Myriam Prasow-Émond receives a scholarship to pursue her Ph.D. studies in England

Myriam Prasow-Émond, M.Sc. student and member of iREx and the X-TRA Group, has been awarded a scholarship from Imperial College London to pursue her Ph.D., starting in September 2022.

Myriam completed a B.Sc. in Physics at the Université de Montréal and is currently completing a M.Sc. in astrophysics. She studies the presence of low-mass companions (exoplanets or brown dwarfs) around compact objects. She will now apply her knowledge, particularly in machine learning and satellite data exploitation, to the study of climate change at the Ph.D. level, at the Grantham Institute – Climate Change and the Environment. She will focus on designing tools that allow island states to combat the deleterious effects of climate change.

“I specifically chose the Grantham Institute because they are leaders in the study of climate change, a topic that is near and dear to my heart and that I decided to explore further during my Ph.D.,” says Myriam. “I come from a very modest background, and I am the first in my family to go to graduate school. I’m really proud to have obtained this scholarship, and I think it’s important for others to know that it’s possible to access the most prestigious institutions when you’re motivated and aware of the opportunities.”

Since the beginning of her studies at UdeM, Myriam has distinguished herself by the quality of her academic achievements and her community involvement. She has won numerous awards and scholarships, and is actively involved in the PHYSUM, the Physics Student Association. In particular, she was in charge of organising the Symposium Annuel de Physique pour un Avenir en Recherche et en Industrie (SAPHARI) in 2021. Last November, she was awarded first place in the poster contest held as part of the 100th anniversary celebrations of the Dhysics department. At iREx, she has been involved  in the animation of our event which introduce astrophysics research to Cegep students for two years in a row.

The scholarship from Imperial College London will provide her with personalised support, in addition to full funding of her tuition fees and two annual stipends for her first three years of study: the first of £21,800 to cover living expenses and the second of £2,000 to cover personal expenses.

Congratulations, Myriam!