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Rebecca Peer

Ph.D. Candidate

Hometown: Rockland, Ontario, Canada

Rebecca Peer was born in Rockland, Ontario, Canada into a military family. She spent most of her childhood moving, even spending 4 years of her childhood in England before returning to Canada. She attended school in the province of Québec before leaving for Saint Francis University in Pennsylvania, where she competed as a member of the Division I women’s swim team, serving as captain in her third and final year. She graduated in May 2014 with her Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Engineering. Rebbeca joined USC in July of 2014 and is pursuing a Ph.D. in the Sonny Astani Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. She plans to graduate with her doctorate in May 2019.

Research Interests

Rebecca is investigating the environmental trade-offs of electricity generation in the US. Her research aims to develop methods to model and mitigate water use, greenhouse gas emissions, and air quality pollutants across the power sector through sophisticated grid modeling and data analysis.

 Awards and Honors

  • Recipient of Annabelle B. Bush Endowed PEO Scholar Award – 2017
  • Recipient of WiSE top-off fellowship – 2014
  • Recipient of USC Provost Fellowship – 2014
  • Who’s Who Among American Colleges and Universities Nominee – 2014
  • 3rd Place for Best Student Oral Presentation at the 2014 American Society of Mining and Reclamation’s Annual Meeting – 2014
  • Rhodes Scholarship Finalist (province of Québec) – 2013
  • Recipient of the Saint Francis University School of Sciences Undergraduate Research Excellence Award – 2013
  • Recipient of the American Society of Mining and Reclamation Undergraduate Memorial Scholarship – 2013
  • Inducted into Gamma Sigma Epsilon National Chemistry Honor’s Society – 2013
  • SFU Women’s Swim Team Captain – 2013
  • Record holder in 200 yd. backstroke, 4 x 50 yd. individual medley relay, and 4 x 100 yd. individual medley relay events at Saint Francis University – 2012, 2013
  • Recipient of Student Ambassador Scholarship – 2012, 2013
  • Recipient of International Merit Scholarship – 2011, 2012, 2013
  • Recipient of Women’s Swimming Athletic Scholarship – 2011, 2012, 2013
  • Inducted into Kappa Mu Epsilon National Mathematics Honor’s Society – 2012

 Education

  • Master’s of Science in Environmental Engineering. August 2014 – May 2016
  • Honors Bachelor’s Degree of Science in Environmental Engineering (Summa Cum Laude). August 2011 – May 2014

Peer-reviewed Journal Publications

Other Publications



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