UNIVERISTY PARK, Pa. — Nate Carey, Penn State Schreyer Honors Scholar and integrated undergraduate-graduate (IUG) student from Chesapeake Beach, Maryland, has received a 2024 Astronaut Scholarship.
The national scholarship is facilitated by the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation and provides $15,000 toward education for undergraduate students pursuing careers in engineering, math, or natural or applied sciences research. This year, 71 scholarships were awarded to students from 48 national universities.
Carey is a senior majoring in biotechnology under Penn State’s IUG Master of Biotechnology (MBIOT) Program with minors in entrepreneurship and innovation and military studies. He is studying at the Eberly College of Science at the University Park campus. The MBIOT Program, directed by Natasha Tirko, is typically a five-year program, but Carey will complete it in four. IUG students take undergraduate and master-level courses simultaneously, allowing Carey to graduate with his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in May 2025. In addition to the Astronaut Scholarship, Carey was one of three 2024-25 Penn State Goldwater Scholars.
As an undergraduate researcher, Carey worked under Melissa Rolls in the Rolls Lab on an investigation of microtubule dynamics in neurons, using fruit flies as a model organism.
“This research provides fundamental information supporting drug discovery research for neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and ALS,” said Carey. He also worked as a research technician at the Sartorius Cell Culture Facility researching mammalian cells. Carey said undergraduate research has significantly impacted his life by giving him a clearer understanding of his future career in research and development and confirming his interest in it.
This summer, Carey will participate in two research internships. Through the Max Planck Matter to Life Undergraduate Research Opportunity, he will work to improve a novel 3D bioprinting system in development at the University of Göttingen in Germany. Here, he said, he aims to “help the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology improve their engineered heart myocardium (EHM) patches, which are surgically implanted onto patients’ hearts.”
At the end of July, Carey will move to Campus Biotech in Geneva, Switzerland for EPFL’s Excellence in Engineering (E3) Program at the new Laboratory of Chemical Nanotechnology. He will work with a team attempting to integrate aptamers into a novel hydrogel-based platform.
“The purpose of this research is to improve the capabilities of the biosensors in development at the Laboratory of Chemical Nanotechnology (CHEMINA),” said Carey.
In addition to his research endeavors, Carey is involved in Army ROTC and the Society for Industrial Biotechnology (SIB) at Penn State.
“Army ROTC has brought a significant amount of discipline and structure to my life, which has benefited my academic and research pursuits immensely,” said Carey. The tactical and field training have allowed him to develop strong leadership skills and the program even gave him the opportunity to study abroad in Morocco and complete an engineering internship in Japan last summer.
As president of SIB from January 2023 to February 2024, Carey led educational and scholarship programs such as "Excellence in Futures," under which 10 students received scholarships and worked under Carey’s leadership on three projects that increased student engagement in biotechnology.
Carey is additionally a member and cofounder of a startup, BioReact Inc. Founded in 2023, BioReact develops AI-based software for bioprocess optimization, enabling research groups and companies to expedite their processes for cell growth and product yield. Carey intends to use this experience as preparation to start new companies in the future.
The experience of managing significant extracurricular involvement and academic success during his Penn State career “has been the most challenging to date,” said Carey. He considers the Goldwater and Astronaut Scholarships to be recognition of his resulting hard work and achievements and a reminder of why he chose this field of study.
The motivation he received from his awards was especially valuable, said Carey, after the loss of his father to pancreatic cancer. These awards, noted Carey, will allow him to continue to do his best work, as his father always encouraged him, and engage more comprehensively in “research opportunities that will fundamentally change outcomes for cancer patients like my father.”
When asked about his future goals, Carey said he aims to earn a doctorate in biomedical sciences or biomedical engineering soon after graduation, while maintaining his commitments to the U.S. Army.
“My central long-term goal is to develop mass-produced autologous human tissues/organs intended for use in preclinical trials and transplants,” he said.
While he plans to continue academic, industry or military/government research for now, he added he hopes to establish companies based on this research in the long term.
More about the Astronaut Scholarship and how to apply
The Astronaut Scholarship Foundation (ASF) was established in 1984 to “ensure that the United States would maintain its leadership in science and technology by supporting some of the very best science, technology, engineering and math college students,” according to the website.
The program was created by the six surviving members of the Mercury 7 astronauts along with Betty Grissom, widow of astronaut Virgil “Gus” Grissom; William Douglas, Project Mercury flight surgeon; and Henri Landwirth, businessperson and friend of the Mercury 7. The founding members awarded the first 7 scholarships in 1986 and began to fundraise for future scholarships with each astronaut making personal donations and raising awareness for the program. Today, the foundation awards more than 60 scholarships valued up to $15000 to each scholar.
The Mercury 7 were America’s first astronauts picked from U.S. military pilots in the late 1950’s and included Scott Carpenter, Gordon Cooper, John Glenn, Walter Schirra, Alan Shepard, Deke Slayton and Grissom. The foundation also gained support from astronauts from the Gemini, Apollo, Skylab and Space Shuttle missions.
Scholarship programming includes an Astronaut Scholar conference (a paid trip to ASF Innovator’s Weekend), mentorship, professional development, networking and recognition (life-long engagement with the astronauts, Astronaut Scholar alumni and the Foundation).
The University uses an internal Penn State selection process facilitated by Undergraduate Research and Fellowships Mentoring (URFM) to nominate up to two applicants for the award each year. To be selected, applicants must be U.S. citizens, full-time second- or third- year Penn State students and be majoring in an approved STEM field with intent to pursue a career in research. Nominations are based on creativity and innovation, initiative and exceptional academic performance.
Nominated students must then ensure eligibility requirements are met, provide two letters of recommendation, a personal statement, a copy of transcripts and a C.V. (curriculum vita) or resume.
Students interested in applying for the scholarship can contact Undergraduate Research and Fellowships Mentoring at urfm@psu.edu to learn more about the scholarship program and verify that they meet eligibility criteria.
Undergraduate Research and Fellowships Mentoring is part of the Penn State Office of Undergraduate Education.