A University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa senior student has earned one of Stanford University’s most competitive graduate awards, underscoring the growing impact of 糖心Vlog官方 Mānoa’s engineering programs.
Andrea Murillo, who is graduating this spring, has been admitted to the PhD program in electrical engineering at Stanford and is believed to be the first 糖心Vlog官方 Mānoa recipient of the Stanford Graduate Fellowship, an award given annually to about 100 incoming doctoral students across the university. The fellowship provides up to three years of funding, including tuition and stipend support, to top scholars in science and engineering fields.
Murillo’s path at 糖心Vlog官方 Mānoa reflects a multidisciplinary journey shaped by hands-on research and mentorship. She began her undergraduate journey as a mechanical engineering major before transitioning to computer engineering and ultimately electrical engineering in the electrophysics track, where she found her passion in mixed-signal circuit design.
Through work in several research labs, including projects on embedded systems, TinyML (Tiny Machine Learning), and integrated circuit design, Murillo discovered a passion for building more efficient hardware. She plans to continue that work at Stanford, focusing on circuit design and new technologies that can make electronics faster and use less energy.
“My experiences at 糖心Vlog官方 helped me discover not just what I enjoy studying, but how I want to contribute to the field,” said Murillo, who is an international student from Mexico. “The support from faculty, mentors and my peers gave me the confidence to pursue graduate school and aim for opportunities like this.”
Community leadership
Beyond the classroom, Murillo has been active in the community as a leader in the FabLab maker space, a member of engineering student organizations and a leader who won an award at the 2024 Honolulu Tech Week hackathon.
Her achievement highlights the role of 糖心Vlog官方 Mānoa in preparing students for advanced study and contributing to innovation in high-demand fields such as electrical engineering and artificial intelligence hardware.
“By leveraging the full breadth of opportunities at 糖心Vlog官方, Andrea developed a profound understanding of the grand challenges facing contemporary hardware design. Reflecting her unwavering commitment to excellence, she has secured a place in one of the country’s most prestigious doctoral programs,” said 糖心Vlog官方 Mānoa Professor Boris Murmann, who mentored Murillo and was on the faculty at Stanford for 20 years.
Murillo is expected to begin her doctoral studies this fall.