Michelle L. Rivers

I am an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Santa Clara University, where I conduct research on student learning and teach and mentor students in psychological science.

Broadly, my research applies theories of learning and memory to enhance educational practice. I am particularly interested in investigating factors that contribute to students' metacognitive judgments and how people manage their own learning. My work has been published in cognitive and educational psychology outlets, including Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition; Memory & Cognition; and Educational Psychology Review. In addition, my research has been recognized and funded by the National Science Foundation, the American Psychological Association, and the Psychonomic Society.

Most recently, I was a National Science Foundation SBE Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Metacognition, Memory, & Aging lab (PI: Dr. Uma Tauber) at Texas Christian University. I completed my Ph.D. at Kent State University in 2021 with the mentorship of Dr. John Dunlosky in the Metacognition and Education Lab. Before my graduate studies, I graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Psychology (with distinction) from UC Santa Cruz in 2013, where I conducted research in Dr. Benjamin Storm's Memory Lab. Following graduation, I worked as a research assistant in Dr. Timothy Rickard's Cognition Lab and taught and tutored elementary-college students.

I am passionate about science communication and outreach. I founded a blog (cogbites.org) where early-career scientists work together to translate research about the study of mental processes to the general public. I am also a founding member of the Science of Learning Early-Career Research Group.