I am a mission-driven Computational Linguist and NLP engineer with experience in designing, evaluating, and optimizing prompts and language-focused AI systems. I am skilled in crafting prompts, building validation datasets, and developing workflows for LLM-driven educational tools. I have strong Python proficiency and hands-on experience with spaCy, Transformers, LangChain, AWS, and CI/CD.

Tim Elks

I am a mission-driven Computational Linguist and NLP engineer with experience in designing, evaluating, and optimizing prompts and language-focused AI systems. I am skilled in crafting prompts, building validation datasets, and developing workflows for LLM-driven educational tools. I have strong Python proficiency and hands-on experience with spaCy, Transformers, LangChain, AWS, and CI/CD.

Available to hire

I am a mission-driven Computational Linguist and NLP engineer with experience in designing, evaluating, and optimizing prompts and language-focused AI systems.

I am skilled in crafting prompts, building validation datasets, and developing workflows for LLM-driven educational tools. I have strong Python proficiency and hands-on experience with spaCy, Transformers, LangChain, AWS, and CI/CD.

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Experience Level

Expert
Expert
Expert
Expert
Expert
Expert
Expert
Expert
Intermediate
Intermediate
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Language

English
Fluent
Italian
Fluent

Work Experience

Language Engineer at Oxford University Press
April 1, 2022 - January 1, 2026
Applied NLP with Python to solve language and data problems. Developed and deployed prompts for LLM-generated content guardrails to dynamically adjust language appropriateness based on pedagogical theory. Created dynamic prompts for agentic flow to estimate language ability using LangChain and LangGraph, reducing RMSE from 3.2 to 1.1 and improving scoring transparency. Built automated testing agent to increase prompt testing efficiency by 400%. Deployed prompts and processes for contextual memory, retrieval-augmented generation, summarization, and semantic search with vector databases for an agent-powered writing tutor on AWS Bedrock; increased user satisfaction by 23%. Owned technical product development, data, and pipelines for pronunciation-related activities; implemented improvements reducing delivery time by 10%. Shipped end-to-end ETL pipelines converting unstructured text to structured JSON using Pydantic for validation and reducing data error rate by ~50%.
Assessment Manager – Research and Validation at Oxford University Press
August 1, 2017 - April 1, 2022
Applied ML, NLP and computational methods to support development and maintenance of language testing products. Fine-tuned Transformer models to predict question difficulty and contributed to content development by predicting optimal words to leave blank for learners. Published and presented work on automated writing assessment using Transfer and Multitask Learning with PyTorch.

Education

Master's in Computational Linguistics (with Distinction) at University of Wolverhampton
January 1, 2019 - January 1, 2021
Master's in Applied Linguistics (with Distinction) at University of Leicester
January 1, 2014 - January 1, 2016
Master’s in Computational Linguistics at University of Wolverhampton
January 11, 2030 - January 1, 2021
Master’s in Applied Linguistics at University of Leicester
January 11, 2030 - January 1, 2016
Master’s in Computational Linguistics with Distinction at University of Wolverhampton
January 11, 2030 - January 1, 2021
Master’s in Applied Linguistics with Distinction at University of Leicester
January 11, 2030 - January 1, 2016

Qualifications

Bachelor (Hons) in English and Creative Writing
January 11, 2030 - February 5, 2026
Trinity College DIPTESOL in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages
January 11, 2030 - February 5, 2026
CELTA
January 11, 2030 - February 5, 2026
Prince 2 Foundation
January 11, 2030 - February 5, 2026
BA (Honours) in English and Creative Writing
January 11, 2030 - February 5, 2026
DipTESOL (Trinity College)
January 11, 2030 - February 5, 2026
CELTA
January 11, 2030 - February 5, 2026
Prince2 Foundation
January 11, 2030 - February 5, 2026
BA with honors in English and Creative Writing
January 11, 2030 - February 5, 2026
DIPTESOL in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages
January 11, 2030 - February 5, 2026
CELTA
January 11, 2030 - February 5, 2026
PRINCE2 Foundation
January 11, 2030 - February 5, 2026

Industry Experience

Education, Software & Internet, Professional Services, Media & Entertainment, Government, Other