Amanda Fernandez: Connecting undergraduate students with STEM research opportunities

In between earning advanced degrees in computer science and becoming a faculty member at UTSA, Amanda Fernandez spent several years building a resume that includes roles in startups, government and the private sector as a software engineer and machine learning researcher. While she enjoyed the work and the opportunities it provided to polish her programming, research and leadership skills, she missed the teaching and mentorship aspects that came with being in a classroom setting.

“Ultimately, I missed the student interactions,” Fernandez said. “I started teaching a course on the side and really enjoyed engaging students in new artificial intelligence concepts, and the very collaborative environment that is academic research. UTSA’s emphasis on AI and interdisciplinary research brought me back to academia.”

Now an associate professor of computer science at UTSA, Fernandez leverages her industry experience in multiple roles both in and out of the classroom.

This includes serving as director of the UTSA Vision and AI Lab (VAIL), where she and her team design explainable and robust artificial intelligence, with the goal of improving its security and performance while exploring its applications in the physical sciences. She also serves as a machine learning and deployment thrust lead for MATRIX: The AI Consortium for Human Well-Being, the preeminent AI research center in the region, and is a principal investigator in the Consortium on Nuclear Security Technologies (CONNECT), which educates and trains the next generation of scientists and engineers in the nuclear security field.

In the classroom, Fernandez has designed special topics courses like the new Computer Science Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience (CS-CURE) to help students build a strong foundation in research principles and scientific exploration. In her course, students learn how to develop and execute their own original research projects, understand and engage with existing scientific literature, and analyze and interpret data. They also learn how to present their findings to other scientists during an end-of-semester poster showcase.

Fernandez’s CS-CURE course helps undergraduates supplement their education with invaluable hands-on research experience, preparing them for internships, graduate-level study and research, or careers in industry.

“The course is intended to help students discover whether research is for them, build these skills, and help them find topics of interest to them. Even if they decide not to continue the research project they’ve chosen, they have the skills to continue to learn after graduation, which is critical to fields such as computer science which advance rapidly.” 

Amanda Fernandez 

Fernandez, who is one of many UTSA faculty joining the College of AI, Cyber and Computing when it launches in fall 2025, says these types of experience-based learning opportunities and specialized courses will only grow with the debut of the new college. 

“The computer science program has grown steadily each year, and we have been fortunate to hire many teaching-focused faculty to support more sections and a breadth of new courses. I anticipate the new college will help us to continue this growth,” she said. “I am most looking forward to establishing new collaborative programs to engage students in our research. As a member of several consortiums such as MATRIX and CONNECT, I see the impact we can have when we join together on research, and I think this new college will bring it to another level.”

Fernandez teaches the following courses:

• CS 4593: Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience in Computer Science
• CS 3443: Application Programming
• CS 3793 / 5233: Artificial Intelligence
• CS 4263 / 5483: Deep Learning

Launching in Fall 2025, the UTSA College of AI, Cyber and Computing will integrate disciplines in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, computing, and data science across four specialized departments, fostering collaboration and innovation. With an anticipated enrollment of over 5,000 students, the college will offer cutting-edge academic programs designed to meet workforce demands, strengthening UTSA’s leadership in emerging technologies. Located in downtown San Antonio, the college is positioned as a cornerstone of regional economic growth and technological advancement.