EST&P Student Akhil Mathur Selected as Spark Clean Energy 2016-17 Fellow

Akhil Mathur, a graduate student in the EST&P master's program, was selected as one of this year’s Spark Clean Energy Fellows. Spark says, "This year's class of Fellows is a remarkable group of young people from across the nation." The class includes both graduate and undergraduate students in entrepreneurship, environmental studies, engineering, science and business. Learn more>>

Spark Clean Energy Fellowship is an initiative by the US Department of Energy to encourage thought leadership among students and young entrepreneurs interested in clean energy. It brings together a team of students and young professionals from different parts of the US who are interested in encouraging fellow student towards entrepreneurship in the energy industry. This can be done through improving participation of students in state and national-level competitions, such as the annual DOE CleanTech University Prize. The fellows also take part in a 6-week online course on Energy Ventures designed by the MIT Sloan School, through which they learn an organized approach to develop their startup ideas in the energy industry into viable models. 

Akhil stated, "I chose to apply because I was interested in learning more about energy ventures as a subject and also wanted to be a part of a team with a shared interest in clean energy, who look to support exciting venture ideas in the field.  I learned a lot about how to structure and successfully pitch my ideas for energy-related ventures. The best part about being a fellow was to learn more about different platforms that are available to students to display their ideas. I also got the opportunity to network with fellows and researchers from other universities who were happy to discuss their ideas and energy-relevant research work they are currently involved in. The fact that I was and will remain a part of that network of students with a common passion for transforming the word through their technical knowledge is an exciting thing for me."