natural Sciences on you, Professor Sarah Demers.”

John Lafferty , the Lex Hixon ’63 Prize Awarded for teaching excellence in the social sciences

“ John Lafferty, John C. Malone Professor of Statistics & Data Science, your students find your lectures engaging, they find your teaching to be phenomenal, and they find your approachability and genuine interest in helping them with their own pursuits to be truly amazing.

“ Machine learning is a field that is constantly evolving, and your students notice and appreciate the tweaks you make to incorporate recent advancements. They feel prepared to enter the field with a solid foundation because of your ability to make difficult concepts, ‘like PCA or autoencoders’ digestible, while simultaneously bringing a statistical lens to their learning.

“ One student shared: ‘Despite being a research powerhouse, Professor Lafferty is so incredibly passionate about teaching and brought awesome energy to the classroom, which made me excited to be in class, even though it was at 9:00. The material he covered in class was inherently difficult, but he was acutely aware of that and did his best to work slowly and methodically through the tough concepts, never once relying on the typical STEM- “but this is so easy, you learned this in elementary school”-rhetoric…Instead, he was overwhelmingly supportive and helpful…’

“ Your students also speak highly of your pedagogical approaches when teaching machine learning, providing practical data sets, real-world examples and applications without losing the theoretical foundation — and somehow you also weave in a social/ethical lens. As one student put it, ‘Professor Lafferty manages to break down complex subjects into smaller parts, from neural networks to transformers behind ChatGPT,’ while another said, ‘He always kept the topics approachable and simplified complex concepts while still showing us the depths the concepts could reach.’

“ Students leave your courses inspired by the field and that often has to do with the passion you bring to your teaching. ‘A teacher has really excelled when they not only teach their students, but increase the students’ love and interest in their topic. Professor Lafferty certainly did so. I was already interested in machine learning, but now I leave the class knowing that machine learning is exactly the discipline to which I want to devote my life.’

“ What also sets you apart is your approachability and humility. As one student put it, ‘I’m amazed that someone can be so knowledgeable and accomplished, yet never intimidating or condescending. He really cares about teaching…In office hours, he was supportive, helpful, and easy to talk to. He seemed to genuinely care about each student and making sure that they were learning and succeeding.’

“ For your innovative, yet accessible teaching both in and out of the classroom, Yale College is proud to award the Lex Hixon ‘63 Prize for Teaching Excellence in the Social Sciences to you, Professor John Lafferty.”

Adriane Steinacker , the Richard Brodhead ’68 Prize Awarded for teaching excellence by instructional faculty

“ Adriane Steinacker, Senior Lecturer in Physics, your students are in awe of your ability to make a large lecture feel like home, a family. Over your years, sometimes teaching two large lectures of introductory Physics, students are astonished that you not only remember their names, but that you get to know them as students and as human beings. Your enthusiasm and love for Physics inspires your students, and motivates them to work hard, for themselves, but also as a way of thanking you for your efforts.

“ Your students repeatedly share their love for your in-class demonstrations, your wealth of online resources, sketches and notes, and your elaborate homework/practice problems — where you are constantly innovating, over the years, but also within a given term. This has ‘illuminated the beauty of the physical world’ for your students. One student shared, ‘This inspired me to appreciate physics in a way that I hadn’t before — I became able to view the world around me with a curious sense of wonder as I thought about all of the physics around me, from the Doppler effect illustrated by a passing ambulance to a car’s momentum.’ And another said, ‘She truly finds physics *beautiful,* and uses demonstrations and real life examples to relate the material to her students and help us see the logic and simplicity (and even beauty) in physics too.’

“ Of course, it is not just your classroom teaching that warrants praise. Over years of teaching, with the number of students you teach ever-expanding, your office hours are legendary. An overflow area needed because of your packed office, students feel encouraged in these spaces and appreciate the individualized attention they get, where ‘mistakes are welcomed as opportunities to learn.’ In your classroom and in your office, you have fostered a sense of belonging that comes up again and again, making students feel ‘capable of more than they think.’ As one student shared: ‘Professor Steinacker was never once condescending or judgmental, even when re-explaining basic rules of algebra or geometry that I had forgotten. Professor Steinacker did not for a single moment make me feel like I belonged any less in her class. She absolutely believed in me and my ability to learn. Another shared, ‘No form of help is beneath her.’

“ You have a way of immersing students in a difficult subject, helping them understand difficult concepts, without eroding the rigor of what they’re learning. One student called you ‘The bright point in this dark, swirling sea of derivatives and vectors’ and another shared, ‘Above all, she is always smiling and reminding us of the life’s joys, from quotidian to profound — the midday sun, the satisfaction of setting up a physics experiment and seeing it unravel, the sight of Jupiter’s moons.’

“ Yale College is thus honored to award the Richard H. Brodhead ’68 Prize for Teaching Excellence to you, Adriane Steinacker.”

Margherita Tortora , the Richard H. Brodhead ’68 Prize Awarded for teaching excellence by instructional faculty

“ Margherita Tortora, Senior Lector II in Spanish, throughout your thirty-plus years teaching at Yale, your students find that your classroom is ‘not solely a classroom, but a place of worldmaking and rich intellectual imagination.’

“ You bring yourself fully to your courses, immersing your students in Spanish language in ways that are innovative and inspiring. As one student shared: ‘Professor Tortora attunes herself consistently to the communities around her and weaves them together into incredibly generative pedagogical frameworks, often exemplifying the principles of place-based education.’

“ Your students often take multiple courses with you both on campus during the academic year and during your study abroad program in Ecuador — these learning opportunities shape their Yale education and their sense of belonging in Yale College as a whole. You forge relationships with your students, but also foster new relationships for them, facilitating mentoring relationships that are personalized to a given student’s interest. They are dazzled by your network and the way you bring them into the fold.  As one student said, ‘I witnessed first-hand how genuinely involved she is with local communities and the fact that incorporating experiential learning in her classes is a labor of love for her’ and another shared, ‘With every connection, lesson, guest speaker, and incredible experience it became more clear that we were all experiencing a once in a life time journey of learning that completely rested on the community the professor had built over the years of traveling, teaching, and running her program.’

“ Your teaching methods are also innovative and transformative outside of the classroom. Your assessments, including long oral presentations, push and challenge your students in their language learning and your constructive and timely feedback on written assessments is impactful, resulting in ‘a rare blend of scholarly rigor and compassionate mentorship.’ The annual Latino & Iberian Film Festival at Yale (LIFFY) that you helped found benefits your students, in addition to our local Yale and New Haven communities. As one student shared, ‘Certainly for students in her class these are not just film screenings, they are unique opportunities to use their language and critical thinking skills, to ask pressing questions, to be challenged, and to get involved with certain aspects of the festival. These are the kind of exceptionally enriching experiential learning opportunities…The impact of these learning moments is quite deep and often immeasurable, and in many ways, these are exactly the type of learning experiences that continue to make a Yale education truly extraordinary’ and another said, ‘…she encourages us, she uplifts us. And now it is time to return the favor and show her how grateful we are for her admirable teaching.’

“ Yale College is thus honored to award the Richard H. Brodhead ‘68 Prize for Teaching Excellence to you, Margherita Tortora.”

Carlos Eire , the Harwood F. Byrnes/Richard B. Sewall Teaching Prize Awarded to any faculty member who over a long period of service has inspired a great number of students and consistently fostered the learning process both inside and outside the classroom

“ Since joining Yale’s faculty in 1996 (after receiving your Ph.D. from Yale in 1979), Carlos Eire, T. Lawrason Riggs Professor of History and Religious Studies, you have steadily been recognized by your students for your dynamic and passionate teaching style over your many years.  Students are captivated to your lectures, they admire your ability to provide both structure and flexibility in your seminars, and they appreciate the individualized and compassionate attention you give them in your office hours.

“ Your students share their feelings about your teaching and courses eloquently. One student shared: ‘Professor Eire blends scholarship, humor, factual information, and lively anecdotes into lectures that are interesting and educational… (he) has a gift for invigorating esoteric church history and Reformation theology,’ and another said, ‘this class proved to me that it is possible to have a class of many divergent opinions that functions progressively… The workload was considerably hefty for this course, but all the readings were so relevant and interesting that it was impossible to complain about it… His manner was that of a mentor– he was always ready to share his personal stories, but only so far as they would benefit us as students… His own opinions about religion remain a mystery to me; he acted purely as purveyor and interpreter of historical evidence.’

“ Students have called you their ‘best professor’ at Yale and have ‘never looked forward to class more than’ yours — they love learning from you. One student shared, ‘An example of his dynamic teaching style is when he was trying to explain how the Swiss reformation were burning and destroying idols. “They shouted defend yourselves,” he explained, “And when the idols didn’t do anything, they took it as a sign that they were not divine and burnt them.” To demonstrate the ridiculousness of this practice, he grabbed a dollar bill and shouted, “DEFEND YOURSELF,”’ Another shared, ‘It takes a special sort of teacher to interest an entire class in a 4th century ascetic monk.’ Your students praise your genuineness and humility that you bring to your classroom, without losing the rigor and depth of the material they are learning.

“ For your dedication to your students throughout your many years in our History department, Yale College is proud to award the 2018 Harwood F. Byrnes / Richard B. Sewall Teaching Prize to you, Professor Carlos Eire.”

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10 PhD Students Named 2023-24 Prize Teaching Fellows

Ten PhD students from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) have been named Prize Teaching Fellows for the 2023-2024 academic year: Camille Angelo (Religious Studies), Carissa Chan (Microbiology), Grayson Hoy (Chemistry), Nghiem Huynh (Economics), Kimberly Lifton (Medieval Studies), Benjamin Schafer (History), Jillian Stallman (Economics), Audrey Tjahjadi (Anthropology), Alexa Williams (Chemistry), and Novak Yang (Immunobiology). 

The Graduate School has awarded the teaching prizes annually since 2000. Recipients are nominated by their undergraduate students and the faculty members they assist while serving as Teaching Fellows.

"Doctoral education is more than just a journey from knowledge acquisition to knowledge creation," said Lynn Cooley, Dean of the Graduate School. "It is fundamentally about equipping scholars with the ability to share their insights broadly—to impact society positively through education. Reviewing the nominations, I am profoundly impressed by the innovative and engaging ways in which our teaching fellows have made complex ideas accessible and exciting to their students."

Biographies of the winners are included below.

Camille Leon Angelo (Religious Studies)

Camille Leon Angelo is a sixth-year PhD student in the Department of Religious Studies in the subfields of Eastern Mediterranean and West Asian Religions and Ancient Christianity. Her work examines materiality, sexuality, and space in late antiquity through new materialist, feminist, and queer lenses. She is a field archaeologist and has excavated in the eastern Mediterranean and the Caucasus. Her current research primarily engages archaeological, papyrological, and epigraphic evidence, related to late antique Egypt. Her past projects have analyzed the archaeological remains of several early Christian sites in the eastern Mediterranean and North Africa, most notably Dura-Europos, to elucidate sensory experiences in late antiquity.

Carissa Chan (Microbiology)

Carissa Chan is a fifth-year PhD candidate in Microbiology. Her research investigates how bacterial pathogens adapt to infection-relevant stresses, thus promoting survival inside mammalian host cells and disease. She has served as a teaching fellow for Physiological Systems for the past three years, including two as head teaching fellow. Each year, Carissa is inspired by the dedication and level of engagement from students in the class as they cover fascinating topics about the human body from fundamental cellular physiology to complex interactions between organ systems. Working with undergraduate and graduate students in Physiological Systems and sharing her excitement for science with them has been one of the highlights of her time at Yale.

Grayson Hoy (Chemistry)

Grayson Hoy is a first-year PhD student in the Chemistry Department. His research focuses on using super-resolution infrared microscopy to study metabolism in living cells to better understand metabolic dysregulation. Before Yale, he attended William & Mary, where he learned how transformative professors and mentors can be from a student’s perspective. Inspired by his undergraduate researcher professor, Dr. Kristin Wustholz, and other teachers throughout his life, Grayson aims to create a supportive learning environment where students feel empowered and excited by chemistry. 

Nghiem Huynh (Economics)

Nghiem Huynh is a doctoral candidate in Economics at Yale University, graduating in May 2024. His research evaluates the effects of government policies on regional and gender inequality. Nghiem holds a BA in Economics and Mathematics from New York University Abu Dhabi.

Kimberly Lifton (Medieval Studies)

Kimberly Lifton is a PhD candidate in the Medieval Studies program. She studies how Burgundy, England, and France's relationships with the Ottoman Empire materialized in manuscripts during the fifteenth century. Her research has been supported by the Fulbright, FLAS, and the Dhira Mahoney Fellowship. In the classroom, she works to develop compassionate pedagogy for neurodiverse students. 

Benjamin Schafer (History)

Benjamin Schafer is a PhD candidate in American History. He studies urban and social history in the late-twentieth-century United States.  His dissertation, “Life and Death in Rust,” is a study of poverty and inequality in post-industrial Buffalo, NY, his hometown, from the late 1970s to the early 2000s. Prior to Yale, Ben received an AB, magna cum laude with highest honors; Phi Beta Kappa, in History with a secondary in African American Studies from Harvard College, where he was awarded the Thomas T. Hoopes Senior Thesis Prize, the David Herbert Donald Prize in American History, and the Rev. Peter J. Gomes Prize in Religion and Ethnicity. He also holds an MPhil in Economic and Social History from Emmanuel College, University of Cambridge. He works as a research assistant for Professors Elizabeth Hinton and Vanessa Ogle and has previously worked as a researcher for Professor Fredrik Logevall (Harvard) and the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation. He has been a teaching fellow for Professor David Engerman (Fall 2023, The Origins of U.S. Global Power) and Professor Marco Ramos (Spring 2023, The History of Drugs in America).

Jillian Stallman (Economics)

Jillian Stallman is a PhD student in the Economics Department interested broadly in the intersection of economic development, environmental economics, and political economy. She's writing her dissertation about cooperation over freshwater resources in developing countries using a combination of economic theory, surveys and administrative data, and remote-sensing measurements. Jillian spent her undergraduate years at Williams College, where she worked most semesters as a teaching assistant to her peers in courses ranging from macroeconomic development to multivariable calculus to introductory Chinese. After graduating, she spent several years travelling in, among other places, China, Chile and Senegal, operating under the belief that she would have a difficult time ultimately doing research about places and people she hadn't lived around for a good while.

Audrey Tjahjadi (Anthropology)

Audrey Tjahjadi is a third-year PhD student in the Department of Anthropology focusing on human evolutionary genetics. She is interested in how local environments have shaped the evolution of diet-related adaptations in Southeast Asian and Oceanic populations, particularly in genes involved in fatty acid metabolism. Outside of research, Audrey is also involved in science communication and outreach through Yale graduate student organizations. 

Alexa Kim Williams (Chemistry)

Alexa Williams is a PhD student in Materials Chemistry. She completed her BS in Chemistry in 2021 at Montclair State University in New Jersey. At Yale, her research explores the fundamental reactivity of H-terminated silicon nanoparticles and aims to inform broader studies on silicon-based hybrid materials for CO2 reduction. This work is part of the CHASE solar fuels hub.

Xuan (Novak) Yang (Immunobiology)

Novak Yang is a third-year PhD candidate in Dr. Lieping Chen’s laboratory at the Department of Immunobiology. He received his BS in Biology and MS in Cancer Biology and Translational Oncology degrees at Emory University, and was the first to accomplish this in a “3+1” timeline at Emory. Prior to joining Yale, Novak was trained by Dr. Haian Fu and Dr. Andrey Ivanov at the Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, Emory University School of Medicine, with a primary focus on cancer-associated protein-protein interactions and high-throughput drug discovery. He has multiple first-author and co-author publications, and is the recipient of American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET) Travel Award and Program Committee Blue Ribbon Pick, and Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening (SLAS) Tony B. Academic Travel Award. Novak was recruited to Yale Immunobiology in 2021 as a Gruber Science Fellow. His research focuses on the discovery of actionable targets in the tumor microenvironment that drive the resistance to current immunotherapies, and pre-clinical development of innovative therapeutic strategies that normalize anti-tumor immunity for cancer patients.