Harrum Noor

I am a Master’s student at the University of Waterloo, supervised by Dr. M. Tamer Özsu in the Data Systems Group. My research explores human-database interactions using Large Language Models and I'm currently focusing on NL2SQL systems. Outside of academia, I enjoy gaming (currently playing TOTK), painting on glass (I have a huge hand painted stained glass collection), and traveling (Fun fact: I once traveled across three continents in three days!)

Education

• MMath in Computer Science, University of Waterloo
• B.S. in Computer Science, National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences

Work Experience

• Research Assistant @ University of Waterloo, 2023 - Present
  • Conducting research on Natural Language to SQL (NL2SQL) evaluation using Large Language Models as part of my thesis, under the supervision of Dr. M. Tamer Özsu. Focused on developing a robust and holistic evaluation metric for NL2SQL translation systems to improve the accuracy and reliability of database interactions.
• Instructional Apprentice and Teaching Assistant @ University of Waterloo, 2023 - Present
  • Teaching Assistant for courses: CS135 (Functional Programming), CS348 (Database Applications), and CS338 (Databases).
  • Instructional Apprentice for CS431 (Data-Intensive Distributed Systems), assisting in course planning and delivery.
• Data Engineer @ Teradata, 2021 - 2023
  • Designed and implemented data pipelines and architecture for a major European retail chain, optimizing data workflows and improving scalability.
• Software Engineer @ IBM, 2018 - 2021
  • Developed ETL pipelines for a Middle Eastern telecom client, enhancing data extraction and processing efficiency.
  • Contributed to IBM's flagship monitoring tool, improving global device heartbeat detection for enhanced system reliability.

Projects

• GooseGuard - A scam call detection engine built to identify and block spoofed calls, built under 36 hours during Hack the North 2024 - Canada's Biggest Hackathon
• Waterloo Traffic Patterns - Analysis of traffic patterns in Waterloo using Apache Flink for stream processing.
• Automated Website Generator - Generates websites from BPMN models using Vaadin and Activiti frameworks.
• Are LLMs Trustworthy? LLM vs. Logistic Regression - A study exploring trust in Large Language Models over traditional models like logistic regression on the task of NL2SQL.

Volunteering and Other Activities

• Mentor, Computing Research Association (CRA) UR2PhD Program
  • Currently mentoring three undergraduate students in the data systems domain, guiding them in research projects and academic growth.
• Vice President, Computer Science Graduate Student Association (CSGSA)
  • Organizing events, enhancing the department’s website, and promoting equity and diversity.
• Equity and Diversity Initiatives
  • I am passionate about equity and diversity, committed to ensuring that marginalized groups have the same opportunities as everyone else. In my equity work, I actively participate in Women in Computer Science (WiCS) at Waterloo, Women in Tech at IBM, and Women of Teradata. As part of the CSGSA, I regularly organize inclusive, safe-space events for all students. I was invited by a Singaporean startup to speak as a panel member for a talk on women empowerment in the tech sector.

Honors & Awards

• International Masters Award for Excellence - University of Waterloo
  • Awarded based on a strong academic record.
• David Cheriton Scholarship - University of Waterloo
  • Awarded to the top 15 applicants based on academic excellence and research potential.
• Rector's and Dean’s List of Honour - National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences
  • Recognized for academic distinction at the National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences.
• Gold Medalist - National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences
  • Received four gold medals for outstanding academic achievements.
• Employee of the Year Award - IBM, 2020
  • Recognized as Employee of the Year for exceptional contributions to team projects and innovation.
• Manager's Choice Award - IBM, 2018
  • Selected by management for outstanding performance and dedication to client success.

Certifications

For a list of my certifications, please visit my Credly profile.