Sehrish Basir Nizamani

About

Academically driven educator and researcher with 17+ years of experience across teaching, research, and academic service. My work blends human–computer interaction, usability and culture, digital education, and natural language processing, with a focus on improving learning and user experience in real contexts.

Human–Computer Interaction Large-language models Usability & Culture Digital Education NLP Information Systems

At a Glance

Virginia Tech, since 2023

Collegiate Assistant Professor, Computer Science

Courses: CS 3114, CS 2104, CS/CMDA/STAT 3654, CS 4604

Research Areas & Interests

Human–computer interaction; usability studies; culture in usability and design; digital education and technology acceptance; natural language processing; information systems.

Designing and evaluating culture-oriented heuristics for web and learning technologies.
Understanding how LLMs and AI can support usability evaluation and teaching.
Evidence-based improvements to learning at scale in CS courses.

Teaching

Regular Courses

CS 3114 — Data Structures & Algorithms
CS 2104 — Problem Solving in Computer Science
CS/CMDA/STAT 3654 — Data Analytics & Visualization
CS 4604 — Introduction to Database Management Systems

Teaching Approach

Hands‑on, project‑based learning and iterative design.
Inclusive pedagogy with accessibility at the core.
Responsible, reflective use of AI and LLMs in coursework.

Undergraduate Research

ENG 2974/4974 Undergraduate Research/Independent Study — mentoring students across LLM and HCI, usability, AI-in-education, and database pedagogy.

Publications (Selected)

Journal Articles

(Accepted, 2025) Sehrish Nizamani, Saad Nizamani, Nazish Basir, Khalil Khoumbati, Sarwat Nizamani, Shahzad Memon. “Comparison of cultural preferences and cultural practices in website design in Pakistan.” Universal Access in the Information Society, Springer Nature. DOI: 10.1007/s10209-025-01248-w.
Sarwat Nizamani, Mariyam Shareef, Abdul Samad Jamali, Nabeel Hussain Kazi, Burhan Khan, Sehrish Nizamani, Iffat Rajput. “FeelSafe: A Women's Safety and Security System.” International Journal of Innovations in Science & Technology, 7(6), 1–11.
Sehrish Nizamani, Saad Nizamani, Nazish Basir, Gulsher Laghari, Sarwat Nizamani, Khalil Khoumbati. “Heuristic Evaluation vs. Guideline Scoring – A Tale of Comparing Two Domain Usability Expert’s Evaluation Methods.” IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication, 65(4), 2022, 516–529. DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2022.3201732.
Burhan Khan, Sehrish Nizamani, Nabeel Hussain Kazi, Saad Nizamani, Sarwat Nizamani. “A Prototype of Obstacle Avoidance for Autonomous Vehicle.” Iraqi Journal of Science, 2022, 63(5), 2203–2210. DOI: 10.24996/ijs.2022.63.5.33.
Sehrish Nizamani, Khalil Khoumbati, Sarwat Nizamani, Shahzad Memon, Saad Nizamani, Gulsher Laghari. “A methodology for domain and culture-oriented heuristics creation and validation.” Behaviour & Information Technology, 41(8), 2022, 1769–1795. DOI: 10.1080/0144929X.2021.1903080.
Sehrish Nizamani, Saad Nizamani, Muhammad Memon, Sarwat Nizamani, Shahzad Memon. “Domain and culture-specific heuristic evaluation of the websites of universities of Pakistan.” University of Sindh Journal of Information and Communication Technology (USJICT), 5(1), 2021, 45–51.
Nazish Basir, Bisharat Memon, Abdul Waheed Mahesar, Yasir Arafat Malkani, Sehrish Nizamani. “Network Analysis of co-authorship system of the University of Sindh authors on Science Direct.” USJICT, 5(3), 2021, 152–157.
Khurram Farooque, Bilal Ahmed, Waqas Raza, Nabeel Hussain Kazi, Sehrish Nizamani, Mehjabeen Leghari, Saad Nizamani, Sarwat Nizamani. “WaterO: A Smart Water Device.” USJICT, 4(4), 2020, 217–220.
Danish Nazir Arain, Nazish Basir, Sehrish Nizamani. “Towards medium-scale and large-scale game development using agile-based scrum.” USJICT, 4(3), 2020, 134–138.
Gulsher Laghari, Saad Nizamani, Sehrish Nizamani, Muniba Memon, Altaf Hussain Abro, Muhammad Yaqoob Koondhar. “Making the Software Architecture Explicit in Java Programs to enable dynamic evolution.” Sindh University Research Journal (Science Series), 51(03), 2019, 151–158.
Sehrish Nizamani, Khalil Khoumbati, Sarwat Nizamani, Shahzad Memon, Saad Nizamani. “Usability Evaluation of the Top 10 Universities of Pakistan Through Guideline Scoring.” Sindh University Research Journal (Science Series), 51(01), 2019, 151–158.
Kamran Dahri, Hassan Z., Gulsher Laghari, Sehrish Nizamani, Saad Nizamani, Sarwat Nizamani, Abdul Rehman Nizamani. “Prototype Smart Parking System Accessible via Android.” Sindh University Research Journal (Science Series), 50(3D), 2018, 16–219.
Sarwat Nizamani, Nasrullah Memon, Sehrish Nizamani, Saad Nizamani. “TDC: Typed Dependencies-Based Chunking Model.” Arabian Journal for Science and Engineering, 42(8), 2018, 3585–3595. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13369-017-2587-y.
Sehrish Nizamani, Khalil Khoumbati, Imdad Ali Ismaili, Saad Nizamani, Nazish Basir. “Testing and Validating the ERP Success Evaluation Model for Higher Education Institutes of Pakistan.” International Journal of Business and Information Systems, 25(2), 2017, 165–191. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1504/IJBIS.2017.083682.
Kamran Dahri, Sehrish Nizamani, Gulsher Laghari, Saad Nizamani, Sarwat Nizamani. “Towards Home Automation System Framework and Design.” Sindh University Research Journal (Science Series), 48(4), 2016, 849–854.
Sarwat Nizamani, Nasrullah Memon, Azhar Ali Shah, Saad Nizamani, Sehrish Nizmaani, Imdad Ali Ismaili. “Crime analysis using open-source information.” Sindh University Research Journal (Science Series), 47(4), 2015, 677–681.
Sehrish Nizamani, Khalil Khoumbati, Imdad Ali Ismaili, Saad Nizamani. “Influence of Top Management Support as an important factor for ERP Implementation in Higher Education Institutes of Pakistan.” Sindh University Research Journal (Science Series), 47(2), 2015, 295–302.
Saad Nizamani, Kamran Dahri, Sehrish Nizamani, Sarwat Nizamani, Gulsher Laghari. “An efficient partitioning clustering algorithm.” Sindh University Research Journal (Science Series), 47(1), 2015, 171–174.
Sarwat Nizamani, Saad Nizamani, Sehrish Nizamani, Imdad Ali Ismaili. “On the computational models for the analysis of illicit activities.” Sindh University Research Journal (Science Series), 46(4), 2014, 561–566.
Sehrish Nizamani, Khalil Khoumbati, Imdad Ali Ismaili, Saad Nizamani. “A Conceptual Framework for ERP Evaluation in Higher Educational Institutes of Pakistan.” Sindh University Research Journal (Science Series), 45(3), 2013, 596–607.

Conference Papers

Sarwat Nizamani, Areeba Muhammad Akhlaque, Fasih Rana, Sehrish Basir Nizamani (Accepted, 2025). “Abusive Language Detection from Roman Urdu YouTube Comments.” IEEE International Conference on Data-Driven Social Change (ICDDSC-2025), Tando Jam, Pakistan.
Nolan Platt, Ethan Luchs, Sehrish Basir Nizamani (Accepted, 2025). “Catching UX Flaws in Code: Leveraging LLMs to Identify Usability Flaws at the Development Stage.” Raleigh, North Carolina, USA.
Sehrish Nizamani, Saad Nizamani, Sarwat Nizamani, Nazish Basir, Khalil Khoumbati, Shahzad Memon (2022). “Usability Evaluation of University Websites in Pakistan through User Testing.” 2022 International Conference on Emerging Technologies in Electronics, Computing, and Communication (ICETECC), Jamshoro, Sindh, Pakistan, pp. 1–6. DOI: 10.1109/ICETECC56662.2022.10069383.
Sehrish Nizamani, Khalil Khoumbati, Sarwat Nizamani, Shahzad Memon, Saad Nizamani, Nazish Basir (2018). “Exploring the Impact of Cultural Preferences in Website Design: A Controlled Experiment Based on Three University Websites of Pakistan.” In 2018 International Conference on Information and Communication Technology for the Muslim World (ICT4M), pp. 329–334. IEEE. DOI: 10.1109/ICT4M.2018.00067.
Saad Nizamani, Sehrish Nizamani, Khalil Khoumbati, Sarwat Nizamani, Shahzad Memon, Nazish Basir (2018). “Cultural preferences of Pakistan for the university website design.” In 2018 International Conference on Information and Communication Technology for the Muslim World (ICT4M), pp. 323–328. IEEE. DOI: 10.1109/ICT4M.2018.00066.

Grants & Funding

Startup Funds

Virginia Tech — $15,000 (Fall 2023). Initial startup funding as new faculty.

New Faculty Mentoring Grant

New Faculty Mentoring Program — $1,500 (Fall 2023). Mentorship support for faculty development.

Project‑Based Learning Funds

CETL — $500 (Fall 2023). Teaching‑focused professional development.

Problem‑Based Learning Funds

CETL — $500 (Fall 2023). Teaching‑focused professional development.

NSF IUSE Teaching Excellence Stipend

Via E. Engr Ed. — $1,000 (Spring 2024). Teaching Excellence Workshop.

Teaching in the Age of Generative AI

TLOS — $5,000 (Summer 2024). Pedagogical strategies for AI‑integrated teaching.

Faculty Innovation Group – Large Classroom

CETL — $1,000 (Summer 2024). Innovative strategies for large classes.

Faculty Innovation Group – Learning Interventions

CETL — $1,000 (Summer 2024). Interventions to enhance learning.

Collaborative SQL Tool Grant

TLOS — $5,000 (Fall 2024). Gamified SQL practice tool for DB courses.

High‑Impact Course Redesign

CETL — $10,000 (Fall 2025). Redesign of CS‑2104.

4‑VA Collaborative Research Grant

4‑VA — $30,000 (Fall 2025). AI‑assisted framework for classroom evaluation.

Panels, Presentations & Invited Talks

Recent Highlights

Roundtable: Cross-Disciplinary Strategies for Teaching with AI: A Collaborative Roundtable Discussion, Conference on Higher Education Pedagogy — Feb 12–14, 2025.
Seminar: Reimagining Cultural Exploration in Human-Computer Interaction, CHCI Weekly Seminar — Feb 7, 2025.
Workshop: Teaching and Learning in the Age of Generative AI, University of Mirpurkhas — Nov 26, 2024.
Panelist: New Faculty Welcome 2024 — Latham Ballroom, The Inn at Virginia Tech — Aug 22, 2024.
Panelist: TechGirls Event — Jul 24, 2024.
Paper: Impact of the Metaverse on the Buying Choices of Children and Teens, CHI 2024 Workshop: Transformative Technologies for Children — 2024.
Panelist: Thinking of Graduate School, ACM CAPWIC 2024 — 2024.
Big Idea Presentation: Reimagining Cultural Exploration in Human-Computer Interaction, CHCI Big Ideas Workshop — Mar 22, 2024.
Paper: Usability Evaluation of University Websites of Pakistan through User Testing, International Conference on Emerging Technologies in Electronics, Computing, and Communication — Dec 7–9, 2022.
Invited Talk: Importance of LinkedIn for Early Career Seekers, Sindh University Campus @ Mirpurkhas — Oct 13, 2022.
Paper: Cultural Preferences vs. Cultural Practices in the Design of the Websites of Pakistan, 1st International Conference on Emerging Trends in Information and Engineering Technology (NCETIET-2020) — Nov 18–19, 2020.
Paper: Exploring the Impact of Cultural Preferences in Website Design: A Controlled Experiment Based on Three University Websites of Pakistan, International Conference on Information and Communication Technology for the Muslim World (ICT4M), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia — Jul 23–25, 2018.
Paper: Cultural Preferences of Pakistan for the University Website Design, International Conference on Information and Communication Technology for the Muslim World (ICT4M), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia — Jul 23–25, 2018.

Service & Leadership

Department & University

Member, Inclusive Committee, Computer Science (2024–present)
HCI Qualifier Committee (2025–present)
Faculty representative, Administrative Awards Committee (2025–present)
Graduate Admissions Review

Professional

Chair / Co‑Chair, ACM CAPWIC (2026 / 2025)
Program Committee & Reviewer (SIGCSE, CAPWIC, journals & venues)
Reviewer, Federal Research Agency (2024)

Research Advising

Ph.D.

Khoulood Alharthi.

Undergraduate

Summer 2025 — LLM & HCI (22 students)
Summer 2025 — DBWorkout (9 students)
Spring 2025 — DBWorkout (15 students)
Spring 2025 — AI & Usability Evaluation (10 students)
Summer 2024 — Gamifying CS Education (2 students)
Spring 2024 — Gamifying CS Education (2 students)

Skills

Technical

Python Java C/C++ SQL Tableau R SPSS Figma Adobe XD Miro Oracle / MySQL / PostgreSQL