From Corporate Cubicle to Cutting-Edge Research
Before joining Temple’s HCI Lab, Cindy Zastudil was writing code at Vanguard. The work was stable—but she wanted something more. In 2022, she made the leap to pursue a PhD, drawn by the chance to help shape Dr. Stephen MacNeil’s newly launched lab from the ground up.
Research That Changes Lives
Cindy’s work sits at the intersection of technology and human need. One branch of her research focuses on augmentative and alternative communication. She’s developing smarter, context-aware devices that help minimally verbal autistic children not just communicate, but genuinely participate in the social world around them.
Her other focus hits closer to home for many Temple students: equitable computing education. She studies collaborative learning—think group projects and pair programming—and asks a critical question: How do we make these experiences actually work for neurodivergent students, rather than leaving them behind?
The Real Talk on PhD Life
Cindy doesn’t sugarcoat it: doctoral work means sitting with uncertainty, handling rejection, and learning to be your own boss. What makes it worth it? Getting to solve problems that shape how real people live their lives.
Her Advice for Curious Owls
Start talking to people. Reach out to students and faculty in labs. Explore programs like Research Scholars or Diamond Scholars. And don’t overload your schedule—even just learning what research involves is a valuable first step.
