PhD in Computer Science

Nursultan Makhanov

Researcher specializing in Federated Learning, Medical Image Classification, and Computer Vision.

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About Me

Bridging AI & Healthcare

I am a researcher with a PhD in Computer Science from Nazarbayev University. My work focuses on applying Federated Learning to medical image classification, enabling privacy-preserving AI in healthcare.

Currently a Visiting Scholar at Queen's University Belfast and Senior Research Scientist at Astana IT University, I explore the intersection of Business, Healthcare, and Artificial Intelligence.

Beyond research, I have extensive teaching experience and a passion for mentoring the next generation of AI researchers.

🥋

Brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu — discipline on and off the mat.

PhD
Computer Science
$60K
Research Grant Won
6+
Years in Research
450+
Students Taught
Career

Work Experience

Visiting Scholar
Queen's University Belfast, UK
Jan 2025 – Present
  • Research in the intersection of Business, Healthcare, and AI
  • Publishing papers in respected conference venues
Senior Research Scientist
Astana IT University, Astana
Jan 2025 – Present
  • Breast Cancer research with ultrasound images (Grant #BR24993145-OT-24)
  • Federated Learning in Face Recognition (Grant #BR24992852-OT-24)
  • Won $60,000 grant from Ministry of Education of Kazakhstan (Grant #AP22686020)
Assistant Professor
Astana IT University, Astana
Aug 2025 – Jan 2026
  • Developed and taught postgraduate course “Introduction to AI”
  • Supervised 3 Masters students on Small Language Models & Federated Learning
Senior Researcher at R&D
Qalan Inc, Almaty
Jul 2025 – Feb 2026
  • Data preparation (Math QA in Kazakh) for LLMs
  • Fine-tuning Large Language Models
Middle CV Engineer
Nception Labs, Almaty
Mar 2024 – Dec 2024
  • Trained and deployed Face Detection/Recognition pipeline
  • Research on Federated Learning in Face Recognition
Research Assistant
Nazarbayev University, Astana
Sep 2022 – 2024
  • Few-Shot Learning for Medical Imaging Classification
  • Federated Learning for Human Action Recognition
Graduate Teaching Assistant
Nazarbayev University, Astana
Sep 2020 – May 2023
  • Algorithms & Data Structures (250 students)
  • Programming Fundamentals (200 students)
Senior Lecturer
International IT University, Almaty
Jun 2017 – Aug 2019
  • OS, Intro to Programming, Cryptography, and Network Security
Education

Academic Background

🎓
PhD in Computer Science
Nazarbayev University
Aug 2019 – Jun 2025
Thesis: Integrating Position-Aware Neurons in Deep Learning Models for Effective Federated Medical Image Classification.
🔐
Masters in Cybersecurity
George Washington University
Jan 2016 – May 2017
💻
Bachelors in Information Systems
International IT University
Sep 2009 – Jun 2013
Research

Research Focus

Medical Image Classification with Federated Learning

  • Gathered 1200+ CT lung images from the 12th Hospital in Almaty
  • Applied Computer Vision in Federated Learning to medical images
  • Worked with CheXpert and MIMIC-CXR — the largest X-ray datasets
  • Few-shot and self-supervised learning in federated scenarios
  • Breast Cancer detection with ultrasound images
  • Federated Learning for Face Recognition
Federated Learning Medical Imaging Computer Vision Few-Shot Learning Self-Supervised Learning Face Recognition LLMs
Skills

Technical & Soft Skills

Programming & Tools

Python PyTorch NumPy Pandas Git LaTeX

Languages

Kazakh
Native
English
Fluent
Russian
Fluent
Contact

Let's Connect

Open to research collaborations, speaking invitations, and academic opportunities.

Email
n.makhanov [at] qub [dot] ac [dot] uk
LinkedIn
Nursultan Makhanov
Google Scholar
Publications