- June 05, 2026
- By Jason P. Dinh
A biological sciences major at the University of Maryland won a 2026 Astronaut Scholarship, which supports students in all STEM disciplines to ensure the United States maintains its leadership in science and technology.
Joshua Mathew ’27 is one of 79 undergraduates from 54 institutions nationwide selected by the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation this year. He is the second UMD student to receive the honor, following 2025 awardee Benjamin Raufman.
The Astronaut Scholarship provides up to $15,000 in financial support for promising junior and senior STEM students. Additionally, scholars receive mentorship, networking and professional development opportunities, along with a fully funded trip to present their research at ASF’s Innovators Symposium and Gala in Houston, Texas. The scholarship was established in 1986 by veteran astronauts from Project Mercury, NASA's first human spaceflight program.
This recognition follows Mathew’s Barry Goldwater Scholarship, which he received earlier this year.
“Being named an Astronaut Scholar is an incredible honor,” he said. “I’m grateful to all of my mentors who have guided me every step of the way and helped me do research I care deeply about.”
As a UMD freshman, Mathew joined Bioengineering Professor Li-Qun Zhang’s lab, where he worked on a wearable robotic hand that measures nerve and muscle activity. The goal was to study how suffering a stroke changes a survivor’s ability to sense the movement and position of their fingers. Mathew analyzed data collected using the robotic hand and plans to publish his research in the coming months.
The summer after his freshman year, Mathew joined Steven Fletcher’s medicinal chemistry lab at the University of Maryland, Baltimore’s School of Pharmacy. He designed and synthesized new molecules that could one day offer better treatment options for neuroblastoma.
Around that time, Mathew also joined a computational biology lab at Georgetown University’s Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center. His research looked at how chemicals such as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), plastic additives, bisphenols, polybrominated diphenyl ethers and phthalates bind to specific proteins called nuclear receptors. He co-authored a paper on this work that was published in 2025 in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
Mathew also studied how more than 14,000 types of PFAS—commonly called “forever chemicals”—bind to certain nuclear receptors called estrogen receptors. His work could help researchers identify which PFAS are most harmful to humans. He is the co-second author of a study on this, published last year in the journal Toxics.
Mathew hopes to continue research in computational biology as a physician-scientist. After completing an M.D./Ph.D., he envisions leading a structural and computational biology research program focused on cancer drug discovery.
“The concept of finding things that no one else has discovered is very appealing to me,” Mathew said. “I want to answer questions that no one has thought to ask yet, and use those answers to help people who need it most.”