1 / 12

How to PhD: Perspectives from three ECE Professors

How to PhD: Perspectives from three ECE Professors. Jan Allebach allebach@purdue.edu Electrical and Computer Engineering Purdue University. Is a Ph.D. right for you?. Hard work Major commitment Major rewards Helps to be passionate about what you do.

tania
Download Presentation

How to PhD: Perspectives from three ECE Professors

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript


  1. How to PhD: Perspectives from three ECE Professors Jan Allebach allebach@purdue.edu Electrical and Computer Engineering Purdue University

  2. Is a Ph.D. right for you? • Hard work • Major commitment • Major rewards • Helps to be passionate about what you do

  3. So you’ve decided to get a Ph.D.What do you do next? • Identify a graduate area, i.e. AC, BME, CE, CNSIP, MN, ESS, VLSI • What do you find exciting? • What courses do you like? • What do your fellow students have to say? • Choose a major professor • What kind of research do they do? • What is their style for working with students? • Where have their advisees gone after graduation? • What do your fellow students have to say? • Do they having funding for you?

  4. Factors that influence choice ofdissertation topic • If research is sponsored, may depend on type of funding • Government • Industry • Style of your Major Professor • Open-ended • More prescribed

  5. Characteristics of dissertation research • Must meet standards for good scientific practice • Fully documented • Reproducible • Should address an important problem, not just an interesting problem • Should be conducted in the context of the current state-of-the-art in the your area • Should be substantially novel and demonstrate a significant advance to the current state-of-the-art

  6. Some other thoughts about dissertation research • Your dissertation need not be a monolithic entity – it can be a series of relatively independent substantive projects • Don’t be afraid to fail – but if you are going to fail, don’t take too long to do it • Don’t reinvent the wheel – borrow freely from others, but only with permission and attribution

  7. Communications –“Good enough” is not “good enough” • Applies to all areas of professional communications • Presentations • Papers • Even e-mail • Learn to be your own worst critic • Read, revise, re-read, revise …. • Dot the i’s and cross the t’s • What are you trying to say? • It is clear? • It is concise? • Take every opportunity to improve your English language skills

  8. Be a sponge • Use on-line databases to scour the literature related to your chosen research problems • Follow the leading journals in your area • Read the papers written by your fellow students in your research group • Attend preliminary examinations and final defenses in areas related to your research problem • If you have the opportunity to attend a conference, get as much out of it as possible • Talk to your professors and fellow students

  9. Be a squeaky wheel • “My graduate students are my most important resource” • It is in my own best interest for them to be as effective as possible • Ask for what you need • Don’t wait for your Major Professor to request a meeting with you

  10. Build a network • This is one of the most important outcomes of your graduate school experience • It is not only what you know, but also who you know • If you attend a conference, meet as many people as possible • Socialize with all your fellow students – not just those of your own nationality • Stay in touch

  11. Graduate school can be… • Stressful • Scary • Demanding • Frustrating

  12. But overall, it should be fun!

More Related