Our Crowdfunding Groups
Our crowdfunding campaign has ended, but you can still support UCLA Grad Slam by clicking here.
First and foremost, a HUGE thank you to our generous donors for supporting the next generation of graduate students as they advance their research at the #1 public research university in the nation! You helped make UCLA Grad Slam possible!
On Tuesday, April 2, we showcased 10 finalists and awarded 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and Audience Choice prizes at the 2024 UCLA Grad Slam Final Competition & Celebratory Reception at the UCLA Meyer and Renee Luskin Conference Center.
Please join us in congratulating the 2023 UCLA Grad Slam winners!
Grad Slam Winners from left to right: Melis Çakar - 1st Place, Soulaïmane Bentaleb - 2nd Place, Shelby Vexler - 3rd Place, Nicole Zeltser - Audience Choice
Rich Schmitt Photography
Let’s cheer on our first-place winner, Melis Çakar, who will be in San Francisco on May 3 to compete in the systemwide competition against the champions from the other nine UC campuses. Again this year, the UC Grad Slam will be live-streamed, so plan to tune in, cheer Melis on, and vote for her for the People’s Choice award!
Thank you to everyone who has donated in the past week! Your incredible support has unlocked a donor's $5,000 matching gift! Your donations and the donor's match now puts our campaign at $17,295, 34% of the way to our goal!
Only one week remains to donate. Please help us keep the momentum strong by sharing our campaign with others: https://spark.ucla.edu/2024UCLAGradSlam
Thank you for supporting graduate students and helping us unlock these additional funds!
I am so excited to announce a generous match challenge for our crowdfunding campaign! A generous donor who has seen the amazing impact Grad Slam has on our student population has decided to give $5,000 and offered a challenge for us. If we can get 30 new gifts in the next week, the donor will give an additional $5,000!
You can help by sharing this link with two friends to help us spread the word and beat the challenge: https://spark.ucla.edu/2024UCLAGradSlam
A gift of any amount will contribute to the match challenge and, ultimately, the future success of graduate students like me as we forge ahead to find solutions to climate change, dismantle systems of injustice, and advance human knowledge.
Don't forget to join us for the live stream or attend in person on April 2 to watch the top 10 graduate student researchers compete and witness their revolutionary research unfold!
Thank you for supporting our future success and allowing us to share our research with you!
Sincerely,
Brandon Tsai
2023 UCLA and UC-Wide Grad Slam Winner
A special THANK YOU for your generous contribution to our UCLA Grad Slam Crowdfunding Campaign! Your gift will help our students forge ahead to find solutions to climate change, dismantle systems of injustice, and advance human knowledge.
The results are in and the Top 10 2024 UCLA Grad Slam finalists have been announced!
Adaeze Anyanwu, Nursing – The Impact of Social Media Use on Perinatal Health-Related Behaviors of Pregnant and Postpartum Black/African-American Women in the U.S.
Soulaimane Bentaleb, Bioengineering – Automated and Personalized Detection of Epileptic Activity in Resting State
Melis Çakar, Neuroscience – Cerebellum: From (Un)Fashionable to Pivotal Science
Abhinanda Dash, Communication – Decoding How Humans Form First Impressions in the Real World
Ekaterina Khlystova, Linguistics – Learning to Understand Sentences: The Language-Cognition Link
Jungmin Lee, Mechanical Engineering – Toward Sustainable Artificial Intelligence – A Brain’s Way of Computing
Megan Li, Astronomy and Astrophysics – Are We Alone in the Universe?
Natalie Shih, Neuroscience – Brain Repair after Stroke
Shelby Vexler, Chemistry – From Foe to Friend: Viruses that Fight Bacteria
Nicole Zeltser, Human Genetics – Your Contribution to Personalized Health
Don't forget to join us for the live stream or attend in person on April 2 to watch the top 10 graduate student researchers compete and witness their revolutionary research unfold!
Thank you for contributing to the future success of our graduate students and inspiring the highest level of academic competition at UCLA!
Every participant and their guests receive a gift bag. (fully tax-deductible)
With the most applicants in UCLA Grad Slam history, help us provide $50 gift cards to all contestants for their participation. (fully tax-deductible)
The Division of Graduate Education provides workshops for Grad Slam entrants to help them translate their complex research to a broader audience. These workshops teach our students invaluable skills such as mastering the art of presenting their research. Your donation will help fund a workshop! (fully tax-deductible)
The winner will compete in the UC-wide competition at the LinkedIn Headquarters in SF. Help our Bruin bring home the win again this year! (fully tax-deductible)
UCLA Grad Slam provides $500 gift cards to all 10 finalists. Anyone who gives this level or above will be invited to the 2024 Grad Slam Competition at the UCLA Meyer and Renee Luskin Conference Center. (fully tax-deductible)
The Audience Choice winner is awarded a fellowship stipend to help cover the cost of tuition, living expenses, and resources to help them continue their amazing research! The first 10 people to give at this level will be invited to the 2024 Grad Slam VIP reception where you can get to know our finalists! (tax-deductible gift of $933).
The 3rd place winner is awarded a fellowship stipend to help cover the costs of their tuition, living expenses, and resources to help them continue their amazing research! The first 10 people to give at this level will be invited to the 2024 Grad Slam VIP reception where you can get to know our finalists! (tax-deductible gift of $1,933)
The 2nd place winner is awarded a fellowship stipend to help cover the costs of their tuition, living expenses, and resources to help them continue their amazing research! The first 10 people to give at this level will be invited to the 2024 Grad Slam VIP reception where you can get to know our finalists! (tax-deductible gift of $2,933)
The 1st place winner is awarded a fellowship stipend to help cover the cost of their tuition, living expenses, and resources to help them continue their amazing research! The first 3 people who give at this level will be invited to the 2024 Grad Slam VIP reception and will receive free tickets to the UC-Wide Grad Slam Competition in the Bay Area! (tax-deductible gift of $4,933)