Daniel Tay joined the Ph.D. program at Iowa in Spring 2021. His interest in studying the way we hear and in music took him on an unconventional journey to Iowa. Originally a mechanical engineering graduate, Daniel earned a M.Sc. in Architectural Acoustics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY, in 2018. During his time at RPI, he won the Best Student Paper Award in Architectural Acoustics at the 175th meeting of the Acoustical Society of America in Minneapolis, MN.

Upon graduation, Daniel then moved to New York City and completed stints as an engineer at the piano-maker Steinway & Sons, young adults’ ministry leader at a local church, and an acoustic consultant at a firm specializing in the high-end residential entertainment market.

At Iowa, Daniel is mentored by Shawn Goodman and is currently working on a novel chemical subtraction technique to extract otoacoustic emissions in guinea pigs.

In his free time, Daniel enjoys playing the piano and guitar, and spends his weekends mentoring youth in church.