Student lands dream opportunity through a shot in the dark
Anisha Menezes was awarded the prestigious Astronaut Scholarship, an honor given to only 79 outstanding science, technology, engineering and math students across the nation this year.
Anisha Menezes
Anisha Menezes couldn’t believe that she’d been awarded an Astronaut Scholarship.
“When I got the email, I was astounded and then very grateful,” said Menezes, a senior in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Texas A&M University. “This is a really prestigious scholarship, and the opportunities it will provide are exciting.”
The Astronaut Scholarship — one of the largest merit-based scholarships for undergraduates — is awarded to juniors and seniors in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. In 2026, the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation (ASF) awarded 79 scholarships to exceptional students across the nation who show initiative and creativity in their chosen field. Recipients have the option to maintain a life-long relationship with the ASF, which includes the opportunity to engage with astronauts, business executives and other industry leaders.
Menezes is particularly looking forward to the mentorship and networking opportunities this award provides. In August, she’ll attend the Innovators Symposium & Gala where she’ll meet other Astronaut Scholars and present her research.
Coding from the start
Menezes always knew she wanted to code. In elementary school, she participated in Hour of Code, a program that introduces kids to coding concepts through games. She enjoyed this experience and began taking computer science courses in middle school.
“I fell in love with computer science. I really liked how there are so many algorithms, but it’s up to you to design them,” she said. “There’s no one right answer, but you get to be creative in this very strange, analytical way.”
She learned about ethical — or white hat — hacking at a career day.
“I thought that sounded wonderful, getting to take the tools you’re taught and then being forced to think outside of the rules we’ve created,” said Menezes. “Computer science is all man-made, so the fact that we define the rules and we define the structure means that we can find ways to break it. And I think that’s a really fun thing to do.”
Achievements in Aggieland
Once she reached Texas A&M, Menezes followed her interests and majored in computer science and engineering. She also ventured into research. She became involved in the AI for Government, Grid, Infrastructure, and Engineering Security (AGGIES) Lab within the computer science department and Project SMART: Social Media and Resilient Teens under Texas A&M AgriLife Research.
As of her sophomore year, she has co-authored two papers with other members of the AGGIES Lab. One focused on how AI-generated phishing emails are increasingly difficult to detect because attackers use machine learning technology to write personalized messages that bypass spam filters. Menezes and her fellow researchers analyzed characteristics of AI-generated phishing emails and identified gaps in current security defenses against them.
The other paper focused on how AI can be both helpful and harmful when applied to social media. On the helpful side, AI can assist with moderating social media to protect users from cybercrimes like deepfake-based fraud, harassment or stalking. For example, AI-powered image recognition can help identify inappropriate content. However, AI systems can also be used to create harmful content and have been shown to reinforce stereotypes and prejudices. The researchers call for ethical solutions that protect users from cybercrime and do not perpetuate biases.
“Anisha showed exceptional interest in research in her first semester. Her research on the evolution and impact of AI-driven phishing attacks was published in the Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on AI Research, which was held in Lisbon, Portugal,” said Dr. Shreyas Kumar, professor of practice in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering. “Anisha became one of the earliest members of my research group, which later became the AGGIES Lab. She was the only undergraduate student invited as a guest during the ‘Researcher Celebrities’ series of a research podcast by the Empowering Science Foundation.”
Menezes is also a research assistant for Project SMART, a longitudinal study funded by the National Institutes of Health that examines the relationship between adolescents’ social media use and their mental health. The principal investigator is Dr. Jun Wang, associate professor in the Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communications at Texas A&M.
In addition to her lab work, Menezes founded the Aggie Undergraduate Research Association to create an interdisciplinary space where students could explore research.
“I took AP research my senior year of high school, and that’s how I knew that research is what I wanted to do. But a lot of other students didn’t have that opportunity,” said Menezes. “I wanted them to get the experience of learning about research without having to commit to a graduate degree or lab and then finding out that it’s not the right fit for them.”
Coding her future
Menezes’ dream job is to be a penetration tester — an ethical hacker tasked with identifying a company’s security vulnerabilities. She plans to graduate in four years from Texas A&M with both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in computer science. Ultimately, she’d like to earn a doctorate.
Menezes offered advice to other students considering similar competitive scholarship opportunities.
“Just throw your hat in the ring regardless of what you may think you’re capable of or what you think you deserve,” said Menezes. “Applying for this scholarship was very much something I did because I thought, ‘Why not?’ And it ended with this amazing opportunity. Sometimes you just have to take a shot in the dark.”
