Genesis Mission Graduate Fellowship Pilot Program Virtual Town Hall Registration

The DOE Office of Science (SC) invites the community to participate in a virtual town hall focused on developing innovative approaches for preparing domestic doctoral-level students for science and technology jobs through the Genesis Mission. Input from participants will inform an anticipated Genesis Mission Graduate Fellowship Pilot. This pilot is intended to establish and demonstrate innovative 4-year PhD pathways that include dual-competency “AI + discipline” research programs at universities integrated with two high-impact research experiences -- one at a DOE National Laboratory or SC user facility and one in industry.

The town hall will include discussions on addressing the needs and challenges in standing up a four-year PhD track, concepts for integrating laboratory and industry research experiences into an accelerated PhD model and identifying major merit review criteria for evaluation of the Genesis Mission Fellowship Pilot. Participants will also have opportunities to share best practices from established accelerated PhD programs, as well as pioneering domestic interdisciplinary graduate programs to inform and motivate discussions.

In addition to introductory remarks by speakers from DOE, industry and DOE national laboratories, DOE-SC invites speakers from universities to briefly address some or all of the following questions:

• What are the most significant advantages or barriers you foresee (or have encountered) in implementing a 4-year PhD track at your institution? What innovations or approaches would make (or made) this feasible?
• How does the dual competency requirement (AI + discipline) align with or challenge your current graduate program structure? Are there examples of dual competency requirements within an accelerated framework?
• How would you balance depth in AI versus depth in the scientific discipline?
• What student support structures are essential for success in an accelerated dual-competency doctoral model?
• How do we identify and recruit domestic students who can thrive in this intensive model?
• How should we handle students who need more than 4 years, or who face unexpected challenges?
• Beyond time-to-degree and employment, what metrics would indicate success of the dual-competency degree?  What data should we collect during graduate study versus after graduation?

Community members are encouraged to register and participate in the discussions during the town hall.   In addition, university participants wishing to provide input through a brief presentation should submit a virtual hall speaking request.

Event Information

Format: Virtual Town Hall
Date: September 24, 2026
Time: 10:00am - 3:00pm Eastern Time

Register Here:

Webinar Information: 

The webinar link will be provided in the confirmation email that you will receive after successfully submitting your registration. 

VIRTUAL TOWN HALL SPEAKING REQUEST

Those interested in presenting brief remarks during the town hall may submit a request to speak as part of the registration process.  Speaking requests must be received by midnight September 17, 2026, for consideration. 

Please include: 

• Presentation title 
• Presenter name and affiliation 
• Brief abstract (200–300 words) 

Because of time limitations, not all speaking requests may be accommodated. Submitted abstracts will help ensure broad representation across scientific domains and stakeholder communities. 

Speakers will have a maximum of 7 minutes to speak at their assigned time slot.  2-3 minutes of Q&A will follow from the DOE-SC moderator team.  

The event will be recorded and posted on the Genesis Mission website. 

Questions or More Information:

For inquiries or further details, please contact GM-Uni-Engagement@doe.gov.