Summary
Overview
Work History
Education
Skills
LEADERSHIP/SCHOLASTIC EXPERIENCE
Timeline
Community Service
ResearchAssistant

Vincent A. Ferrera

Summary

Atmospheric scientist with special interests in extreme precipitation, weather and climate impacts, and operational forecasting. Experience includes research on the effects of extreme rainfall on U.S. agriculture and the application of machine learning for winter weather detection on highways, with findings presented at national conferences such as the American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting. Developed skills in analyzing data with Python and interpreting model output for weather forecasting. Committed to applying expertise in atmospheric science to support the safety of communities and the resilience of industries.

Overview

8
8
years of professional experience

Work History

Research Assistant

University of Maryland, College Park
06.2024 - 08.2025
  • Authored a ~10,000 word literature review on extreme precipitation impacts on U.S. Corn Belt crops, synthesizing previous theoretical and empirical research papers into a consolidated discussion.
  • Delivered biweekly oral presentations to communicate research progress to the team
  • Performed data analysis using statistical software to extract insights from complex datasets.

Teaching Assistant

University of Maryland, College Park
08.2023 - 05.2024
  • Led three discussion sections (~30 students each) and four lab sections (~25 students each)
  • Edited or recreated 12 lab manuals to explain tasks and background information clearly, more thoroughly, and/or more accurately.
  • Presented interactive lecture reviews and lab walkthroughs weekly to encourage student engagement.
  • Provided 1-on-1 support to students during office hours, scheduling appointments for students unable to attend posted hours.
  • Graded labs and project papers, offering students chances to correct their mistakes using constructive feedback.
  • Described as passionate, accommodating, and adaptive by students in course evaluation surveys

Front End Sales Associate

Weis Markets
01.2018 - 08.2023
  • Complimented by multiple customers in consumer surveys and received a formal letter of recognition from the corporate office for providing excellent customer service.
  • Processed transactions accurately with speeds averaging 15 items per minute, ensuring a seamless checkout experience for customers.
  • Promptly resolved customer inquiries face-to-face and over the phone, demonstrating excellent problem-solving skills.
  • Promoted store loyalty programs to encourage repeat business from satisfied customers.
  • Aided customer orders as a self-checkout monitor, typically overseeing five registers at a time.
  • Transacted refunds and provided multiple services (lottery, money transfers) at the customer service desk.

Research Assistant

NSF AI Institute on Trustworthy AI for Weather, Climate and Coastal Oceanography (AI2ES)
05.2022 - 07.2022
  • Researched precipitation type detection on highways using self-trained, semi-supervised AI.
  • Conducted deep learning image classification experiments in a Python environment with supercomputer access, evaluating algorithm performance using loss curves and confusion matrices.
  • Presented a 12-minute presentation on completed research at two professional conferences, demonstrating personal knowledge acquired and results obtained over the 10-week program while synthesizing complex information into clear summaries to broaden audience accessibility.
  • Participated actively in daily meetings with research supervisors to discuss project updates, challenges faced, and lessons learned during ongoing activities.
  • Collaborated with other programmers using GitHub to regularly update code and output within the research group.

Education

Bachelor of Science - Meteorology and Climate Science

University of Delaware
Newark, DE
05.2023

Master of Science - Atmospheric & Oceanic Science

University of Maryland, College Park
College Park, MD
05-2025

Skills

  • Analyzing weather data & forecasting models (eg, Pivotal Weather, Tropical Tidbits, National Blend of Models)
  • Data Analysis (Python, Anaconda, JupyterLab, LaTeX)
  • Qualitative & quantitative research (Mendeley)
  • Softwares: Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), Google Drive (Docs, Sheets, Slides)

LEADERSHIP/SCHOLASTIC EXPERIENCE

The American Meteorological Society’s 22nd Conference on Artificial Intelligence for Environmental Science Speaker Selected to present my summer 2022 REU project titled “Classifying Road Surface Conditions with Self-Trained Artificial Intelligence” during the Artificial Intelligence for Feature Detection session The 2nd Annual NYS NExnet Symposium Speaker Presented my summer 2022 REU project titled “Classifying Road Surface Conditions with Self-Trained Artificial Intelligence” during the Artificial Intelligence Application session American Meteorological Society University of Delaware Chapter Vice-President Communicate daily information provided by the American Meteorological Society (AMS) to student chapter members, informing them of educational and career opportunities and important event dates Coordinate with president through email communications and monthly sit-downs to plan and schedule bi-weekly meetings Treasurer Requested a General Operating Budget from university to fund student organization spending for the academic year Processed check requests through university-sponsored verification forms to reimburse individuals for costs towards planning organization meetings Updated organization allowance by recording verified payments and expenses in Google Sheets to inform executive members the current available funds University of Delaware Marching Band Front Ensemble Member Perform as a percussionist in 10-minute shows to entertain audiences at sports events and band festivals during fall semester weekends Practice music for over 70 hours during pre-season week and at least 9 hours during school weeks to prepare and maintain consistency for future performances Collaborate with 15+ section members to load percussion equipment onto and off trucks to transport instruments between the music building and performance venues

Timeline

Research Assistant

University of Maryland, College Park
06.2024 - 08.2025

Teaching Assistant

University of Maryland, College Park
08.2023 - 05.2024

Research Assistant

NSF AI Institute on Trustworthy AI for Weather, Climate and Coastal Oceanography (AI2ES)
05.2022 - 07.2022

Front End Sales Associate

Weis Markets
01.2018 - 08.2023

Bachelor of Science - Meteorology and Climate Science

University of Delaware

Master of Science - Atmospheric & Oceanic Science

University of Maryland, College Park

Community Service

103rd Annual Meeting of the American Meteorological Society “AMS”, Student Assistant, Denver, CO, 2023-01, Will assist audio/visual team for five days by managing the Confex Podium software used to run presentations for presenters at the AMS annual meeting

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Vincent A. Ferrera