Manasi Jayakumar

Manasi Jayakumar is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Oberlin College, part of the College of Arts and Sciences. She holds a PhD in Psychology from Columbia University (2024) and has a multidisciplinary background in biotechnology engineering, applied cognition, and neuroscience. Her research focuses on how internal cognitive states, such as attentional fluctuations, influence memory organization and retrieval. Methodologically, she employs lab-based and online behavioral studies, eye-tracking, pupillometry, and computational modeling.

• Education:
• BSE in Biotechnology, Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani - Dubai Campus (2013)
• MS in Applied Cognition and Neuroscience, University of Texas at Dallas (2016)
• MA (2020) and MPhil (2022) in Psychology, Columbia University

Her work bridges cognitive psychology and neuroscience, with recent publications exploring how pupil size and attentional states predict memory dynamics. She has received prestigious teaching awards, including the Presidential Award for Outstanding Teaching at Columbia (2024). Jayakumar has also served as a lab manager at Stanford University and actively supervises student research at Oberlin.

Teaching & Advising: In 2025, she teaches courses like Introduction to Psychological Science (PSYC 100), Complex Cognition (PSYC 209), and supervises independent research projects. She mentors undergraduate and post-baccalaureate researchers, contributing to their scholarly development.

• Awards:
• Presidential Award for Outstanding Teaching, Columbia University (2024)
• Teaching Scholar, Columbia Graduate School of Arts & Sciences (2023-2024)
• Graduate Student Travel Grant, Society for the Teaching of Psychology (2023)