We are hiring!

We are actively looking for talented and motivated individuals to join us. Our work aims to address critical challenges in sustainable infrastructure, energy materials, and environmental stewardship through interdisciplinary research. 

PhD Opportunities:

• 1-2 fully funded Ph.D. openings (starting in 2026 Fall) on topics related to sustainable cement and concrete, data mining, machine learning, CO₂ capture and utilization (mineralization), waste valorization, atomistic modeling, and characterization of glasses and minerals, or related topics.

  Deadline of Application: Oct 15, 2025 (2026 Spring admission) and Jan 15, 2026 (2026 Fall admission).

• Application fee waiver: “Rice University’s Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies will offer doctoral application fee waivers for the Fall 2026 admission term to all eligible domestic and international students. This waiver will be available for students worldwide to request at the link here from Oct. 18 – Nov. 1, 2025, or until all available waivers have been issued.”

• If you are interested, please complete this form to introduce yourself. Formal application should be submitted via the graduate admission website. 

Postdoc opportunities:

A number of highly competitive postdoc fellowship opportunities are available at Rice University.

• RAMI Postdoctoral Fellowship (deadline on December 15, 2025, for 2026). This highly competitive fellowship is intended to support outstanding scholars and foster their early career development in interdisciplinary research related to RAMI research areas: (i) Next-generation electronic/photonic materials, (ii) Energy materials and (iii) Materials for environmental stewardship. If you have a strong track record and are interested in applying, please get in touch with your CV, a statement of research interests and goals, and a proposed research topic related to our interests.
• Postdoctoral fellow in Rice Sustainability Institute (Deadline: August 15, 2024, for the 2025 round).
• Externally funded postdoctoral researchers and visiting scholars in relevant areas are always welcome to reach out.

Undergraduate and Master’s Research Opportunities:

• RAMI Undergraduate Research Fellowship Program (Nominations are due by Jan. 21, 2025 for the Summer 2025 cohort).
• Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships (SURF).
• Mehta Rice Engineering Scholars Program (deadline: May 15th).
• Research opportunities for undergraduate/master students at Rice are available on a regular basis (via CEVE 499, volunteering or funded summer research). 

Tips for prospective PhD candidates:

• We encourage applicants to explore our website and recent publications to assess alignment with our research directions. Use this form to express your interest.

• Students in the group may pursue experimental, computational, or combined approaches, depending on interests and project needs.

• All applicants must meet the CEE Department and Rice University graduate admission requirements (see official admissions page).

• Applications are evaluated holistically. Strong alignment with research interests, prior research experience (e.g., publications), strong letters of recommendation, reputable academic training, a high GPA, and competitive GRE/TOEFL/IELTS scores will strengthen an application.