Elizabeth Chung, a MD-PhD student in the UCSF Tetrad program and the medical science training program, was named a 2026 Hertz Fellow, joining 19 other recipients in applied sciences, engineering, and mathematics.
“Being a Hertz Fellow is an immense honor to me”, said Chung about receiving this honor. “I'm particularly excited for the opportunities to engage with the other Hertz Fellows through multidisciplinary research, which I hope can synergize to lead to even greater technologies and therapies than would be possible otherwise. I'm also enthusiastic to learn from the experiences and expertise of all the other Hertz fellows in the community.”
Chung’s research focuses on how the immune system interacts with the nervous system by using large-scale epidemiological data with mechanistic insights. Her research into this topic is driven by her late father’s diagnosis with multiple sclerosis.
Chung earned a bachelor’s degree in biology magna cum laude from Ohio State University, where she began full-time collegiate studies at age 14 and graduated from both university and high school simultaneously.
The Hertz Fellowship, awarded annually by the Fannie and John Hertz Foundation, is one of the nation’s most prestigious graduate fellowships, supporting exceptional students who demonstrate the potential to drive transformative innovation.
“Year after year, the Hertz Fellowship identifies individuals whose ambitions go far beyond personal achievement. This class is no exception,” said Stephen Fantone, chair of the Hertz Foundation board of directors and president and CEO of Optikos Corp. “Our newest Hertz Fellows are committed to solving problems that matter for our national security, our health and our future.”