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Research opportunities can shape careers. Sometimes, earlier than expected.

For Nidhi Begur, that opportunity began as a dually enrolled freshman at 911�Թ� High School.

What started as a summer research experience at I-SENSE evolved into three years of hands-on discovery across healthcare technologies, smart city systems and artificial intelligence — helping her identify the questions she wanted to pursue, the impact she hopes to have and ultimately, the path that will take her to Carnegie Mellon University this fall to pursue a bachelor's degree in computer engineering and artificial intelligence.

"Working across so many different projects helped me discover the areas I'm most passionate about and gave me a much clearer picture of what I want to study moving forward," said Nidhi.

She first joined I-SENSE in the summer of 2023, working in the lab of faculty fellow Dr. Behnaz Ghoraani, contributing to research using wearable sensor data and machine learning to better understand the daily movements of people living with Parkinson's disease.

The experience introduced her not only to research itself, but to the possibility of using technology to address real-world problems.

She continued exploring the intersection of technology and impact in I-SENSE executive director Jason Hallstrom’s lab. Her work spanned a range of community-focused applications, from helping researchers understand how people move through public spaces to developing computer vision tools that support environmental monitoring and public awareness.

"What I love most about these projects is their human impact," she said. "Whether it's helping doctors better understand a disease or helping communities make better decisions, the work is ultimately about improving people's lives."

Her latest I-SENSE project is focused on developing artificial intelligence systems capable of understanding long-form video content, answering questions about movies and identifying the scenes that support those answers. By applying this AI to existing��city CCTV infrastructure, city officials can gain smarter insights into how public spaces are used without installing��new,��expensive sensor systems.

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Throughout her time at I-SENSE, Nidhi has developed technical skills in artificial intelligence, machine learning, computer vision and data analytics while gaining experience designing experiments, evaluating model performance and working with large-scale datasets. She has gained confidence in her ability to tackle unfamiliar problems and contribute meaningfully alongside faculty mentors and graduate researchers.

"I-SENSE has given me the opportunity to constantly learn, challenge myself and work with incredible people," said Nidhi. "Every project has pushed me to grow in ways I never expected.”

That growth has already led to remarkable accomplishments. She has authored and co-authored papers presented at IEEE EMBC, IEEE UEMCON and SmartComp, earned Best Presentation honors at IEEE UEMCON in New York City and received a Navy League Award for her work on pedestrian movement research.

She was also named a finalist for the Computing Research Association's Undergraduate Researcher Award, becoming both the youngest finalist and the first 911�Թ� student to earn the distinction.

"Students are capable of far more than we often give them credit for," said Hallstrom. "When they're given meaningful opportunities, mentorship and the freedom to explore, they can make important contributions while also discovering where their talents and interests align. Watching that process unfold has been one of the most rewarding parts of working with Nidhi.”

As she prepares to leave South Florida for Pittsburgh, Nidhi hopes to remain connected to the I-SENSE community that helped shape her path.

Her story is one example of how early access to research experiences can do more than build technical skills. It can build confidence, clarify ambitions and open doors students may not have known existed.

I-SENSE is proud to give students a supportive environment to explore the research world and contribute to real-world challenges. By advancing discovery and helping students discover what they're capable of, we’re strengthening communities and preparing the next generation to make a meaningful impact wherever their paths lead.