Computing Fellows are undergraduate peer academic leaders who help students to engage with computing. Fellows are attached to courses and can develop and lead computational activities, support students in ongoing computational projects, and provide one-on-one consultations with students in those courses. Fellows meet regularly as a cohort and engage with anti-racist computing pedagogy, practice workshops, and build community with each other. 

The program values: 

• accessibility and inclusion in computational fields and methods
• the role of peer-to-peer relationships in improving equity, inclusion, and engagement in computational fields and methods
• critical and engaged pedagogy
• learning that aims to empower and center students
• interdisciplinary applications of computational thinking  

Computing Fellows are not TAs, rather they help facilitate the exploration of computational methods with a spirit of openness and an emphasis on student agency.

New Computing Fellows are hired at the beginning of each academic year.

Computing Fellows are expected to be attached to a course or program (like Pixel).  Responsibilities may include:

• Communicating with instructor(s) in your attached course
• Communicating with students in your attached course to schedule one-on-one consultation meetings; hosting one-on-one consultation meetings
• Holding office hours
• Leading and developing workshop(s) for your attached course or for the CSC
• Attending regular training meetings
• Supporting other Computing Fellows as needed

Fellows meetings include a variety of activities and topics, including:

• Training on pedagogy and the role of the peer fellow
• Practicing giving feedback in both one-on-one and group settings
• Leading workshops among your peers
• Reflecting on the relationships between technology, computation, and society

Fellows should have some experience coding and a strong willingness to learn about computational methods and pedagogy. To find more information about the position and to apply, visit csc.barnard.edu/hiring. Applications usually open at the end of each Spring term. Questions? Please contact us at csc@barnard.edu.

Computing Fellow applications for 2024-2025 are now open! Apply here.

Computing Fellows can be paired with Barnard courses or programs that may or may not have existing computational themes or which would be enhanced by a computational perspective. Instructors can request Computing Fellow(s) to be attached to their course through the form linked below. Computing Fellows can assist in three primary ways, though we are open to discussing other options:

1. Teaching an in-class workshop that explores the topics of the course or program from a computational lens
2. Holding one-on-one conferences with students
3. Holding open office hours to support students working on computational projects

Other modes of fellowing may be possible (including assisting faculty in developing computational projects, holding workshops outside of class for a smaller group of students, etc.). If you are interested in support not outlined here or have questions about how the Computing Fellows program may work for you, please contact us individually or at csc@barnard.edu.

If you'd like to request a Computing Fellow for your course or program, please fill out this form here.

To request a Computing Fellow for Fall 2024, fill out this form.

Spring 2024

• COMS BC3930 Creative Embedded Systems
  • Fellow held office hours, taught a workshop for high school students, prepared course materials and tools, and assisted the instructor with in-class logistics.
• EESC BC3801 Environmental Science Senior Seminar II
  • Fellow taught a workshop and led student office hours.
• COMS BC1016/1017 Introduction to Computational Thinking and Data Science
  • Fellows attended lab sessions, hosted weekly office hours, offered support with Python assignments, and taught a Privacy in the Digital Age workshop.
• EDUC BC3059 Computer Science in the City
  • Fellows offered in-class support, led one-on-one student conferences and group office hours, and taught Scratch and Generative AI workshops with a focus on lesson planning strategies.
• NSBV BC2001 Laboratory in Neuroscience
  • Fellows hosted weekly office hours, supported in-lab activities, and taught a Computer Basics and Organization workshop.
• CHEM BC3348 Advanced Spectroscopy Laboratory
  • Fellow hosted one-on-one student conferences, offered support with Python assignments, and revised teaching materials.
• EDUC BC3032 Education Policy: NYC & Climate/COVID Crisis
  • Fellow held a workshop, supported in-class activities, and held project consultations for students in office hours.
• Pixel @ CSC Web Development Immersive (formerly ADDA) (co-curricular)
  • ​​​​​​​Fellows offered weekly in-class support, advised student projects in office hours, revised HTML and CSS teaching materials, and taught an Accessible Web Design workshop.

Fall 2023

• COMS BC3420 Privacy in a Networked World
  • Fellow taught a data re-identification workshop using Python and provided one-on-one student assistance during office hours.
• EESC BC3800 Environmental Science Senior Seminar
  • Fellow taught an Introduction to Data Analysis workshop and held office hours.
• COMS BC1016/1017 Introduction to Computational Thinking and Data Science
  • Fellows collaborated with instructors to teach an introductory Python data science course, while also facilitating student learning of introductory statistics and computer science topics during weekly labs and office hours. 
• NSBV BC2004 Fundamentals in Computational Neuroscience Models
  • Fellows held weekly office hours, conducted a review and workshop on MATLAB basics, and provided assistance to students with in-class MATLAB activities.
• NSBV BC2001 Laboratory in Neuroscience
  • Fellow assisted with students’ lab work, helped students with in-class MATLAB questions, hosted student hours, and co-led a workshop. 
• COMS BC1736 First-Year Seminar: Tech & Society: Good, Bad & Other
  • Fellow taught a two-day data re-identification workshop.
• EESC BC3300 Workshop in Sustainable Development
  • Fellow offered in-class technical support and conducted workshops on data cleaning and visualization. 
• Pixel @ CSC Web Development Immersive (formerly ADDA) (co-curricular)
  • Fellows supported the instructor to help students learn the fundamentals of HTML and CSS, assisted students in debugging code, hosted weekly office hours, and led a workshop on Developing Accessible Websites and Inclusive Design. Fellows also assisted in revising teaching materials. 

Spring 2023

• COMS BC3162 Developing Accessible User Interfaces
  • The Fellow moderated the class Discord channel and held weekly office hours to assist students with integrating accessibility into technology. They provided support on homework assignments, focusing specifically on using HTML/CSS/ and JS to develop accessible web tools, such as text-to-speech, screen readers, magnification and so on.
• ECON BC2224 Coding Markets
  • Fellow held student office hours and one-on-one meetings with students to assist in assignments, conceptual understanding of the programs being created, and final research projects. Fellow also helped the teaching staff by tracking difficulty levels of assignments and any issues raised by students to adjust for varying levels of coding experience.
• EESC BC3801 Environmental Science Senior Seminar II
• FRENCH BC3067 Golden Age of Versailles
  • Fellow held 1:1 consultations to assist students with HTML, CSS, and StoryMapJS to create final projects mapping historical literature onto a map of Versailles.
• NSBV BC2001 Laboratory in Neuroscience
  • Fellow helped students visualize the data they collected in labs using the Matlab programming language during weekly office hours.
• EDUC BC3041 Grace Lee Boggs Learning Lab
  • Fellow assisted with developing in-class workshops for data visualization and storytelling, including Tableau, Shorthand, and StorymapsJS, and held office hours outside of class.
• COMS BC1016/1017 Introduction to Computational Thinking and Data Science
  • Fellows assisted students during lab sections where students work on daily programming lab assignments and held office hours to support students with course projects and concepts
• CHEM BC3346/3348 Advanced Spectroscopy Laboratory
  • ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Fellow supported students using Python to analyze data from chemistry spectroscopy experiments through one-on-one conferences.
• CHEM BC3333 Organic Chemistry Laboratory
  • ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Fellow held workshops on how to use various chemistry softwares, like Spartan and ChemDraw, and assisted students with completing computational assignments. Fellow also provided written feedback on submitted computational assignments.
• Athena Digital Design Academy (ADDA) (co-curricular)
  • Fellows supported Athena Tech Expert-in-Residence to teach students fundamentals of HTML/CSS, summarized basic concepts for students during in-person meetings, and assisted students with debugging as they built their personal websites during office hours.

Fall 2022

• EESC BC3050 Big Data with Python
  • Fellow held one-on-one student meetings with each student to assist with final research projects, which used Python for visualizing an environmental data set of their choosing.
• COMS BC1016/1017 Introduction to Computational Thinking and Data Science
  • Fellows assisted students during lab sections where students work on daily programming lab assignments and held office hours to support students with course projects and concepts
• EDUC BC3032 Investigating the Purposes and Aims of Education Policy
  • Fellow supported students working on final projects and met with students throughout the semester to develop data visualizations, maps, and charts for their final presentations and research papers. The fellow also assisted with showcasing final projects on a class website.
• NSBV BC2004 Fundamentals in Computational Neuroscience Models
  • Fellow hosted an in-class workshop, office hours and one-on-one consultations to provide homework, project, and computational methods support for students working in Matlab.
• COMS BC3420 Privacy in a Networked World
  • Fellow led an in-class workshop on data identification and merging datasets in Python, with “challenge” options for students with coding experience.
• EESC BC3800 Environmental Science Senior Seminar
  • Fellow met with students to tackle debugging issues in R or Python, including cleaning, analysing, and visualizing their datasets.
• NSBV BC3593 Neuroscience and Behavior Research Seminar
  • Fellow held one-on-one conferences to support students incorporating computational methods into their projects.
• PHYS BC2001/2009 Mechanics Lecture + Laboratory
  • Fellows held bi-weekly office hours to assist students in Microsoft Excel and further facilitate their exploration of essential physics concepts.
• Athena Digital Design Academy (ADDA) (co-curricular)
  • Fellows supported Athena Tech Expert-in-Residence to teach students fundamentals of HTML/CSS, summarized basic concepts for students during in-person meetings, and assisted students with debugging as they built their personal websites during office hours.

Spring 2022

• EDUC BC3250 Education in a Polarized and Unequal Society
  • Fellow supported incorporation of computational and data visualization tools into syllabus and final map-making project.
• COMS BC1016/1017 Introduction to Computational Thinking and Data Science
  • Fellows assisted students during lab sections where students work on daily programming lab assignments and held office hours to support students with course projects and concepts
• HIST BC2366 Climate & History: Intersecting Science, Environment, and Society
  • Fellow led an in-class workshop on visualizing and interpreting historical environmental data.
• EESC BC3300 Workshop in Sustainable Development
  • Fellow supported students on data wrangling and using Python to work with time-series data sets for their final projects.
• COGS GU4051 Natural and Artificial Neural Networks Laboratory
  • Fellow supported students working on Python and machine learning-based labs.
• EESC BC3800 Environmental Science Senior Seminar
  • Fellow supported students using computational methods in Python and R for their final projects.
• NSBV BC3593 Neuroscience and Behavior Research Seminar
  • Fellow held one-on-one conferences to support students incorporating computational methods into their projects.
• COMS BC3420 Privacy in a Networked World
  • Fellow led an in-class workshop on data reidentification, with “challenge” options for students with coding experience.
• CHEM BC3328 Introductory Organic Chemistry Laboratory
  • Fellows supported students using computational methods associated with basic techniques of experimental organic chemistry.
• CHEM BC3348 Advanced Spectroscopy Laboratory
  • Fellows supported students using computational methods associated with lab instrumentation and techniques in spectroscopy.
• Athena Digital Design Academy (ADDA) (co-curricular)
  • Fellows helped with weekly in-person meetings, assisted with debugging, technical problems, and the Athena Center’s weekly Community of Practice.

Fall 2021

• NSBV BC1001 Introduction to Neuroscience
  • Fellow led a workshop on visualization and analysis of data from fruit fly circadian rhythm experiments.
• FYSB BC1736 First Year Seminar: Tech & Society: Good, Bad, and Other
  • Fellow led introductory workshop on data reidentification, how anonymous data can be traced back to an individual user.
• EDUC BC3032 Investigating the Purposes and Aims of Education Policy
  • Fellow led workshop on visualizing data about school commute time collected by a student in the course and using such data visualization tools for storytelling and identifying correlations in data.
• EESC BC3050 Big Data with Python
  • Fellows held one-on-one student consultations with each student about how to approach their final research projects using Python for data visualization of an environmental data set of their choosing.
• EESC BC3800 Environmental Science Senior Seminar
  • Fellow held one-on-one student consultations around how to incorporate computational tools into analysis for their senior research theses.
• NSBV BC3593 Research Seminar in Neuroscience and Behavior
  • Fellow was available to provide computational assistance for student research projects.
• Athena Digital Design Academy (ADDA) (co-curricular)
  • Fellows led workshops and hosted office hours to support ADDA students designing websites using HTML and CSS.
• CHEM BC3333 Modern Techniques of Organic Chemistry Laboratory 
  • Fellows assisted students in using specialized organic chemistry software to make theoretical predictions about chemical properties.​​​​​​​

AY 2020-2021:

• HIST BC2366 Climate & History: Intersecting Science, Environment, and Society
• CHEM BC3328 Organic Chemistry Laboratory
• STEM BC2223 Programming for Behavioral Sciences
• NSBV BC1001 Introduction to Neuroscience
• ARCH UN3312 Special Topics: Mapping the Data-Driven City
• COMS BC3420 Privacy in a Networked World
• FYSB BC1741 Science and Society on Screen
• FYSB BC1736 Tech & Society: Good, Bad, and Other
• EESC BC3050 Big Data with Python
• COMS BC3430 Computational Sound
• COMS BC1016 Intro to Computational Thinking and Data Science

In Big Data with Python, offered by the Environmental Science Department, one student said of the one-on-one consultations offered by a Computing Fellow: “It was super helpful to meet with a computational fellow, I think the best piece of advice [the fellow] gave was to start small and then work your way up to what you want to discover such as the relationship between two sets of data. Although I had a clear goal going into the meeting I think breaking down the pieces was really helpful.”

In Introduction to Neuroscience, a student said: “I really liked learning more about circadian rhythms, and learning how computer science and neuroscience are connected.”

In Organic Chemistry Lab, an instructor said: “Theoretical predictions from the computational hour helped students understand the outcome of hands-on experiments."

In Climate & History, the instructor reported: “The fellow made the class much more interdisciplinary and her contribution had a huge pedagogical impact on students by enhancing their engagement with coding for both science and humanities majors”; and a student noted, “I was never really interested in developing my computing skills but I think this was really useful and we were able to see how data was manipulated.” 

In the first-year seminar Science and Society, one student said about the workshop a Computing Fellow developed:“It definitely encouraged me to try and develop my computing skills. I actually just enrolled in an intro to computer science course over the summer semester."

Past fellows noted: "I learned a lot about how to introduce coding to people who have not coded before...I also learned that I loved coding way more than I thought I did!"