Rate My Professor Marco Papa

Dr. Marco Papa serves as a Senior Lecturer of Computer Science in the Thomas Lord Department of Computer Science at the University of Southern California's Viterbi School of Engineering. He obtained his Ph.D. in Computer Science from USC in 1988 with a specialization in computer graphics, a Master's degree in Computer Science from USC in 1983, and a Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Bologna in 1977, graduating summa cum laude. With more than 30 years of experience in the IT and Internet industries, Papa has held senior leadership positions including Chief Technology Officer at CareerBuilder, a leading internet employment advertising engine, and Chief Technology Officer at Luckman Interactive, Inc., a developer of Internet tools and services. Additional roles encompass Vice President of Technology at US Interactive, Inc., Director of Technology at Xceed, where his team built websites for major clients such as CBS, Hilton, and Universal Studios, Chief Technologist and SharePoint Project Manager at the Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles—the largest court system in the world—and principal of Intersect World LLC, a mobile development company.

Papa's expertise lies in web technologies, programming languages, computer graphics, and AI-assisted software development. He has taught computer science at USC for over 22 years, instructing more than 1,000 students annually in courses such as CSCI 201 Principles of Software Development using Java, CSCI 571 Web Technologies covering full-stack development, and the new CSCI 599 Agentic AI starting Fall 2026. Papa co-authored Anonymous Cookie, a cookie-blocking program that was a finalist for the Discover Magazine Award for Technological Innovation in 1998. He is an active member of the Los Angeles chapter of the CTO Technology Leadership Council, bridging industry practice and academic instruction to prepare students for careers in computer science.