Eighteen faculty members from the University of California have been named 2026 Sloan Research fellows, according to an announcement from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation on February 17. This year, more Sloan fellows are affiliated with UC than with any other institution, and UC continues its long-standing lead in the total number of recipients throughout the program’s 61-year history.
The new cohort of fellows represents six UC campuses: UC Berkeley (7), UC San Diego (4), UCLA (3), UC Irvine (2), UC Davis (1), and UC Santa Cruz (1). Each fellow receives a two-year, $75,000 award to support their research.
In 2026, the Sloan Foundation granted fellowships to 126 early-career scientists across 44 institutions in the United States and Canada. The awards recognize both current achievements and future potential for leadership in science and scholarship. Past recipients have often gone on to win major honors such as Nobel Prizes, National Medals of Science, and Fields Medals in Mathematics.
UC Berkeley professor John Clarke, who was named a Sloan fellow earlier in his career, won the Nobel Prize in physics last year. His recognition contributed to a record-setting year for Nobel Prizes awarded to faculty at a single institution.
Other notable past Sloan fellows from the University of California include Mario J. Molina—former UC San Diego professor and UC Berkeley alumnus—who received the Nobel Prize in chemistry for his work on chlorofluorocarbon gases; Andrea Ghez, UCLA professor of physics and astronomy who won the Nobel Prize in physics in 2020; and Terence Tao, a UCLA mathematician recognized with both a Fields Medal and Breakthrough Prize in Mathematics.
Stacie Bloom, president and CEO of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, stated: “The Sloan Research fellows are among the most promising early-career researchers in the U.S. and Canada, already driving meaningful progress in their respective disciplines. We look forward to seeing how these exceptional scholars continue to unlock new scientific advancements, redefine their fields, and foster the well-being and knowledge of all.”
Eligibility for the awards requires holding a Ph.D. or equivalent degree in one of seven fields: chemistry, computer science, Earth system science, economics, mathematics, neuroscience, or physics. Nominations are made by fellow scientists and winners are chosen by independent panels based on accomplishments and potential.
The list of 2026 UC Sloan fellows includes:
UC Irvine: Herdeline Ann M. Ardoña (chemistry), Seunghyun Sim (chemistry)
UC Berkeley: Ashok Ajoy (chemistry), Yuan Cao (physics), Sarah E. Chasins (computer science), Madison M. Douglas (Earth system science), Wenbin Lu (physics), Karthik Shekhar (neuroscience), John Wright (computer science)
UC Davis: Isaac Kim (physics)
UCLA: David V. Clewett (neuroscience), Pradip Gatkine (physics), Juliana Londoño-Vélez (economics)
UC San Diego: Valentina Di Santo (Earth system science), Fleur Ferguson (chemistry), Mattia Serra (physics), Hao Zhang (computer science)
UC Santa Cruz: Ashesh Chattopadhyay (Earth system science)
