Matt Nicholson

I am a PhD student in Information Science at University of Colorado Boulder, and I have previously held roles at Capital One, Nielsen, and Allstate. I graduated from Northwestern University cum laude with majors in Computer Science and Mathematical Methods in the Social Sciences.

Academic Service

Journal Reviewer

  • The International AAAI Conference on Web and Social Media (ICWSM): 2024

Poster/Late-Breaking Work Track Reviewer

  • The ACM CHI conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI): 2024
  • The ACM Conference On Computer-Supported Cooperative Work And Social Computing (CSCW): 2023

Leadership

We All Code

Chicago, IL

Director

Feb 2020 – March 2023

  • Formed connections with other youth-focused community-based organizations to expand access to computing education in historically underserved communities
  • Taught free introductory programming workshops for students aged 7 to 17 to foster an inclusive computing culture and promote equity in computer science education

Office of New Students and Family Programs

Evanston, IL

Undergraduate Peer Adviser

March 2017 - June 2019

  • Served as a mentor and first-year guide two consecutive years to groups of nine students in order to ease the transition to Northwestern
  • Underwent 24 weeks of leadership training to prepare for the facilitation of intentional dialogue regarding Diversity & Inclusion, Mental Health/Wellness, and Navigating Academics

Northwestern University Space Technology and Rocketry Society

Evanston, IL

Lead Engineer, Near Space Exploration Team

April 2016 – June 2018

  • Founded and led the design of multiple high-altitude balloon payloads to control altitude and photograph the earth during a solar eclipse
  • Managed 10 team members and a $5000 budget to ensure that each team member gained technical expertise and steady progress was made