In this keynote, Associate Professor Kelly Blincoe explores how principles from software evolution can apply to academic careers after the PhD. Just as software systems evolve through iterative development and must adapt to changing environments, academic careers continuously evolve and must be responsive to shifting research landscapes. The talk will provide insights into the need to manage continuing change and increasing complexity that is inherent in academic careers. She will draw on insights from her own journey and encourage doctoral candidates to think beyond graduation.

Bio: Kelly is an Associate Professor of Software Engineering at the University of Auckland, New Zealand in the Human Aspects of Software Engineering Lab (HASEL), https://hasel.auckland.ac.nz, in the Department of Electrical, Computer, and Software Engineering. She is a current Rutherford Discovery Fellow. Her research is mainly in the human and social aspects of software engineering. Her current research topics include: software dependencies, collaborative software development with GenAI, and software developer diversity and inclusion.