Ke-Jung (Ken) Chen completed his undergraduate study of physics and engineering at the National Tsing-Hua University, Taiwan, where he became interested in astrophysics. During his senior year, he received a summer research fellowship from the Academia Sinica Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics, which allowed him to study the mergers of galaxy clusters by using N-body simulations. He successfully simulated the structures of Coma clusters through two galaxy-cluster mergers. After obtaining his bachelor’s degree, he entered the Institute of Physics at National Taiwan University, Taiwan. His master's thesis studied the physics of the CMB spectrum by considering Inflationary models and cosmic strings. His results suggested that the signals of cosmic strings can be hidden behind the first peak of the CMB spectrum. Based on successful experiences from previous studies in Taiwan, he was determined to pursue a career in astrophysical research, and did his PhD under Prof. A. Heger on the first supernovae and their cosmological impact. This work emphasized numerical simulations and computational astrophysics as his main field of expertise.

Starting next fall, the Gruber Fellowship will be used to fund in part his post-doctoral studies with Prof. S. Woosley at the University of California in Santa Cruz, on the topic of "The First Stars".