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​Teaching

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Preservation and transfer of knowledge across generations is as important as the generation of knowledge and is the most important investment humanity can make. Teaching is at the core of this essential, millennia-old mission. The exercise of teaching also allows scholars to rethink ideas and concepts alongside younger minds with weaker priors, which I personally think is the most exciting aspect of academia.

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In Fall 2023, during my first semester at WashU, I developed and taught a new course, Planets and Life in the Universe (Physics 3330/5330), a planetary astrophysics course, to a joint audience of upper-level undergraduates and graduate students. I used my teaching release in Spring 2024.

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In Fall 2024, I developed and taught Gateway Expeditions into Exoplanets (Physics 1210), the non-calculus version of Planets and Life in the Universe that served as the first-semester course in a new first-year Ampersand Program at WashU.

 

In Spring 2025, I developed and taught another new course, Astrostatistics (Physics 4680/5680), that provides an advanced overview of statistical methods for critically analyzing and forward-modeling astronomical datasets.

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In Spring 2026, I am teaching Galactic Astrophysics (Physics 4646/5460). In Fall 2026, I plan to use another teaching release in anticipation of the Roman's launch and commissioning efforts. In Spring 2027, I will be double-teaching Astrostatistics and Gateway Expeditions into Exoplanets.

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You may find up-to-date WashU class schedules here, and refer to the astrophysics major, astrophysics minor, and physics major pages for further information.

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I recently taught a series of astrotatistics lectures focused on strong gravitational lensing at the Mexican Astro-Cosmo Statistics School (MACCS) in León, Guanajuato, Mexico, on October 1-2, 2025.

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​Mentoring

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I serve as a mentor for several initiatives to help the next generation of researchers refine their questions and methods. I have served as a mentor for the Transdisciplinary Mentoring Community (TMC) during the 2024-2025 (inaugural) and 2025-2026 academic years and the Advancing Research Culture (ARC)​ program during Spring 2025 and Spring 2026 (ongoing) at WashU Arts & Sciences.

Planets and Life in the Universe

Physics 3330/5330

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Planets and Life in the Universe (Physics 3330/5330) is a calculus-based introduction to planetary astrophysics. Topics include epicycle theory, geocentric and heliocentric models, Kepler's laws of planetary motion, celestial mechanics using Newtonian formalism, the three-body problem, nature of light and photometry, astrometry, observables of exoplanets such as microlensing, transits, radial velocity variations, and direct imaging, orbital stability, models of planet formation, evolution, and migration, exoplanetary atmospheres, life as a planetary phenomenon, thermodynamics of life, biosignatures, and technosignatures. The course includes a class project featuring the analysis and modeling of TESS data, a student-led exoplanet tournament called ExoCup, and a Socratic discussion in an inverted classroom setting. Graduate students taking the course do an additional assignment in the form of a literature paper. The course requires previous knowledge of introductory physics and elementary vector calculus.

Gateway Expeditions into Exoplanets

Physics 1210

Gateway Expeditions into Exoplanets (Physics 1210) is a non-calculus introduction to exoplanets and our search for life in the Cosmos. Topics include introductory astronomy, early cosmological models, Kepler's laws of planetary motion, qualitative aspects of the three-body problem, nature of light, observables of exoplanets such as microlensing, transits, radial velocity variations, and direct imaging, qualitative aspects of planet formation, evolution, and migration, exoplanetary atmospheres, life as a planetary phenomenon, thermodynamics of life, biosignatures, and technosignatures. The course includes a class project featuring the analysis and modeling of TESS data, a student-led exoplanet tournament called ExoCup, and a Socratic discussion in an inverted classroom setting. The course does not have a prerequisite but is designed as an accelerated introduction to astrophysics for students intending to major in astrophysics or related fields.

Astrostatistics

Physics 4680/5680

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This course introduces astrostatistics as the application of probability and statistical inference to astronomical and astrophysical data, where experiments are observational, uncertainties are unavoidable, and data are often incomplete, noisy, and high-dimensional. It develops the statistical foundations needed to interpret such data, including probability theory, random variables, expectation values, and common distributions, and connects these ideas to the scientific method and hypothesis testing. Emphasis is placed on understanding uncertainty, limitations of data, and the assumptions behind statistical models, with examples drawn from real astrophysical contexts. By integrating statistical reasoning with physical insight, the course equips students with practical tools to analyze observations, test theories, and draw reliable conclusions about the universe despite intrinsic observational constraints.

Galactic Astrophysics

Physics 4646/5460

Coming soon.

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Pre-faculty Teaching

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Before becoming a faculty member at WashU, I had been the teaching fellow and/or guest lecturer for the following:

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  • Summer school "Quantum to Cosmos", TÜBÄ°TAK/TBAE, Summer 2019

  • 12S680, Artificial Intelligence for TESS Applications, MIT, Spring 2019

  • ASTRON130, Cosmology, Harvard University, Spring 2018

  • PHYS212, Graduate Cosmology, Harvard University, Fall 2016

  • SPU019, The Energetic Universe, Harvard University, Spring 2014

  • PHYS207, Concepts of Modern Physics, METU, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Spring 2013

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