2026 W.J. Poppelbaum Memorial Award

This award is for an outstanding graduate student(s) based on academic performance and computer hardware/architecture design creativity. It was established by family, friends, former students, and colleagues upon Professor W. J. Poppelbaum’s death in 1993. He came to Illinois in 1954 and joined the solid state research group under Professor John Bardeen, working on an electrolytic analog of a junction transistor. He joined the Digital Computer Laboratory a year later, in charge of circuit research. Poppelbaum was on the faculty from 1955-89 and developed the basic circuits of ILLIAC II.

Eligibility: Applicants must be graduate students with demonstrated experience in computer hardware/architecture design.

Required Materials:

- Unofficial transcripts for your current degree program at U of I. Unofficial transcripts can be obtained for free at: https://apps.uillinois.edu/selfservice/

- Up-to-date CV or resume.

- Two essays that answer the following (500 words maximum each):

1. What specific experiences (conferences, courses, research) do you have with computer hardware and/or architecture design work?
2. Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes, or contributed to group efforts over time. This does not need to be school-related and can mean more than just a title; you may describe taking the lead role in organizing an event or project or having explicit responsibilities to take care of a family member or others close to you. Please consider sharing what you accomplished and what you learned in your response.

*If you are an online-only student located outside of the US, do not use Blackbaud to submit your application materials. Instead, please email all materials in PDF format to awardsinfo@cs.illinois.edu. *