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General Information
Full Name | Saya Dennis |
Date of Birth | 8 August 1993 |
Languages | English, Japanese |
Professional Experience
- 2019 - present
Doctorate Researcher
Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University
- Implemented ML/DL models and parallelized data processing pipelines on large-scale (30+TB) WGS data to develop a disease onset prediction model with 96 % accuracy
- Processed and analyzed 30+ publicly available spatial transcriptomics datasets
- Developed a text-mining pipeline to retrieve information from 3000+ oncology and pathology notes
- Explored novel dimensionality reduction approaches informed by biological domain knowledge
- Collaborated closely with 3+ physicians to identify and pursue opportunities for ML applications
- Documented workflows on public repositories for transparency and reproducibility
- 2022 - present
HPC Research Computing Consultant
Northwestern University IT
- Consulted researchers from 10+ departments to address their hardware and software needs and facilitate computational workflows on a high-performance compute cluster (HPC)
- Taught 4 tutorials and workshops to help users get started with their workflows on the HPC
- Developed scripts to map dependencies between software modules to assist with deprecation
- 2023
Machine Learning Engineer
Evozyne, Inc.
- Scaled out the existing protein-generative ML framework by implementing a distributed, population-based training feature for an optimized and systematic hyperparameter search
- Implemented temporal orchestration among Metaflow runs in a Kubernetes cluster via cloud storage
- Developed deployment-ready features included in the CI/CD pipelines and production release of the company’s ML software
- Collaborated closely with other software engineers, using version control (Git) to manage parallel development efforts and resolve conflicts efficiently
- 2022
Machine Learning Summer Associate
Tempus Labs, Inc.
- Developed ML models to predict the onset of 4 different types of cancer using structured EHRs and demonstrated the value of the dataset through statistical evaluations
- Refined the data processing pipeline by experimentation of 30+ combinations of parameters
- Eliminated data leakage by initiating an improved method for diagnosis identification
- Proposed a novel data sampling approach to alleviate issues of class imbalance and data availability
- Presented research findings in team meetings
- 2020
Teaching Assistant
Statistics and Data Analysis for Life Science, Northwestern University
- Guided 40+ students with varying levels of experience through statistical and coding problems
- Reported the students' needs to the course instructor to improve course material
- 2017 - 2019
Research Technologist II
Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University
- Conducted biochemical and high-throughput sequencing experiments to study embryo development
- Troubleshooted assays by identifying underlying issues and proposing alternative approaches
- Trained 2 new team members on management of reagents and supplies used by 10+ colleagues
Education
- 2025
PhD in Biomedical Informatics
Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA
- 2017
BS in Environmental Sciences & Ecology
Tokyo University, Tokyo, Japan
Volunteering Experience
- 2020 - present
President
Japanese Graduate Student Association in the United States
- Educated aspiring students looking to pursue a graduate degree abroad by coordinating semi-annual information sessions with 30+ presenters and 200+ participants
- Communicated closely with sponsors to ensure and negotiate continued financial support for 3 years
- Adapted a previously in-person information session to a fully virtual format during the pandemic
- 2022 - present
Founder & President
Northwestern Japanese Graduate Student Association
- Started the first official Japanese Graduate Student Association at Northwestern University, funded by The Graduate School.
- Organized quarterly gatherings with 30+ participants that offered a safe space as well as a networking opportunity for the Japanese community and their families.
- 2021
Service Chair
Graduate Women Across Northwestern
- Raised awareness of the needs of marginalized women by holding educational book clubs
- Facilitated discussions about marginalization between students from diverse backgrounds