Big ideas rarely stay in one place at Tufts University School of Engineering. At its campus just a few miles from the high-tech hubs of Boston and Cambridge, students and researchers collaborate across disciplines, linking engineering, science, and social challenges in broader contexts.
By bringing together schools such as Engineering, Medicine, Nutrition, Civic Life, and more, Tufts enables experts to share knowledge in fresh ways — think medical researchers partnering with engineers to design better devices – and tackle challenges that no single department could solve alone. This interdisciplinary approach allows students and faculty to address problems from multiple angles and discover how different perspectives can lead to innovative solutions.
One example is the Tufts Institute for Artificial Intelligence (TIAI), which brings together faculty, industry experts, and students across departments to ensure AI advances ethically and meaningfully. It supports research across all 10 Tufts schools, including Engineering, Arts and Sciences, the Museum of Fine Arts, Biomedical Sciences, and more.
Over at the Tufts University Centre for Cellular Agriculture, more than 90 members from five schools and 11 departments are advancing research in cultivated meat while the Institute for Research on Learning and Instruction pairs engineers, educators, and cognitive scientists to explore innovative ways people learn. At the Cybersecurity Centre for the Public Good, students and researchers work alongside clients to share ideas, explore cybersecurity needs, and develop solutions to today’s most pressing challenges – all with guidance from experts at the School of Engineering, School of Arts and Sciences, Fletcher School, Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life, and more.
“Here, it’s really collaborative,” says Julia Santaniello, a second-year PhD student working with Associate Professor Jivko Sinapov on projects combining neuroscience and computer science. “If someone has a gap, it’s easy to find someone who can fill that need.”
Multidisciplinary degrees, multiple benefits
Tufts’ academic programmes reflect the same philosophy. They are designed to prepare students for complex, real-world challenges that don’t fit neatly into a single department. Eight cross-disciplinary master’s programmes and three joint PhD programmes enable students to fuse skills and knowledge from multiple areas. These include master’s degrees in bioengineering, computer engineering, cybersecurity and public policy, data science, human-robot interaction, and materials science and engineering. PhD programmes include cognitive science, human-robot interaction, materials science and engineering, and many more.
Some programmes are specifically structured to span departments and provide greater technical depth and leadership skills than programmes with a singular focus. The dual-degree programme at Tufts Gordon Institute is one example. Students can earn one master’s degree from the institute and another from one of six academic departments.
“Our dual degree programme is a unique opportunity for students with a breadth of interests and talents,” says Kevin Oye, Director of Tufts Gordon Institute. “Whether they are interested in bioengineering, data or computer science, or any number of combinations, our dual degree master’s programme is a perfect fit.”
The Human-Robot Interaction programme is another way Tufts connects fields. Students can earn MS or PhD degrees through the Department of Computer Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering, or Mechanical Engineering. Each department approaches robotics differently: computer science focuses on algorithms and AI, electrical engineering on software and sensors, and mechanical engineering on design and movement. By choosing a department while still engaging with the others, students graduate with a more holistic understanding of robotics and a greater ability to apply their knowledge, no matter the complexity.
The Human-AI Interaction Centre at Tufts University hosted a research event where AI researchers from various fields exchanged ideas and insights. Source: Tufts University
Tufts is building AI talent the way the world actually works
AI research at Tufts often proves the same thing: the most exciting breakthroughs happen at the crossroads. With this understanding, faculty members encourage students to wander, question and pivot as their interests evolve. Postbaccalaureate programmes in computer science and data science, for example, welcome and are designed for students from different academic backgrounds, including those who have studied literature, biology, or economics. These programmes provide technical skills and confidence to enter competitive fields in ways few other universities offer.
The new MS in Artificial Intelligence takes that idea even further. Offered through the Department of Computer Science (CS) or the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), the programme lets students choose the lens they want to see the future through. The CS track focuses on machine learning and AI from a computational and societal perspective: how these systems work, and what they mean for the world that uses them. The ECE track looks into machine learning and artificial general intelligence and equips students with deep engineering know‑how – preparation for both the theoretical foundations and the real‑world systems where AI actually lives.
Recently, the Human-AI Interaction Research Discovery Event saw dozens of faculty, staff, and students gathered at the Joyce Cummings Centre to share their current projects and explore future research possibilities in AI. The event was hosted by the Human-AI Interaction Centre (HAII), part of TIAI.
Attendees did not fit neatly into a single academic discipline. Their backgrounds, spanning community health, philosophy, computer science, and politics, to name a few, were as varied as their current work. Posters on display wove together expertise from engineering, arts, medical, and dental medicine students, with AI as the common thread. Worlds collided offering a snapshot of the kind of graduates Tufts is preparing to shape the future of AI and beyond.
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