PhD Student Spotlight: Melissa Chen

Melissa Chen wants novice computer programmers to be easier on themselves.

A third-year PhD student in computer science, Chen studies how to design scalable sociotechnical tools and systems to support introductory computing students’ self-efficacy, defined as a person's belief in their ability to complete a task or achieve a goal.

Specifically, she investigates why students make overly critical, negative self-assessments of their programming ability during common learning moments, such as when they encounter simple errors, need to restart a problem, stop coding to plan, or consult resources to explore an approach or study syntax.

A 2024 US NSF Graduate Research Fellow, Chen is a member of the Delta Lab and is advised by Eleanor O'Rourke, an assistant professor of computer science at Northwestern Engineering and of learning sciences in the School of Education and Social Policy. Chen earned a bachelor’s degree in computer science in May 2022 from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

We asked Chen about her experience as a PhD student at Northwestern, important lessons learned, and her advice for prospective PhD students.

Why did you decide to pursue a PhD in computer science at McCormick?

My adviser Eleanor O’Rourke is well-known as an incredible researcher and research mentor. From my discussions with her and her students, it was clear that I would have the opportunity to grow as a researcher and person through her mentorship and support. Additionally, I would receive interdisciplinary support from the Delta Lab team, as well as through other communities on campus like the learning sciences program and the Center for Human-Computer Interaction + Design (HCI+D). I wanted the opportunity to learn from people with different backgrounds and areas of expertise, which is highly necessary to pursue the interdisciplinary work I am interested in.

What are three things you wish you had known before you started your PhD program?

First, it is so important to find your community, especially if you are an interdisciplinary researcher who sits between very different fields. It helps to build leadership and communication skills, but also to connect with a network of students who know what it is like to go through what you are going through and can offer social support and advice. I’m so grateful to the community in the Delta Lab, in HCI+D, and for the learning sciences folks who include me in their ongoings, because I learn from so many different perspectives.

Next, go to more talks, whether they’re in CS or in a related field. It’s also nice to see research occurring outside of Northwestern to see how other people are thinking about topics.

Third, don’t worry about publishing quickly, and instead focus on doing good research. Share your work early and often wherever you can, like at lab meetings or at conferences, since it’s a great way to get feedback to shape the direction of the work. It’s also great to go to conferences because you start to build up a better understanding of the community and get to know more people who care about similar things.

Tell us about something you were excited to learn while you worked on a research project.

I’m working on co-designing classroom-based interventions to support introductory computing students’ self-efficacy and self-assessments. Our past research has shown that students are overly harsh when judging their programming abilities in common moments in the programming process because they don’t know what to expect from themselves or of the programming learning process, or they feel like they can’t recover from what they are struggling with. In collaboration with some incredible instructors at different universities, we are developing a tool that implicitly normalizes these moments in the programming process and provides strategies for how to overcome setbacks.

This work is the next step in a series of designs that didn’t quite work to address the problem but taught us important information about things we must consider when we design tools and technologies to support students at scale. I’ve learned along the way to understand that if something doesn’t work, we can learn from it to improve. A skill I am continuing to work on is to iterate rapidly based on feedback we receive from our design stakeholders, so we continuously improve what we make and advance our knowledge of how to design tools to support students.

What are some examples of collaborative or interdisciplinary experiences at Northwestern that have been notably impactful to your research?

Through the year-long Design Research Cluster fellowship, I was part of a community of other fellows and their faculty advisers. From our meetings, I learned so much about how to think about and do design research and got valuable feedback from all of the faculty and students. It was very interesting to see how my work relates to the ideas they have been thinking about, and how theories and methods from their fields could advance my research. It was also great to have my fellowship project co-advised by Duri Long, whose expertise in co-design shaped the direction of my project.

What's next? What are your short- and long-term plans/goals in terms of your career path?

For now, I’m just hoping to build the skills I need to be a thoughtful and effective researcher, and I’m also excited to collaborate with others on my ongoing projects. Since I’m a third-year student, I’m still exploring my long-term options. I will most likely be pursuing a tenure-track research position, since I’m interested in research, teaching, and mentoring.

I’m also intrigued by the non-profit space, especially after my internship in the Northwestern-ETHS Partnership Office through Northwestern’s Center for Civic Engagement Graduate Engagement Opportunities (GEO) Community Practicum. The GEO program pairs graduate students with local non-profit organizations so that we can gain a better understanding of how to do community-engaged research. At times, we can lose sight of the impact we have on the real world, both positive and negative. The GEO program challenged me to think about how I build relationships with the community I’m working with and how I conduct my research. I also found my internship at the Northwestern – ETHS Partnership Office to be very rejuvenating, and I feel fortunate for the opportunity to connect with the Evanston community through that experience.

What hobbies/activities do you enjoy? What’s your favorite part about living in Evanston/Chicago?

Outside of research, I’m usually (badly) attempting something creative, such as origami, crochet, or cooking, as an outlet for stress, reading in a coffee shop or by the lakefill, or hanging out with friends in the city. I really like Evanston because Chicago is relatively accessible, and we’re near the lake, which is a great place to walk around and relax.

What’s your favorite restaurant in Evanston/Chicago and why?

Pono Ono on Chicago Avenue is one of my favorite restaurants in Evanston. I also really like exploring and working in coffee shops, and really like Reprise on Main St. in Evanston and Dark Matter Coffee in Lakeview.

What advice do you have for prospective Northwestern Computer Science PhD students?

Take a look at Northwestern’s resources and communities to determine if you will be able to grow as a person and a researcher here, and, most importantly, if you feel like you will be supported in that growth.