Vahan Yoghourdjian, PhD

Vahan completed his PhD in Computer Science at Monash University, in Australia, in 2018. His thesis is titled “All Diagrams Neat and Beautiful, All Networks Great and Small”, and introduces advanced and novel techniques for the visualization and analysis of data in a way that is scalable from small and relatively simple networks to very large and complex networks in fields such as Biology and the Social Sciences. The research involved algorithm engineering, optimization, user studies, user-centered design, and statistical analysis and modeling. The work was presented at the premier international conference on Data Visualization (IEEE VIS) in Berlin (2018) and Chicago (2015). In the course of this research, and in his Masters and Undergraduate studies Vahan has mastered various Computer Science paradigms.

In addition to a rich education and research experience, Vahan also has experiences in teaching and developing software. As a teaching assistant, he helped create material for data exploration and visualization units. He taught design principles, methodologies, tools and languages (Python, R, JavaScript and Tableau); evaluated and provided feedback on assignments, presentations, and projects. As a Software Engineer, he managed projects and teams, distributed and prioritized tasks, designed enhancements and new features, participated in requirements gathering, developed, and prepared and presented training material.

Vahan resides in Los Angeles, California. He works as a Software Engineer at Google since 2021. He is also the founder and president of Usum Inc., which is a California based charitable organization. Usum Inc. aims to provide tuition assistance to students in need, offer scholarships to students with academic merit, and support programs that improve the quality of education in Lebanon.