Mustafa Farhadi

Mustafa Farhadi knew he’d grow up to be an engineer. As a kid in Ghaemshahr – a city in northern Iran – he toyed with electrical devices in his home, and family members always asked him for help when something broke.

He came to FIU in fall 2011 to pursue a Ph.D. in electrical and computer engineering, under the mentorship of Professor Osama Mohammed. Since then, Mustafa, 32, has conducted groundbreaking research on hybrid DC power systems, leading to six papers being published in Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) journals; and he has presented at 13 international conferences. His efforts, as part of FIU’s Energy Systems Research Laboratory, have been significant in developing new energy management techniques and protection schemes for hybrid DC power systems. The techniques could improve the use of renewable energy by improving efficiency and power quality as well as reliability, which means fewer power interruptions.

A teaching assistant and laboratory instructor for three years, Mustafa is also the founder and chair of the IEEE Industry Applications Society student branch chapter at FIU.

Currently job hunting, Mustafa hopes to obtain a job where he can apply his research to real life. He also got married last year, and said his wife, Samaneh, has been a tremendous source of support in his educational pursuits.