Meet a Fluid Power Scholarship Winner – Daksh Jhanjee

The NFPA Education and Technology Foundation has awarded 20 $2,500 scholarships to students pursuing fluid power related fields of study. One of the winners, Daksh Jhanjee, is attending the Georgia Institute of Technology. We asked Daksh a few questions about winning the scholarship.

What does winning a Fluid Power Scholarship mean to you?

Winning the 2025 Fluid Power Scholarship Award has helped reduce the financial burdens of my education, allowing me to dedicate more time and energy to meaningful, hands-on engineering experiences. With the support of this award, I look forward to investing my time in personal projects and student organizations, such as Formula SAE (GT Motorsports), where I plan to explore real-world applications of fluid power through braking systems, steering assemblies, and active aerodynamic mechanisms. This scholarship has not only provided me with financial freedom, but also the privilege to pursue opportunities that hone my skills, expand my network, and bring me closer to my ultimate goal of developing my own R&D company.

Why did you choose to learn about fluid power?

As an incoming aerospace engineer at the Georgia Institute of Technology, I recognize that hydraulic and pneumatic systems are foundational to several aerospace, manufacturing, and robotic mechanisms. By studying fluid power, I aim to gain a profound understanding of these principles within the aerospace industry, enabling me to push beyond conventional applications and explore developments such as sustainable, modular fluid power architectures. Fluid power remains underutilized in environmentally conscious engineering, and I view that as an opportunity to drive innovation within the industry.

What are your career aspirations? What type of fluid power job do you hope to get after you graduate?

With my ultimate goal of establishing my own R&D company specializing in aerospace systems, I aim to contribute to the advancement of flight technologies and explore how fluid power can be applied to aerospace applications, such as landing gear, control surfaces, and deployable mechanisms, through more sustainable and efficient design practices. Whether prototyping in a machine shop, testing algorithms in a flight simulator, or iterating hardware in a startup lab, I am driven to push the boundaries of how we design, build, and fly.

A minimum GPA of 2.5 out of 4.0, 500-word essay, and letter of recommendation were required from each applicant. The NFPA Foundation’s goal is to help graduating high school students, and individuals enrolled in community colleges, technical schools and universities pursue their academic interests in fluid power.

One way NFPA members can get involved with scholarship programs is to volunteer as a judge to serve on the application review committee. This year 34 judges from 26 NFPA member companies reviewed 241 eligible student applications to the Fluid Power Scholarship program. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Haley Nemeth at hnemeth@nfpa.com.