Photo of Caitlin Duncan

Caitlin Duncan

How do we prepare the next generation of New Zealanders to be pioneers in the digital era?

Caitlin is studying towards a PhD degree in the field of Computing and Computational Thinking Education under the supervision of Prof. Tanja Mitrovic and Prof. Tim Bell within the Computer Science Education Group. Her thesis is titled "Computer Science and Computational Thinking in Primary School".

Research Interests

  • Computer Science and programming education.
  • Computer Science and Computational Thinking in society.
  • Women in Computing.
  • Tech culture and diversity.

Personal Interests

Interested in diversity and intersectional feminism in the technology industry and within New Zealand Universities.

I also have a strong interest in mental health, supporting students with mental illness and coping with stress, and fighting the stigma around mental illness. I run presentations and workshops on using Computer Science to take care of your mental health titled 'Debug Your Brain'. Please contact me if you are interested in hosting a presentation or workshop on this.

Campus Life

Past president of, and restarted, the CSSE Computer Chicks Club (now WitSoc).

Heavily involved with CompSoc, CSSE Department outreach, and the CSSE postgrad community.

I love being a part of the CSSE Department at Canterbury, the student community is vibrant and great fun to be a part of, and our staff are committed to making our degrees relevant to industry and research.

Academic History

2010 - 2013: BSc with First Class Honours in Computer Science, University of Canterbury

2014: Google Anita Borg Scholarship Recipient

2014 - Present: PhD in Computer Science, University of Canterbury

2015: Recieved the Best Paper Award at the WiPSCE'15 conference in London

 

Professional History

Code Club Aotearoa core team member and volunteer.

For a list of my publications please visit my Google Scholar Profile

2018 Finalist for the NZ Excellence in IT Young IT Professional of the Year Award 

Contact Details

Email: caitlin.duncan@pg.canterbury.ac.nz

Room: Erskine 346

Ext: 6632