Sena Koleva

Sena Koleva, PhD has a varied work experience in the fields of user research, product management, research, strategy, and evaluation. From 2018 to present, they have been working as the Product Manager and Head of User Research at Academia.edu, where they have been establishing a user research culture and function. From 2017 to 2018, they were the Owner of Crisp Insights, working with companies like Airbnb, Casper Sleep, Fuseproject, and Academia. From 2016 to 2017, they were the Research Director at See Change Institute, working on research, strategy, and evaluation of energy utilities' behavioral programs for sustainability. From 2015 to 2016, they were the Co-founder and Chief Scientist at Character, contributing across all business and product areas. From 2014 to 2015, they worked as an Independent Consultant, working with clients on designing and evaluating programs and services in energy efficiency, education, politics, sustainability, and romantic relationships. From 2014 to present, they have been an Adjunct Professor at California State University, Los Angeles. From 2014 to 2015, they were an Associate Research Fellow at NYU Stern School of Business. From 2011 to 2014, they were a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Southern California. From 2005 to 2011, they were a Graduate Writing Consultant and Teaching Assistant at UC Irvine.

Sena Koleva holds a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Social and Personality Psychology from UC Irvine, which they earned between 2005 and 2011. Sena also holds a Master of Arts (M.A.) in Social Ecology from UC Irvine, which they earned between 2005 and 2007. Additionally, they have obtained two certifications, namely "Maximizing Your Impact as a Change Agent" from the Ethnographic Praxis In Industry Conference in April 2021, and "The Data Scientist’s Toolbox" from Coursera in July 2014.