Xin (Ashley) Hao

Young Asian woman in white smiles by Beihai Park lake. The White Dagoba and ornate pavilions rise on the hill.

xhao2@nd.edu

Biography

Ashley Hao earned her B.S. degrees in Neuroscience and Psychology from Syracuse University in 2023, and her M.S. in Cognitive Psychology from Vanderbilt University. In 2026, she will join the Ph.D. program in Psychology at the University of Notre Dame as a member of the Learning and NeuroDevelopment (LAND) Lab.

Ashley’s research focuses on: (1) understanding how brain systems develop over time to support learning, including changes in functional selectivity and the organization of white matter pathways; and (2) examining how experience and individual differences shape brain development and supports the acquisition of academic skills such as reading and mathematics. Using neuroimaging and computational approaches, her work aims to characterize individual variability in learning trajectories and to identify the neural mechanisms underlying cognitive development.