Dr. Rabbia Saleem serves as a Lecturer at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) Canberra Space, Australian Defence Force Academy. She obtained her PhD in Engineering and Computer Sciences from the Australian National University in January 2023. Additionally, she holds a B.Sc. (Honours) and an M.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore, Pakistan. With over a decade of lecturing and student supervision experience, she previously held lecturer positions at the University of The Punjab and the University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore. As an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA), Dr. Saleem supervises postgraduate students, including serving as secondary supervisor for PhD candidate Dave Furtado's project on "Autonomous Data-Driven Modelling for Advanced Satellite Constellation Management," funded by Defence Trailblazer and industry partners, and co-supervisor for Master's candidate Shathria Ompragash's work on "Real-time Force Modelling for Space Traffic Management."

Her research lies at the intersection of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and space technologies, emphasizing secure and sustainable space systems, cyber resilience, and space domain awareness (SDA). Dr. Saleem is Chief Investigator and Project Manager for the SmartSat CRC-funded project "Cyber Secure and Resilient Intelligent Space Network Systems." Her scholarly contributions include journal publications such as "Deep-Reinforcement-Learning-Driven Secrecy Design for Intelligent-Reflecting-Surface-Based 6G-IoT Networks" in IEEE Internet of Things Journal (2023) and "Performance-Fairness Trade-off for Wi-Fi and LTE-LAA Coexistence" in IEEE Access (2021). She has co-authored several conference papers at the Advanced Maui Optical and Space Surveillance Technologies Conference (AMOS), including "Autonomous Close Proximity Differential Drag Control of Low Earth Orbit Small Satellite Formations using an Inter-Satellite Radio Frequency Link" (2023). Recognized for her impact, she was a finalist for the Cyber Catalyst Award (2025), received the Best Early Career Researcher Presentation Award at the Australian Space Research Conference (2022), and her team won Academic Research Team of the Year at the Australian Space Awards (2023). Dr. Saleem actively promotes STEM education through leadership in IEEE Women in Engineering, Women in Space, Women in Cyber, and Women in AI, and serves as a WiRN Committee Member (2025-2027).

Professional Email: r.saleem@unsw.edu.au