Computational Linguist at Google Loves the Discovery

Name: Chris Stewart (he/him)

PhD: French (Linguistics), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2009

What was your main area of research?

My dissertation research was on the perception of speech varieties in Parisian French that are associated with immigration, mostly from the Maghreb (northern Africa).

What is your current job?

I am a Senior Computational Linguist and Research Scientist at Google, working remotely in the U.S.

I have a hybrid position (Researcher / Data Scientist / ML Engineer / Project Manager) aimed at producing end-to-end brand safety solutions.

What is your favorite thing about your job?

I love discovery, writing, and helping other people.

What is the most important skill you developed or experience you had during your PhD that now helps you in your current position?

Critical thinking, research orientation, experimental design, and human-focused understanding of science

How did you build the skills necessary for your current role?

I built on what I learned during my PhD through on-the-job training and Coursera classes.

How did you find this position? What were the career steps you took to get to where you are now?

I was recruited.

PhD graduate ➡️ Voice Engineer ➡️ Sr. Data Scientist ➡️ Sr. Data Scientist ➡️ Analytical Linguist ➡️ Computational Linguist ➡️ Sr. Computational Linguist ➡️ Sr. Computational Linguist / Research Scientist

If someone is interested in a similar role, what would you recommend they start doing now to prepare?

• Learn Python and SQL

• Read journal articles critically

• Develop intuitions for thinking programmatically and probabilistically

Why did you decide to not pursue a career in academia?

I still have a foot in academia through a Research Associate appointment at the University of Memphis's Institute for Intelligent Systems. I still think about trying to go back into academia, e.g. keeping my publication record active and writing a book.

I left, quite simply, because I didn't like the job that I had and there were no other jobs. It wasn't easy, but I didn't feel like I had much of a choice.

What advice do you have for someone getting their PhD and looking to pursue a career outside of academia?

Mental flexibility is helpful for redefining yourself outside of academia, but it's also helpful for almost every other hard thing that you'll have to do in life.

Are there any components of your identity you would like to share, including how they have impacted your journey?

Yes, I grew up poor. My family is from south Alabama. My upbringing was hard in some ways. We didn't have a lot of money and I went to public schools, except for my undergrad. I have always had a scrappy mindset and I really, really think that that has helped me professionally.