For Anshul Mathew, proximity to industry is key. While pursuing his master’s degree at Northeastern’s Oakland campus, he’s taken advantage of the vibrant tech scene in the Bay Area to make new connections and advance his career.

I believe in the power of proximity. … There are a lot of conferences that happen in San Francisco. … I met people who … can actually help me get ahead in my career. … I feel I’m blessed being here

Anshul Mathew, MSCS ’22

By the time Benjamin Shaar came to Khoury College, he was a studied pianist with more than a decade of training. Now pursuing computer science, he wants to unlock the intersection between his two passions.

I really just feel like I’m connected with music for life. … Music and computer science can definitely connect on a deep level. … Maybe I’ll develop one of those softwares

Benjamin Shaar, BSCS ’27

Lindsay Jamieson started taking computer science classes in 10th grade — an opportunity that she believes should be available to students nationwide. Now, as Khoury College’s coordinator of K-12 CS education, she’s looking to bring that opportunity to more schools by educating teachers about the field.

“[Computer science is] just a normal part of life. And computer science can be the integrated discipline that it really is

Lindsay Jamieson, Coordinator of K-12 CS Education

In college, Scott Valcourt found his calling with using computer science and math to solve real-world problems. Now a professor at Khoury College, he teaches students computer science fundamentals to encourage them to tackle new everyday problems outside of class.

It means a lot to me when a student comes back to me and says, ‘You know that thing you taught us how to do in SQL programming? I’m using that at my company right now, and if you hadn’t taught me that, I wouldn’t be as successful there as I am now.’ And that’s a pretty powerful thing

Scott Valcourt, Associate Teaching Professor

Andrea Grimes Parker is currently on the faculty at Georgia Tech, holds courtesy faculty appointments at three additional universities, and is the founder and director of her own research lab focusing on the intersection of technology, health, and medicine. It’s a full plate of work she loves, and Parker would have it no other way.

It was so rewarding not to have to choose one discipline over another. Going to faculty meetings and talks and mentoring students from both worlds was extremely rewarding. Then, bringing it all together and creating this lab of interdisciplinary students where public health students were working alongside computer science students [not only] made me enjoy the work, but I think it was also essential for doing the kind of research that I was doing

Andrea Grimes Parker, BSCS ’05

It was at Northeastern University, first as an undergraduate student and later as a faculty member, where she took the university’s interdisciplinary message to heart, and began juggling multiple disciplines and projects at the same time.

Even before Parker found her focus on human-computer interaction, she knew that Northeastern would be the right place to begin her education. While visiting as a prospective student, she could see the school was excited to have her join the community and that she would be supported in her studies. Professor Bryant York met with Parker and her parents, offering her a rare opportunity to conduct research in her first year. She pursued further research opportunities during her co-op, which prepared her well for graduate school and set the trajectory for her career. For her many research efforts, Parker earned the Computing Research Association Outstanding Undergraduate Award.

“I had so many faculty members, mentors, and supporters that helped me feel like I could achieve my goals,” she says, “and that I had a promising future.”

During graduate school, Parker began to focus on the intersection of technology, health, and well-being through digital health equity research. After earning her PhD, she returned to Northeastern with a joint appointment in Khoury College and the Bouvé College of Health Sciences.

“It was so rewarding not to have to choose one discipline over another,” she says. “Going to faculty meetings and talks and mentoring students from both worlds was extremely rewarding. Then, bringing it all together and creating this lab of interdisciplinary students where public health students were working alongside computer science students [not only] made me enjoy the work, but I think it was also essential for doing the kind of research that I was doing.”

For a time, Katie Lowen was touring internationally as a contemporary dancer. But when the pandemic closed down theaters, she sought another avenue to develop herself. Now, earning her master’s in computer science through the Align program in Vancouver, Katie finds herself immersed in a career path she’d never imagined.

I thought if I could work as a contemporary dance artist and also be able to do things on the technical side, it would open the doors [for me] in the arts world

Katie Lowen, Align MSCS ’23

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