To Students

Written by Oscar Boykin

To Prospective PhD students

I often get letters that read like this:

Dear Professor <your name here>,

I am very interested in whatever random thing it is you do all day. I’d like to do stuff like that too (and have you pay me). What do you say?

Can you imagine sending such a letter to Google, IBM, or Intel? What do you think they would think of you if you didn’t seem to know the first thing about the job you thought you wanted, or where you might fit in?

If you don’t really have a good idea first about what you want to do, you will have a very difficult time finding an advisor. Secondly, if you don’t want to read about what an advisor might actually be doing (by reading his or her recent papers for instance, and the papers they cite), do you really want to spend 4-6 years working with this person for wages low compared to what you could get by leaving with a Master’s degree? I think earning a PhD is a wonderful thing, and an experience to treasure, but each student must want it for themselves. They should have at least some idea about what research is all about and which research area they want to be in if they are to be successful.

Algorithm for finding an advisor

  1. Perform very well in the classroom.
  2. Make a list of your passions.
  3. Read about the interests of the faculty.
  4. Identify 3-5 faculty members with whom you share interests.
  5. Read 2-3 of each of their recent papers.
  6. If are you are still interested, contact them. Tell them about your personal interest in their research area and ask about:
    • classes they might be teaching
    • seminars they might be giving
    • if they have group meetings you could attend

Here are some links I think might also be helpful about Research and Getting a PhD:

To Students in my Classes

About the classroom: