BIOGRAPHY 

I am (Dr. Serkan Varol) an Associate Professor of Engineering Management & Technology at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC), where I also serve as Graduate Coordinator for multiple Engineering Management concentrations. I joined UTC in Fall 2020 after three years at Southeast Missouri State University (SEMO), seeking an academic home where research plays a central role alongside high-quality teaching. My research spans Data Analytics, Neuroanalytics and Statistical Decision Making. However, my broader research integrates EEG, eye-tracking, and survey-based behavioral experiments through my newly developing NeuroTech Lab (NTL), where my research fellows and I examine attention, engagement, emotional response, and decision-making in educational and consumer-choice settings. As a passionate educator, I expanded UTC’s Engineering Management curriculum, including the development of the Engineering Analytics concentration. During my academic career, I have secured several internal and external grants, including support from the UT Grand Challenge program, DENSO, Volkswagen, and Alteryx. Prior to academia, I worked as a data operation analyst at Ford Motor Company. Here, I used cutting-edge analytics platforms that helped shape my teaching and research vision. 

Beyond his academic work, I stay active as a soccer referee and enjoy exploring cars and new technologies. 

Student - Faculty Research Opportunities 

Class-based research projects, capstone experiences, and out-of-class student/faculty collaborative research (like summer research experiences) have a major role in my research.

If you are interested in doing student-faculty driven projects, please contact me at serkan-varol@utc.edu