I believe in education, which gives me the knowledge to work wisely and trains my mind and my hands to work skillfully.

When it comes to STEM education, Fatemeh Jamshidi believes that there are several keys to success. And 88 of them are ivory.

As part of her research, the doctoral candidate in computer science and software engineering (who also just earned a master’s degree in music education from Auburn) leads camps for grade schoolers geared toward instilling computer science concepts through basic music theory — two subjects she’s been passionate about since her childhood in Iran.

“Computer science is about math and so is music theory, so, in the camps, we’re assessing the engagement and interaction students have with the curriculum that uses a multidisciplinary approach,” said Jamshidi, an accomplished pianist who also directs Auburn’s Persian Music Ensemble. “Auburn will give you opportunities to express yourself and your interests rather than just getting involved with research that you may not necessarily enjoy. Getting a Ph.D. is a long process and enjoying the research is really important.”

Jamshidi also investigates the potential of machine learning and reinforcement learning to teach music online through self-regulated, auto-generated practice lessons based on a user’s individual learning skills.

“My dad was a faculty member in computer science,” she said. “Ever since I was six years old taking piano lessons, I’ve been wanting to connect these dots.”