Clara Mercer
Junior Research Engineer | Machine Learning Systems & Numerical Computing
Austin
Professional Summary
Junior Research Engineer with an academic foundation in applied mathematics and computer science, specializing in numerical optimization, model profiling, and distributed training pipelines.
Demonstrated background in translating computational algorithms into performant PyTorch and C++ implementations with robust automated testing.
Professional Experience
Vortexa Dynamics Labs
Austin, TX
Associate Research Engineer
Jul 2024 – Present
- Implement and benchmark PyTorch models for sparse matrix estimation across multi-GPU compute nodes.
- Profile training bottlenecks using NVIDIA Nsight Systems, reducing inference latency by 18% on evaluation runs.
- Maintain automated experiment workflows and artifact logging using MLflow and Docker containers.
- Collaborate with senior researchers to translate mathematical formulation into reproducible training code.
Solarix Analytics
Austin, TX
Data Analyst
Sep 2018 – Jun 2022
- Developed automated Python and SQL data processing pipelines to clean and validate telemetry datasets.
- Implemented statistical regression models to evaluate drift across industrial sensor networks.
- Authored technical documentation and reproducible testing suites for internal analytics utilities.
Education
University of Texas at Austin
Master of Science · Computer Science · Austin, TX · 3.9 GPA · Aug 2022 – May 2024
Completed coursework in distributed systems, numerical optimization, and deep learning architectures with a focus on scientific computing workloads.
Texas A&M University
Bachelor of Science · Applied Mathematics · College Station, TX · 3.8 GPA · Aug 2011 – May 2015
Conducted undergraduate research in numerical linear algebra and differential equations modeling.
Research Projects
Distributed Tensor Decomposition Library
Sep 2023 – Apr 2024
- Engineered a C++ and CUDA library implementing parallel matrix decomposition algorithms for high-dimensional matrices.
- Achieved a 2.4x speedup over reference single-threaded CPU implementations on synthetic scientific datasets.
- Integrated unit testing and continuous integration benchmarks via GitHub Actions.
Technical Skills
PyTorch
Python
C++
CUDA
Distributed Systems
Linux
Docker
Git
Numerical Optimization
Experiment Tracking
Languages
English
C2
Spanish
B1
Certifications
AWS Certified Machine Learning - Specialty
Amazon Web Services · Nov 2024
Community Involvement
Austin STEM Mentorship Collective
Austin, TX · Jan 2021 – Dec 2023
- Volunteer Coding Tutor
- Facilitated biweekly tutoring sessions covering foundational Python programming and linear algebra for adult career switchers.
- Assisted learners with debugging code assignments and setting up local development environments.