Short CV

This page reflects a summary of my CV. For a more detailed version, please refer to the full CV.

Education

• Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering – Ocean, Virginia Tech, 2021
  • Dissertation: An Experimental Study of the Fluid-Structure Interactions of Water Entry of Compliant Structures
  • Advisor: Professor Christine Gilbert
• M.Sc. in Naval Architecture – Hydromechanics, Amirkabir University of Technology, 2013
  • Thesis: Flow Visualization and Pressure Analysis of a Two-Dimensional Wedge in Water Impact
  • Advisor: Professor Hamid Zeraatgar
• B.Sc. in Marine Engineering – Naval Architecture, Persian Gulf University of Bushehr, 2009

Academic Appointments

• Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Michigan, 2022–Present
  • Department of Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering
  • Research on offshore energy structures and systems, ice and wave modeling, marine energy resource assessment, and AI/ML applications in marine engineering
• Postdoctoral Researcher, Virginia Tech, 2021–2022
  • Kevin T. Crofton Department of Aerospace and Ocean Engineering
  • Conducted fluid-structure interaction, particle image velocimetry, flexible-panel water-entry, and towing-tank experiments
• Graduate Research Assistant, Virginia Tech, 2017–2021
  • Investigated hydroelastic water entry, slamming, structural deformation, visualization and image processing, the motion and hydrodynamics of high-speed planing craft

Research Highlights

• Conduct interdisciplinary research spanning naval architecture, fluid–structure interaction, offshore energy, computational and experimental fluid dynamics, and AI/ML-enabled engineering
• Develop AI/ML approaches for modeling environmental conditions and supporting the analysis and design of offshore structures
• Develop coupled hydrodynamic–ice–wave models to characterize cold-region environments and assess offshore wind and wave-energy resources
• Evaluat ice hazards, environmental loading, aero-hydrodynamic response, and structural performance of fixed and floating offshore platforms
• Investigated hydroelastic water impact, slamming, flexible structures, and high-speed planing craft through water-entry and towing-tank experiments
• Designed and conducted experiments using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV), Stereoscopic Digital Image Correlation (S-DIC), high-speed imaging, and data-acquisition systems
• Developed image-processing, experimental, computational, and reduced-order methods for measuring flow fields, structural deformation, spray-root propagation, hydrodynamic loading, and vessel response
• Designed and fabricated composite structures and experimental systems for water-impact, flexible-panel, and model-scale naval architecture applications
• Applied marine simulation and design tools—including FVCOM, OpenFAST, WEC-Sim, OrcaFlex, and STAR-CCM+—to offshore energy and hydrodynamics problems
• Translated marine engineering research into student research projects, outreach and community-engagement activities with Great Lakes communities and Tribal Nations

Teaching and Mentorship

• Co-instruct Marine Dynamics III (NA 540), a graduate-level course at the University of Michigan
• Design and deliver graduate-level lectures on experimental fluid dynamics, marine hydrodynamics, and coupled ice–wave modeling
• Mentor graduate students conducting research in offshore energy, marine structures, and AI/ML applications in ice and wave modeling
• Completed the University of Michigan Postdoc Teaching Essentials program and also Postdoctoral Short Course on College Teaching in STEM
• Advised five University of Michigan undergraduate researchers through the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP), including projects in offshore wind energy, environmental impacts, and marine energy systems
• Mentored three graduate students and five undergraduate students at Virginia Tech in water-entry experiments, PIV, oscillatory-flow experiments, fluid dynamics, and composite fabrication
• Supervised undergraduate research on planing-craft slamming, hydroelasticity, structural response, and experimental data analysis
• Developed course materials and hands-on fluid-dynamics experiments for Virginia Tech Imagination Camps
• Served as a teaching assistant for Hydrostatics, Hydrodynamics, and graduate-level Damage Stability courses at Amirkabir University of Technology
• Mentored and supervised student teams competing in collegiate competitions on offshore wind energy

Grant and Proposal Experience

• Authored or contributed to more than 12 research proposals submitted to federal agencies and programs, including DOE, NSF, NOAA, OESI, and Michigan Sea Grant (two received funding)
• Developed proposals for four U.S. Department of Energy energy-prize competitions (two received funding)
• Support the development of collaborative proposals connecting engineering research with workforce development, student mentorship, community engagement, and the responsible deployment of marine energy technologies

Selected Honors and Awards

• Postdoctoral Professional Development Award, University of Michigan, 2025
• Collegiate Wind Competition Phase I Winner, U.S. Department of Energy, 2023 and 2024
• Future Leaders in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering nominee, Virginia Tech, 2022
• Best Graduate Paper Award of the Year, Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers, 2020
• Brian Nerney Fellowship, Virginia Tech, 2020
• Best Maritime Thesis Award of the Year, Iranian Association of Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, 2013
• Best Thesis Award in Maritime Engineering, Amirkabir University of Technology, 2013

Patent

• M. J. Javaherian, H. Zeraatgar, M. Barjasteh, and R. Yousefnejad, “A Universal Setup for Impact Test,” Iranian Patent IR 84387, G01L class, November 24, 2014

Leadership and Professional Service

• Board Member, University of Michigan Postdoc Advisory Committee, 2026-Present
• President, University of Michigan Postdoctoral Association, 2025–Present
• Treasurer, University of Michigan Postdoctoral Association, 2024–2026
• Vice President and Board Member, Aerospace and Ocean Engineering Graduate Student Assembly, Virginia Tech, 2019–2021
• Member, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, Aerospace and Ocean Engineering, Virginia Tech, 2022
• Reviewer/co-reviewer, Scientific Journals in Nature, Taylor & Francis, MDP, and Elsevier, 2024-Present
• Member of ASME, ASNE, and APS