About the University of Maryland

Nobel Laureates at the University of Maryland

The University of Maryland is honored to have been associated with a number of Nobel Laureates, including:

UM Faculty Nobel Prize Winners

2006

John C. Mather

NASA researcher and University of Maryland adjunct physics professor Shared the Nobel Prize in Physics with George F. Smoot, University of California
Berkeley, CA

2005

Thomas C. Schelling

Professor Emeritus, and Distinguished University Professor, Economics and Public Policy
Shared the Nobel Prize for Economics with Robert Aumann of Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

1997

William Phillips

Professor of Physics
Awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics

1956

Juan Ramon Jimenez

Professor of Spanish Language and Literature
Won the Nobel Prize for Literature

Alumni Nobel Laureates

2002

Raymond Davis, Jr.,

Davis received his bachelor's (1937) and master's (1939) degrees in chemistry from the University of Maryland
Won the Nobel Prize in Physics

1985

Herbert Hauptman, Ph.D.

Mathematics, 1955
Won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry

Distinguished Visitors

Nobel Peace Prize winners who have given the annual Sadat Lecture for Peace

2002

President Jimmy Carter

2001

United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan

1993

South African President Nelson Mandela

Other Guest Speakers

2005

Physics Speakers for the World Year of Physics

Sheldon Glashow, 1979 Nobel Laureate, Physics
Leon Lederman, 1988 Nobel Laureate, Physics
Anthony Leggett, 2003 Nobel Laureate, Physics

Robert F. Engle III, co-recipient of the 2003 Nobel Prize in Economics, spoke at the Smith School, University of Maryland Statistics Consortium's Statistics Day 2005.

Jose Ramos-Horta, former Foreign Minister, East Timor, Nobel Peace Prize, 1996, took part in 2005 IRIS seminar.

2004

James Buchanan, 1986 Nobel Laureate in Economics, professor at George Mason University, gave lecture for 2004 BSOS Olsen Memorial Lecture Series.

Professor Leon N. Cooper, 1979 Nobel Prize in Physics, Brown University, gave lecture for a 2004 College of Chemical and Life Sciences Bioscience & Technology Review Day.

Iranian Human Rights Activist Shirin Ebadi, awarded the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize, spoke at the University of Maryland on "Islam, Democracy and Human Rights," in 2004.

John Nash, 1994 Nobel Prize for Economics, visited the university in 2004 for the Alumni Association Alumni College lecture.

2003

Arno Penzias, 1978 Nobel Laureate in Physics, found most conclusive evidence to date supporting the Big Bang Theory, spoke at Clark School, 2003.

1999

Yuan-Tseh Lee, 1986 Nobel Laureate for Chemistry, spoke to Taiwanese Student Association, 1999.

Other Affiliations

George A. Akerlof, University of California, Berkeley, 2001 Nobel laureate in Economics, works on research with UM economics professor Rachel Kranton.

Dr. Hannes Alfven of Sweden, Nobel Laureate in Physics, 1970, was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Maryland, 1954-55.

The Anwar Sadat Chair for Peace and Development was established in 1997 in memory of the late Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, 1978 Nobel Peace Prize winner. The Chair was made possible by the commitment of Anwar Sadat's widow, Dr. Jehan Sadat, to her husband's legacy of leadership for peace. The Chair, under the leadership of the Sadat Professor Shibley Telhami, is housed in the Center for International Development and Conflict Management (CIDCM) and makes its academic home in the Department of Government and Politics.

Glenn Seaborg, 1951 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, received honorary degree from University of Maryland in 1961.