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Priscila Santiesteban

Computer Science & Engineering Ph.D. Candidate

Aug. 2021 - Current

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

Who Am I?

I'm a Ph.D. student working with Professor Westley Weimer at the University of Michigan. My research interest are in software engineering and human studies of programming. My current work investigates the cognitive processes associated with debugging and and comprehending programs at the pedagogical level. I am interested in learning more about how programmers of various backgrounds code.
Outside of work, I like watching Youtube videos like Good Mythical Morning or catching up with my family. Activities aside, I am a gluten-free cook and a coffee enthusiast ~

Academic Highlights

April 2023: Awarded the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship (Personal Statement (avaliable upon request) , Research Statement)
Feb. 2023: Passed the Qualifying Exams
Aug. 2021: Started the CSE Ph.D. at the University of Michigan: Funded by the Rackham Merit Fellowship
May 2021: Graduated from Coe College with a BA in Computer Science and Physics

Research Interests

Cognition and Programming

Functional Neuroimaging – scanning of brain activity – has provided researchers with an understanding of the relationship between activity in certain brain regions and specific mental functions, and is being increasingly applied to study cognitive processes of programming. I believe neuroimaging studies have potential positive implications for pedagogy, such as student retention and academic support.

Ongoing Project: Towards a Cognitive Model of Dynamic Debugging: Does Identifier Construction Matter?

(Block in the works)

Publications

Peer-Reviewed Publications

Further details can be found in my CV

  1. Danniell Hu, Priscila Santiesteban, Madeline Endres, Westley Weimer: Towards a Cognitive Model of Dynamic Debugging: Does Identifier Construction Matter? in IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering, 2024. [Data and Materials]
  2. Hammad Ahmad, Madeline Endres, Kaia Newman, Priscila Santiesteban, Emma Shedden, Westley Weimer: Causal Relationships and Programming Outcomes: A Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Experiment: in International Conference on Software Engineering, 2024. [Artifact, News Coverage] (Distinguished Paper Award)
  3. Priscila Santiesteban, Yu Huang, Hammad Ahmad, Westley Weimer: CirFix: Automated Hardware Repair and its Real World Applications: in IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering, 2023. [Slide Deck, Artifact]
  4. Priscila Santiesteban, Madeline Endres, Westley Weimer: An Analysis of Sex Differences in Computing Teaching Evaluations: GE@ICSE 3rd Workshop on Gender Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion in Software Engineering, 2022. [Dataset, Conference Talk]
  5. Chu-Pan Wong, Priscila Santiesteban, Christian Kästner, Claire Le Goues: VarFix: balencing edit effectivness in automated program repair: ESEC/FSE issue on the proceedings of the 29th ACM on European Software Engineering Conference and Symposium on the Foundations of Software Engineering, 2021.