The International Road Federation (IRF) Fellowship Program offers a financial grant to international students pursuing studies in highway-related fields. Available through two paths—Traditional and Executive—the program supports future leaders in transportation. Traditional applicants must apply independently before starting graduate studies, while Executive applicants, already enrolled in graduate programs, require nomination by professors at IRF Member Universities. Fellows, chosen for their academic excellence and leadership potential, participate in the IRF Road Scholar Program in Washington, D.C., alongside the TRB Annual Meeting, fostering global leadership and professional growth. 

Zahra Mohajeri
Ph.D. Candidate, Civil Engineering

Zahra Mohajeri is a Ph.D. student at the University of Texas at El Paso, CTIS, specializing in asphalt pavement research. Her research develops a framework to estimate the fatigue behavior of Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) by correlating the fatigue resistance of aged binders and mixtures. It focuses on accelerating aging using pressurized methods and advanced characterizations like DSR and FTIR to evaluate fatigue parameters and chemical changes. The study aims to provide recommendations for sustainable pavement designs.