One of the most prestigious events held during each Annual Meeting of the American Phytopathological Society (APS) is the Irving E. Melhus Graduate Student Symposium. This symposium features graduate students who are chosen, on a competitive basis, to present their thesis research results. Each year, one of the APS Subject Matter Committees is appointed by the APS Scientific Program Board to organize and co-sponsor (with the APS Foundation) the next I. E. Melhus Graduate Student Symposium. Selection criteria are established by the sponsoring APS Subject Matter Committee. Selection criteria (established by the APS Epidemiology Subject Matter Committee) for the 8th I. E. Melhus symposium included: (i) submission of a 5-page synopsis of the student’s graduate research project (excluding tables and figures); (ii) a panel evaluation of the significance of each nominee’s research contribution towards improving our understanding of plant disease epidemics; (iii) the evaluation of each nominee’s communication skills; (iv) two letters of nomination from the nominee’s institution; and (v) active membership in APS.