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Zoe Stanley is a BA Cognitive Science Honours student at SFU, focusing on philosophy, neuroscience, and artificial intelligence. She currently works under the supervision of Dr. Angelica Lim for her Honours project, "Modeling reactive and enactive emotion expressions in emotive-aware chatbots."

With a deep interest in neuropsychology and emotional states, Zoe is passionate about exploring frameworks and technologies that foster emotional well-being. Through Zoe’s software company that she cofounded, Betterwise, she is working to expand access to life skills education, empowering individuals to thrive in diverse environments.

Zoe’s current research involves developing advanced emotion recognition systems designed to reduce bias, bridging gaps in human-computer interaction. Read more about her experience at SFU so far in the Q&A below!

1. Why did you decide to study Cognitive Science? And what later prompted you to pursue a COGS Honours with Dr. Lim?

I had always hoped to keep the scope of my studies broad during my undergraduate career, so I could find a research direction that excites me through an Honours degree and toward future studies. My choice of Cognitive Science offered flexibility to explore a wide array of topics through coursework, interactions with amazing faculty, and research experiences outside the classroom. For example, the chance to work with Dr. Lim through the  has been an incredible opportunity. The interdisciplinary space the Rosie Lab has carved out for itself – at the intersection of robotics, social cognition, and artificial intelligence – is exactly the path I hope to continue along.

2. You were selected as one of 23 students to participate in the newly established FASS Dean's Undergraduate Fellowship Program; could you tell us about your experience in the fellowship program so far? What is the biggest takeaway from the program?

Participating in the FASS Dean’s Fellowship program this Spring has been a highlight of my time here at SFU. We had fantastic opportunities to learn from and interact with leaders from across the broader BC community, hearing their stories and learning from their words as well as those of our peers. In fact, some of the connections made with other students in the program have been some of the top takeaways!

3. Outside of the classroom, what other volunteer/work commitments are you part of?

One of the more exciting roles I’ve been fortunate to take on has been as Co-Editor-in-Chief of the . The journal will be back for a new edition this Fall, and we’re extending the call worldwide for manuscripts from undergraduate students who want to engage with Cognitive Science and develop their novel contributions in a formalized peer-review setting.

4. What has been the key to your success? Do you have any words of wisdom or advice to new students who may want to study COGS?

Explore, explore, explore! I highly recommend all incoming students take their time in their first year of university to discover what piques their interests, even if they’re already set on a particular major or program. In my case, studying an inherently interdisciplinary field has shown me that the best lessons or paradigms are those that stretch across fields – you need a few different perspectives to figure out which are which!

5. What are your plans post-graduation?

I’m planning to continue pursuing research in affective computing and human-computer interaction (HCI) – working towards development of AI systems capable of humanistic emotional understanding and expression. Grad school is on the horizon, and I’d love to work towards my PhD to continue pursuing research as a career in both academia and the private sector where these innovations might take commercial shape.