CV
Education
- Ph.D. in Computer Science, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 2023 - (ongoing)
- GPA: 4.0/4.0
- Passed the PhD qualifying process on January 19, 2024.
- M.S. in Computer Information System, Jordan University of Science and Technology, 2020 - 2022
- B.S. in Computer Science, Jordan University of Science and Technology, 2016 - 2020
- GPA: 4.04/4.2 (Rank First)
Research and Teaching Experience
- Virginia Tech
- March 2023 - (Present): Graduate Research Assistant
- Leading two projects focused on cross-modal information retrieval across diverse modalities (e.g., image, text, video, audio) aimed at enhancing embedding representations for capturing non-literal and nuanced connections between modalities.
- Developed advanced cross-modal representations that effectively preserve both semantic richness and modality-specific details, enabling more accurate retrieval and understanding across different data types.
- Designed and implemented novel model architectures and loss functions to promote semantic diversity in representations, preventing redundancy and ensuring each modality maintains its unique characteristics while facilitating cross-modal alignment.
- Participating in a project related to long range multimodal event understanding using different modalities.
- Collaborated on a hospital project utilizing state-of-the-art deep learning models for image classification across various medical tasks.
- Contributed to the development and fine-tuning of deep learning architectures to enhance accuracy and reliability in medical imaging tasks.
- Participated in a pioneering project to create a new benchmark, JourneyBench, designed to evaluate models’ fine-grained multimodal reasoning abilities across five distinct tasks.
- Conducted benchmarking of state-of-the-art models across different tasks, specifically focusing on leveraging large language models (LLMs) for multiple-choice question answering (MCQA) problems.
- Assisted with dataset annotation and contributed to the design of key figures for the research paper, ensuring clear visual representation of the benchmark’s capabilities and findings.
- February 2023 - (Present): Graduate Teaching Assistant
- Assisted the instructor in planning and delivering course material for undergraduate computer science courses, including lectures, labs, and discussion sessions.
- Developed and graded assignments, exams, and lab exercises, providing constructive feedback to students to help them improve their understanding of key concepts.
- Supervised and mentored a diverse group of students during office hours and lab sessions, offering personalized support to enhance their learning experience and address individual challenges.
- Collaborated with faculty members to integrate new teaching methods and technologies, such as interactive coding platforms and virtual labs, to enhance student engagement and learning outcomes.
- Organized and led supplemental instruction sessions for students struggling with core topics, fostering a collaborative learning environment and encouraging peer-to-peer learning.
- Jordan University of Science and Technology
- June 2019 - September 2019: Research Assistant Internship
- Engaged in competitive research projects such as NLP4IF 2019 and KDD Cup 2019, focusing on building and refining deep learning models for natural language processing and data mining tasks.
- Developed and optimized various deep learning architectures, experimenting with novel techniques to enhance model performance on large datasets.
- Actively participated in debugging and troubleshooting model issues, collaborating with team members to identify bottlenecks and improve model efficiency and accuracy.
- February 2020 - January 2022: Graduate Teaching Assistant
- Assisted faculty in delivering lectures and conducting laboratory sessions for various courses in computer science and engineering, including programming, data structures, and algorithms.
- Designed and implemented interactive lab exercises and projects, encouraging hands-on learning and practical application of theoretical knowledge.
- Evaluated student performance through assessments, exams, and project evaluations, providing detailed feedback to facilitate improvement.
- Conducted review sessions and created study guides to help students prepare for exams, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of course material.
- Utilized online learning management systems to manage course materials, track student progress, and communicate effectively with students regarding their performance and areas for improvement.
- February 2020 - November 2022: Graduate Research Assistant
- Led and contributed to multiple research projects focusing on data analysis, machine learning, and deep learning, including the development of transformer models for natural language processing and computer vision tasks.
- Conducted extensive data gathering and analysis to support research objectives, including designing and distributing questionnaires, preprocessing datasets, and performing statistical analysis.
- Developed and implemented machine learning and deep learning models, including transformers, to address various research questions, optimizing model performance through rigorous experimentation and hyperparameter tuning.
- Collaborated with cross-functional teams to integrate findings into larger research initiatives, contributing to published papers and conference presentations.
- Played a key role in grant writing and research proposals, helping secure funding for ongoing and future projects.
Teaching
- Virginia Tech:
- Jordan University of Science and Technology:
- CIs201: INTRODUCTION TO WEB DESIGN
- CIs724: STRUCTURE AND APPLICATIONS OF HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEMS
- CIs733: COMPUTATIONAL LINGUISTICS
- CIs735: DEEP LEARNING
Skills
- Machine Learning: Deep Learning, Computer Vision, NLP, and Data analysis.
- Generative AI Solutions Architect (Large Language Models): Building different chatbots trained on enterprise data using open-sourced LLMs (Hugging Face) or OpenAI’s GPT models.
- Programming: Python, Java, R, C++, Visual Basic, HTML, Android
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with a critical and creative mindset.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills for effective teamwork and stakeholder relationships.
- Languages: English, Arabic (Native)
Software
- Tableau
- Octave
- MATLAB
- Android Studio
- Jupyter notebook
- Operating Systems: Mac, Windows, Linux
References
- Dr. Chris Thomas
- 378 Data and Decision Sciences Building, 727 Prices Fork Rd, Blacksburg, VA 24060
- Email: Chris@cs.vt.edu
- Prof. Rehab Duwairi
- Jordan University of Science and Technology, IRBID, JORDAN
- Email: rehab@just.edu.jo
- Dr. Malak Abdullah
- Jordan University of Science and Technology, IRBID, JORDAN
- Email: mabdullah@just.edu.jo
- Prof. Amer Al-badarneh
- Jordan University of Science and Technology, IRBID, JORDAN
- Email: mabdullah@just.edu.jo
