I am an assistant professor in Computer Science at Rutgers University New Brunswick.

Previously, I was a postdoctoral researcher at UC San Diego advised by Sorin Lerner. I completed my PhD in Computer Science at UMass Amherst, where I was advised by Yuriy Brun. I received a BS in Math and Computer Science from Harvey Mudd College.

When I’m not working on research, I’m mostly watching reality TV or rooting for the Philadelphia Eagles (go birds). I also enjoy playing tennis, skiing, and cooking with my amazing husband Subendhu Rongali.

Research Interests

Overall, my research interests are in AI for SE/PL and formal/quantitative reasoning.

I am interested in leveraging AI for theorem proving as a playground for exploring how AI can reason better, and in turn, how humans can use AI to reason better themselves in a variety of domains, such as formal verifiation and mathematics.

I consider myself an interdisciplinary researcher, working at the intersection of machine learning, software engineering, and programming languages. I work on creating tools to automatically generate proofs and lemmas in proof assistant languages, such as Rocq (formerly Coq), Isabelle/HOL, and Lean. I am also interested in making effective interfaces for humans to interact with AI-based tools for these languages to enhance their productivity.

Working With Me

I’m always looking for self-motivated students to work with. Though not all of these are required, I am especially looking for students who have (1) software engineering experience, (2) a solid background in machine learning, and (3) experience with proof assistants, verification-aware languages, or theorem proving.

Current Rutgers MS & Undergrads: If you’re interested in volunteering to work on research with me, you can reach out via email. Include a short CV, transcript, and a paragraph about your interests and skills. I may be slow to respond as I’m transitioning into this new role.

PhD Applicants: I’ll be recruiting PhD students to start in Fall 2026. Apply through the Rutgers CS PhD program. In your statement, mention my name and describe your fit with my research areas.

Contact

emily dot first at rutgers dot edu

Please do not send emails to my ucsd or umass email addresses as they are no longer active.

Any email not from my official rutgers email address is NOT me. I have not sent a mass email offering assistantships or money of any sort. Scammers suck, stay vigilant.