Please join the Fischell Department of Bioengineering in welcoming our newest graduate students!
Incoming Ph.D. Students
| Jasper Flint is from Hebron, MD and graduated from Amherst College with a B.A. in Math. His research interests involve the application of computational approaches to translational medicine questions. In his free time, he enjoys strategy games, snowboarding, pickleball, French cheeses, and classic cars. |  |
| Ravidu Hevaganinge grew up in Gaithersburg and Rockville, MD, and graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park in 2024, majoring in Bioengineering. His undergraduate research was spent primarily in Dr. Tao's Bioimaging and Machine Vision lab, whose work centers on imaging and machine vision for bioprocessing. After graduating, Ravidu continued in Dr. Tao's lab as a lab technician, implementing hardware and conducting experiments to develop a hyperspectral microscopy system for label-free cell analysis. Outside of the lab, Ravidu loves reading, journaling, long walks, playing tennis with friends and family, and finding new music. |  |
| Elliot Ingraham graduated from Northeastern University in May 2025 with a B.S. in Cell and Molecular Biology. During his undergrad, Elliot did a co-op at Invaio Sciences on the Strain Development team and a second co-op at Asimov, contributing to developing their mRNA and AAV platforms. Additionally, Elliot did research in the Chai Lab at Northeastern, utilizing bioinformatics tools to elucidate biosynthetic gene clusters in extremophiles. Outside of work, Elliot enjoys hiking, mountaineering, skiing, rock climbing, biking, and camping. |  |
| Jian Kwon earned his M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Johns Hopkins University. His research interests include rehabilitation robotics and medical device development. Outside the lab, he enjoys playing soccer and going for runs. |  |
| Luca Mascia was born in Italy and earned his Master’s degree in Cellular and Tissue Engineering at the University of Pavia. His interests include tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, and mathematical modeling. Luca is a professional chess player with a deep passion for both the humanities and the sciences. |  |
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Andrew Ng graduated from UC Berkeley in 2019 with an M.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering and from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 2010 with a BS in Environmental Engineering. Andy most recently served as a senior administrator at the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute in nearby Bethesda and was previously an assistant professor of Environmental Engineering at West Point. Andy’s research is targeted at leveraging synthetic biology to improve environmental biosensing and bioremediation tools. Outside of work, Andy is an avid snowboarder, skier, hiker, and tennis player, and also loves to cook and play games with his family. |
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| Stephanie Poore graduated from Purdue University with a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering, and her research interests include drug delivery and biomolecular engineering. In her free time, she enjoys reading, trying new recipes, and playing pickleball. |  |
| Shaila Rao grew up in Plainsboro, NJ, and graduated from Drexel University’s BS/MS accelerated degree program for Biomedical Engineering in June 2025. Her research experience spans CAR-T therapies, other biotherapeutics, and in vitro assay development. Shaila is excited to be joining the UMD BioE PhD program, where she looks forward to further exploring immunoengineering and biotherapeutics. In her free time, she enjoys playing pickleball, traveling, and taking long walks outdoors. |  |
| Nida Shah graduated from the University of Maryland with a B.S in Bioengineering in May 2025. Her research interests include the development of biomedical instruments and optical imaging tools to advance human health. In her free time, she enjoys running, hiking, and trying out new coffee recipes. |  |
| Dillon Sinanan graduated from the University of Alabama in 2020 with a B.S. in Chemical Engineering. He previously worked in Pfizer's Bioprocess R&D unit as an upstream process development scientist and has a strong interest in synthetic biology and biomolecular engineering research. In his free time, he enjoys rock climbing, playing guitar, and hiking. |  |
| Kassa Tizale holds a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering (medical instrumentation focus) from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and an M.S. in Bioengineering from the University of Maryland. He has industry experience in R&D/PD at Boston Scientific’s Peripheral Interventions division and government-adjacent experience through FFRDC work. In his PhD, in the Huang Lab, he continues research from his master’s program, now focusing on photomedicine’s potential to treat pathological conditions of the nervous system, particularly the brain. |  |
| Zoe Turner graduated from Temple University with a B.S. and M.S. in Bioengineering. Her research interests include biomaterials and tissue engineering. Zoe is passionate about mentoring and teaching. Outside of research, she enjoys playing guitar, weightlifting, and spending time with her dog, Layla. |  |
| Melisande Wong Yan Ling graduated from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, majoring in Chemical Engineering. Her research interests are primarily biomaterials, immunoengineering, and regenerative medicine. Outside of the lab, she loves discovering new cafes and restaurants. , |  |
| Fujia Zheng graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a Master's in Bioengineering in 2024 and from Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen, China, in 2023. She is excited to delve into medical device design for its application in medtech. In her free time, she enjoys frisbee, exploring the great outdoors, and she is a fervent dog lover (Without having one). |  |
The department additionally welcomes:
- Namya Saini
- Urbin Shyanne
Incoming Master's Students
| Dylan Jesner graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park, in 2023 with a B.S. in Bioengineering. He has worked as a Research Assistant in Dr. Fisher's lab since graduating and in Dr. Hu's lab at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. His research interests involve biomaterials, tissue engineering, and 3D printing. In his spare time, he enjoys cooking, coffee, and biking. |  |
| Evan Roetering graduated from the University of Maryland with a B.S. in Bioengineering and a minor in music performance in 2025. As an undergraduate, he worked as a member of Dr. Klauda's lab studying the molecular dynamics of leukemia cell membranes, and he plans to continue researching them as a graduate student. In his free time, Evan enjoys making music, powerlifting, and spending time outdoors. |  |
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