Vanderbilt University alumnus Umar Sohail Qureshi, BS'25, has been selected as a 2026 Knight-Hennessy Scholar at Stanford University, joining one of the world's most prestigious graduate leadership development programs.
Qureshi, from Karachi, Pakistan, will pursue a Ph.D. in physics with a minor in computer science at Stanford's School of Humanities and Sciences. He is among 87 scholars selected from more than 9,000 applicants worldwide for the 2026 cohort.
A Vanderbilt graduate with highest honors in physics, mathematics and computer science, Qureshi earned his degree summa cum laude and was inducted into Tau Beta Pi, the engineering honor society. His research in high-energy particle physics spans theory, phenomenology, and experiment, combining insights from quantum field theory and machine learning to explore some of the field's biggest unanswered questions.
His work investigates topics ranging from how elementary particles acquire mass to the nature of dark matter. Qureshi is also interested in the future of particle physics beyond the Large Hadron Collider, including next-generation colliders that could reveal new insights into the Higgs sector and other undiscovered phenomena.
In addition to his scientific pursuits, Qureshi explores a wide range of interdisciplinary interests, including food science, philosophy, South Asian poetry and comparative religion.
Knight-Hennessy Scholars is a fully endowed, multidisciplinary leadership development program for graduate students at Stanford University. Scholars from around the globe receive up to three years of financial support to pursue graduate studies at any of Stanford's seven schools while engaging in experiences that prepare them to be visionary, courageous and collaborative leaders capable of taking on the world's most difficult challenges.
Announced in 2016 and launched in 2018, Knight-Hennessy Scholars is named for Phil Knight, philanthropist and co-founder of Nike Inc., and John Hennessy, chairman of Alphabet Inc. and president emeritus of Stanford (2000-16). The Knight-Hennessy Scholars program is the largest university-wide, fully endowed graduate fellowship in the world.
Previous Vanderbilt Knight-Hennessy Scholars are Ashwin Kumar, BS'22, MS'22, a 2023 scholar pursuing a Ph.D. in biomedical physics at Stanford School of Medicine, and Kris Quah, BE'19, a 2019 scholar pursuing a Ph.D. in electrical engineering at Stanford School of Engineering.
