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thread-1452 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/1452 | Points to remember when having to write recommendation letter yourself | 2012-05-07T06:15:09.347 | # Question
Title: Points to remember when having to write recommendation letter yourself
While it is an unethical academic practice, it is a fact that most recommendation letters for MS degrees in US and Europe from countries like India and China are written by students themselves. Students apply en masse; the faculty strength in departments in many universities is small; the few professors hardly get the time to write recommendations for all applying students. Moreover a 4-year engineering degree is dominated by coursework and professors are unlikely to get to know students outside the classroom.
Let us set aside the question of whom to blame for this practice and look at the question that comes up on most applicants' minds:
* "In the event that I have to write a recommendation letter on my own, what are the points I need to bear in mind?"
I have the following points:
* Ensuring similarity of language among all letters from a particular professor
* maturity of presentation and avoidance of blandishment
* Creating tonal differences among different recommendation letters.
Could someone elaborate on these points? The third one is oft-quoted but is found to be very tough to execute in practice.
# Answer
The first point is impossible to carry out without a cross-sample of the professor's existing letters; obtaining such a cross-sample, however, is just as unethical as writing one's own letter of recommendation. The second is difficult for someone without experience of writing their own letters of recommendation, and the third point is challenging for anyone who isn't a good writer of his or her own accord.
In general, I have to admit that most letters of recommendation I receive from candidates in non-Western countries falls under the rubric of "not helpful to the candidate"; many actively hurt the candidate's chances by not providing any distinguishing information that can help me make a case for why this should be the one candidate in 20 we choose to admit. (Yes, we have an admit rate below 5% in my program!) On the other hand, having seen a number of candidates' applications with letters of recommendation that contain similar phrasing, I can attest that this usually raises my hackles—and usually leads me to rejecting such candidates from further consideration.
> 18 votes
# Answer
The ethics of the question is moot here; this practice is widespread, and the questioner is asking for a solution to his problem, not for an ethical reform of the international academic community.
The guidelines for such a letter would be identical to writing any other letter of recommendation. If you must write your own and have a professor sign off on it, read up on how to write a good letter of recommendation and follow any tips you may come across. You probably have little to no experience writing letters such as this one; there are many subtle nuances, both in what you say and in what you don't say. Take the time to write it correctly. If you find yourself completely stuck, ask someone else with experience to write it.
If you're having difficulty writing a letter about yourself, imagine you're writing about a colleague who has done all the things you have done. It may make the task easier.
Regarding trying to mimic the professor's style, if he asked you to write your own letter, then he likely asked all his other students to write *their* own letters. There will be no consistent style, and that will be a reality of this individual's letter. If the department/faculty member receiving the letter has received letters from this professor in the past, this likely will count against you, and you should consider that when asking this person for a recommendation.
> 29 votes
# Answer
When I applied for graduate studies, one of my recommendation letter providers was not that comfortable in English; he asked me to write the letter completely on my own and give it to him. He would edit it if necessary and then would submit it. I knew that he would not make many edits.
The point in such cases is to make a compromise: between the authenticity/credibility of the letter (which should ideally reduce your involvement) and the helping the language shortcomings of the professor (increasing your involvement)
As far as your 3 points are concerned, I strongly am against all of them.
Here is how you can try reaching a compromise:
* In case the professor's first language is NOT English (which I believe is the case in India), go to him and talk to him in whatever language and extract bullet points of what he would like to write in a letter for you. The problem with most colleges is that the professor might have things to say but owing to language barriers, is unable to say it coherently in English. Thus, they are hesitant in writing their own letters. Go to him and explain it to him clearly what a recommendation letter is supposed to be and it's structure. Ask him for things he would like to say. It is important to let him be frank. Sometimes, they can be a bit hesitant to talk openly (if you don't make an atmosphere where you welcome negative comments about you, he will be very hesitant) make sure you are creating an open discussion.
* Convert those bullet points into a skeleton. For instance, suppose he liked your analytical abilities but found you to be lazy (& cited classroom/research experiences for the same), you can have a skeleton like : *Only student to have solved difficult problem - Analytical skills high - usually late with assignments although they are well thought - maybe lazy*
* Go over this process (talk, skeleton, talk, skeleton) till you have clarity in your skeleton. This might happen in the first attempt if the environment is set right or it might take several. It should contain essentials without grammar. Example (fictional): *taught 3 courses, did well in all, strong:analysis,math,communication, weak:lazy,impatient, only student to have scored 100/100 in finals,add some examples or whatever*
* Give this to the professor to write it off assisting him when required. Although he might still be hesitant, try to work up a compromise.
Although this might not answer your actual question, I felt it was necessary to think of a way to cut through the problem when professors wish to give you the letter, have good things to say, have time but can't.
> 12 votes
# Answer
I realize this is a very old question, but I guess no harm in me adding my two pennies even after a year.
I agree that it's not good practice writing letters for oneself, but, a lot of bad things happen in academia and this is one of them. It happened to me, and that with a good and dedicated professor: it was just a set of circumstances.
While I asked this person for a letter a few months in advance and he agreed to write it when I apply somewhere, when I stumbled upon my (then, potential, now, current) supervisors, realized we want to work together, there was about a week left to apply for the grant. When I asked for a recommendation, the professor was on a conference / trip and could not find the time to do it himself. He asked me for **a "draft" to see what points the letter should cover** which he actually did modify later. And I have a feeling he would have preferred to write it than to just modify my writing, but, hey, *circumstances*.
So, the points I was focusing on when I was writing the letter:
* For **each letter-writer** I contacted, **I had a specific purpose in mind**. Each of those people could **attest to a different set of skills and give a different view of me**.
<sub><sup>This particular letter was to attest how I have diverse interests (the professor had me on some small extra-curriculum classes), and how I'm good with working with students and explaining stuff (I did some T.A.-like work for him).</sup></sub>
So, basically, I wrote about the experiences, facts and results that made me want to ask this person for a letter in the first place. Shortly: **Keep to the point and don't digress too much.**
* **Support your statements by facts.**
(I guess) nobody wants a read list of synonyms for "awesome". A good rule might be: *situation* (in which the professor was working with you), *result* (of your working in that situation), *conclusions* and *reasoning* (about your ability, based on the situation).
* **Try to put the conclusions in context with what you are applying for.**
If you are writing a letter attesting (among other things) that you have diverse interests. Maybe you're applying something that is slightly different from your current/previous works, and having diverse interests and an aptitude for learning is certainly a strong point.
* **Make sure your language is flawless.**
* **Keep to a structure.** (not like my bullet points)
A good one might be: *firstly*, introduce the professor. Shortly list all or some of the situations which make that professor a relevant and good choice for a reference. *Secondly*, for the "meat", expand on the reasoning for the recommendation. *Lastly*, summarize the good points and their relevance to the position you are applying for, and **include a sentence explicitly saying that you the professor would recommend you**. Something, maybe, like *Based on my experience with Mister X., I would wholeheartedly recommend X for the position Y.*
* **Don't write a novel.** One page should be quite enough. (again, not like my answer :) )
---
I think this advice should not only **help you to write a passable / good recommendation letter**, **but also increase the chances of the professor actually reading and reviewing what you wrote** instead of just signing it. If everything is written concise and to the point, the professor (even the one with very little free time), might be more inclined to change things, because he can identify faster what he disagrees with, what he maybe wants to expand, add, or omit.
> 8 votes
# Answer
A lot has already said in previous comments. I will add the following points.
When you wrtie a letter of recommendation for others or yourself for others to endorse, make sure you write and justify :
1. In which circumstances have you know the recommendee (student) and for how long ( 4 years undergrad.) in which capacity ( I am his professor of Biology) ?
2. What is your impression of his academic achievements and skills (you have to back up with facts your statement) ?
3. What do you think of his character and personality ?
4. How much (strongly, simply) do you recommend him/her for other institutions ?
I hope this helps.
> 5 votes
# Answer
There is a larger question at hand:
**Why have you people been historically trusting a signed piece of paper?**
There is never any good proof the person who wrote the text has been honest, even if this person holds a professor position at some university.
Letters of recommendations is the historic absurd which make no sense whatsoever.
Me too I had my letters of recommendations written not by professors but by other people who knew me (I'm from Russia). Why? Because when I approached professors only one really took the time and effort to write one, while others honestly said they didn't know how to write something like that and they didn't know me well enough to be a judge to my character. They told me to get the text written any way I liked it and they would sign it. That was it. So I asked other people if they would be kind enough to write a few words about me and they were.
There hasn't been a history of writing letters of recommendations in my country, then what do you expect people to do if they wish to apply to a Western university? They do fake letters and they will continue to do so for as long as this stupid practice exists.
The best advice I can give here is to ask somebody else who knows you well and knows your subject area well to write a letter for you. If you attempt to write about yourself it may eventually suck.
One other thought: in some countries (notably Germany) there is a practice of putting watermarks in this sort of papers (sequencing of words, particular wording and other tricks) to convey hidden information about the person. Sometimes it would make sense to put a notice into the letter stating that this text has been written by e.g a Chinese professor who is not familiar with hidden language ubiquitous in e.g Germany. Should such things be discovered this should be attributed to mere coincidence and should be discarded as such, the text written should be understood as it is written with no "alternative" interpretation.
With regard to the hidden language of reference letters:
The keywords to google for are "Geheimsprache", "Geheimcodes", "Zeugnissprache". There are tons of pages. Just a few to provide an overview:
Geheimcodes
Der Arbeitszeugnis-Code
> -3 votes
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Tags: graduate-admissions, recommendation-letter
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thread-14850 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14850 | To act against rearranging authorship irresponsibly | 2013-12-17T09:18:04.483 | # Question
Title: To act against rearranging authorship irresponsibly
If the first author changes the authorship arrangement of a journal paper **without discussing or informing** the other co-author who is being unfairly affected with this, what we can do about it?
Is there a way to stop this sort of stealing other one's work? What would you recommend to do?
# Answer
> 8 votes
To play with the author order is not fair and perhaps unethical if it unfairly changes the picture of the intellectual contribution to the paper. Unfortunately, the ordering is largely an internal problem within the group since only that group can assess the appropriate ordering. So, discussing the problem within the author group would be the first choice of action. When doing so you need to have a good argument for why the division of authorship should look the way you see it and have good arguments for that. The core problem therefore seems to be a lack of communication.
It is a good idea (necessary) to discuss a system for ordering of authorship. There are guidelines for authorship and contributorship based on the Vancouver Protocol. You can also look at the post Paper contributions and first authorship. Requirements for authorship are quite strict and each author group needs to work out how authorship should be divided along a clear set of rules. An example of how such a discussion is given on, for example, the site AuthorOrder.
There are cases when authorship changes can be unethical, but those mostly concern the first authorship so I do not sense this is the main problem in your case. Nevertheless, for some input on disputes, I recommend looking at COPE's How to handle authorship disputes:a guide for new researchers.
If you do not think you can discuss the changes with the first order, then you have to learn from the experience and insist on discussing the grounds for authorship and ordering in future collaborations.
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Tags: journals, authorship
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thread-14854 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14854 | Submiting a two page paper to a math journal | 2013-12-17T11:25:35.427 | # Question
Title: Submiting a two page paper to a math journal
I recently posted my two-page paper to arxiv and sent it to the editor of a good journal. The editor responded:
> "Your result is not substantial enough" and so it was rejected."
I cannot say that I totally disagree with the editor, the paper does not make any significant progress on number theory but I can't say that my paper is totally without value. It is the first time I have tried to publish a paper, and I am confused:
* Was my paper rejected because it is too short?
* Should I submit it to another journal?
I would really appreciate if someone gave me some advice on how to proceed.
# Answer
I am no expert in number theory, so I can't really help you with the last question (if you should submit your paper to another journal). However, it sounds like the editor stated the reason for rejection pretty clear: In his impression the results are not substantial enough. This is a valid (and frequent) reason for rejection. So in this respect you are in good company. If the editor did not state explicitly that he finds the paper "too short" than there is no reason to believe that this was the reason for rejection.
To get good feedback on how to proceed with your paper and your research you should **ask your advisor** (or find one).
> 9 votes
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Tags: publications, journals, mathematics
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thread-14845 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14845 | Inclusion of `computer code` in a thesis | 2013-12-17T03:46:34.200 | # Question
Title: Inclusion of `computer code` in a thesis
During the compilation of thesis (MSc or PhD) in a case we wanted to include some program codes as chapters:
We prefer to put `heading` to all program codes everywhere they appear as complete source to clarify the license. Is it nice to do so? Any other solutions?
Something like this:
> **3.1.1 Loop**
> ...text...
> `-------`
> *`Copyright 2013 Coder, ... !this part`*
> `-------`
> `function loop(...) result (...)`
> `some code`
> `-------`
> ...text...
# Answer
You should add source codes scarcely and when it is interesting to add the code. **Loop** does not sound one of the interesting headings. In those cases you should include source code as figures and discuss them in your text.
in other cases, you can give complete source codes in appendix or in a CD/DVD as an attachment.
> 4 votes
# Answer
From my own experience and this would depend on your university's guidelines, a summary of the main algorithms of the code ought to be included - specifically with what each algorithm does, what's its significance, how it functions and how it links with the other parts.
In my recently completed and peer reviewed PhD thesis, I also included example 'snippets' or bits of code and included a flowchart of how the program as a whole works, linking all the described algorithms.
I was advised to write chapter subtitles with the context of each algorithm.
> 2 votes
# Answer
If you want the code itself out there, put it up on GitHub or BitBucket.
As to the thesis itself, it depends on the pedagogical value --- some algorithms are worth including as code themselves: where the specifics of the language and environment matter. Others are best included as pseudo-code.
> 2 votes
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Tags: phd, thesis, authorship, code
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thread-14868 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14868 | How should I write a statement of interest about how my research will fill gaps in the field, when I don't know enough about the field yet? | 2013-12-17T18:06:58.297 | # Question
Title: How should I write a statement of interest about how my research will fill gaps in the field, when I don't know enough about the field yet?
I'm applying to do a master's at Canadian universities. My background is Earth & Environmental Sciences.
When writing a statement of interest, I am familiar with the various research in the field I want to go into, however, a professor told me I should talk about "gaps in the data and where my research could fill those gaps". While I believe that's a great suggestion, I don't feel like I know enough about different methodologies and their faults to write a good statement of interest. Should I keep it on the vaguer side and relate it to the professor/research group's common interests?
On a different note, my marks aren't the best, they're about the admission requirements/slightly above. I have a lot of work experience in the field, and TA'd quite a bit. I also did an undergraduate thesis that I'm quite proud of (and hope to publish soon). So I know that already sets me apart from my peers and may make up for my lower average.
Within that framework, should I discuss my marks and explain how I am a better researcher/writer than I am at taking exams, or do I leave out grades completely?
# Answer
This statement of interest is both a persuasive and reflective piece. You need to sell yourself as best as possible. Below is one good way to do that.
> General advice: Sell yourself, but be honest. Be specific and concrete - a few detailed examples are better than lists of stuff you did (which goes in a resume if one is requested). Highlight experiences that suggest you are ready for graduate-level research. Relate your experiences and interests to the research going on in the department/program to which you are applying.
Paragraph 1 - State your intention (admission to M.S. program). Here is a good place to very quickly summarized your qualifications and to highlight your general research interests.
Paragraph 2 - Why the admissions/selection committee should give you a spot. This paragraph is the place to mention your experience, your TA activities, and your thesis. If you have a lot to say, group it by categories (like coursework, research, service/teaching) and make more than one paragraph. Do not worry so much about how your current experience is shaping you to contribute greatly to the field. Instead, focus on that thesis experience and what you learned from it. Do you think you are more prepared for graduate-level research than other undergrads might be because of this experience?
Paragraph 3 - This paragraph is an opportunity to be frank about anything that others may see as a limitation and/or weakness. Then you should describe how these limitations are not so serious or are counteracted by some additional experience/strength that makes you stand out. You can also describe how you are addressing these limitations so that they will go away. You should mention your grades in this section. Do not hide from them, but do not fixate on them either.
Paragraph 4 (optional) - If you have some unique story about how you because interested in a field, subfield, or research project. If your reason boils down to "it sounds neato", then incorporate this content into another paragraph. You can bring up your thesis again and discuss how you chose the topic and how the work has shaped your interests.
Last paragraph - Wrap-up. Restate your intent and summarize the key factors why they should accept you. This is a good place to write some specific wordage for the program you are applying to: "My undergraduate thesis was on the effects of X on Y, and I would like to continue study in subfield Z. Projects being undertaken by professors J, K, and L at Institution M are especially interesting to me because..." If you do this, you are showing that you did your homework about the program. You can also put this kind of stuff up front.
> 8 votes
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Tags: graduate-admissions, masters, application, statement-of-purpose
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thread-14862 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14862 | How prestigious is a Fulbright scholarship | 2013-12-17T15:40:02.163 | # Question
Title: How prestigious is a Fulbright scholarship
I am an international Fulbright scholar, the scholarship covers my university tuition expenses to complete my Masters degree in the US.
I heard a lot about how the Fulbright scholarship is one of the most prestigious scholarships there are and I was wondering if the prestige is due to only the financial reasons or are there any other benefits?
Also is the scholarship only prestigious in the US or is it famous on a world wide scale or only in academic realms?
# Answer
Yes, it is very prestigious, yet in many countries most non-academics will not have heard of it.
Regarding the benefits, I assume you did your research before applying so I don't know what we can tell you that you don't already know.
However, since this could help other people thinking of applying to one of the Fulbright programs, I am providing an (unofficial and incomplete) list of good things about this program. Please contact your local Fulbright office for more detailed and updated information.
* Once awarded, you'll attend a workshop/training in your home country, that will help prepare you for applying to US institutions and for studying and living in the US. This can be very important for people traveling to the US for the first time.
* If you need help improving your English, they'll likely send you 1 to 6 months ahead of your MS studies, to attend an English program in a US University (not the same university in which you'll get your MS).
* They have academic advisers that will help you apply to Universities, will check your recommendation letters and statement of purpose, so that you can maximize your chances of getting into a top program.
* You'll forever be part of the "State Alumni" network and will be invited to attend networking opportunities with other State Alumni members in your home country (and I guess other countries if you relocate).
* During your first year of studies, you'll be invited to a 3-4 day Fulbright Enrichment Seminar on "topics of global importance" (topic changes yearly). Personal note: for me, this was an amazing experience and probably the best part of the whole program. This video shows what the grantees do on these seminars.
* You may get some additional financial help (in addition to tuition), like a stipend for books and/or to buy a computer.
*EDIT (Added the following):*
**On the intangible benefits of the Fulbright Scholarship**
Ultimately, the Fulbright program is an International Exchange Program. It is hard to try to explain the intangible benefits you get from participating in such a program, but these quotes from Senator Fulbright can help:
> "International educational exchange is the most significant current project designed to continue the process of humanizing mankind to the point, we would hope, that men can learn to live in peace--eventually even to cooperate in constructive activities rather than compete in a mindless contest of mutual destruction....We must try to expand the boundaries of human wisdom, empathy and perception, and there is no way of doing that except through education."
>
> "The essence of intercultural education is the acquisition of empathy--the ability to see the world as others see it, and to allow for the possibility that others may see something we have failed to see, or may see it more accurately. The simple purpose of the exchange program...is to erode the culturally rooted mistrust that sets nations against one another. The exchange program is not a panacea but an avenue of hope...."
Very often, international Master's students in the US end up interacting primarily with other international students in their own program, and sometimes even with mostly other students from the same home country. A student participating in the Fulbright program has numerous opportunities to interact with US citizens and other international students from different programs and from different universities. It is an enriching experience that most likely will contribute to give you a more broad view of the world. This will likely have a positive impact in your career, either directly (for people in law, international relations, government, etc.) or indirectly (like helping you become a better teammate, a better project leader or manager).
If you want some examples on how the grantees experience their time in the US, this book has good reviews (I cannot comment myself, since I have not read it).
> 17 votes
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Tags: funding, united-states, student-exchange
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thread-14783 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14783 | Writing letters of recommendation for more than one student to the same department | 2013-12-14T21:28:10.700 | # Question
Title: Writing letters of recommendation for more than one student to the same department
Suppose multiple students have asked me for letters of recommendation to the same graduate department in the US. Am I expected to explicitly compare the students to one another? Am I supposed to do this in both letters (assuming they haven't been submitted yet)? Do I need to explicitly state a preference for one over the other, or can I just get away with listing relative strengths and weaknesses (for instance, "X is stronger academically, but Y has more research experience and is a stronger programmer")?
# Answer
Since each individual student is asking for a letter of recommendation it would be appropriate to approach each letter as an individual task and not implicitly cross-reference between the letters by making comparisons. Direct comparisons between the specific students should not be made. It is after all the person or committee admitting the students to the program that will make decisions who may fit the best and their criteria may not be the same as yours. It is, however, reasonable to make implicit comparisons such as ranking each in relative terms to, say, all students you have encountered or some other frame of reference. This way each student is compared to a group and not each other. This is what one commonly does anyway.
I can imagine that you may get a request for more details by the person/committee if there is a difficulty in separating students. You could if you are willing, add a comment to the fact that you are willing to answer any questions that may arise during the process regarding the student in question.
> 13 votes
# Answer
While writing recommendation letters, you can write about each applicant's strengths. You do not need to compare them to each other, but you can say whether you consider them in to 10%, 20% etc (some schools explicitly ask for this information).
More than one student can be in the top 10%, for example. If you have a good formula to calculate this, you should just follow that. It will make your letters easy and consistent.
> 6 votes
# Answer
While I agree the students are competing they can still both get in! Especially if we are only talking two students applying to a cohort. Schools will remember students from particular institutions, and more quality students is a good thing as it suggests they were better prepped for grad school.
On the flipside, I fail to see how providing potentially disparaging remarks (even if indirectly in saying I would choose A over B) provides help to the student getting the positive hand. That is, if you say `A is a better student than B` I don't see how this helps A against any of the other competition applying to the program besides over the B individual. Your creating a false dichotomy in doing so.
IMO the letters should really be orthogonal to one another (that is A's actions should have no bearing on B's letter) and you should focus on the individual in the recommendation.
> 4 votes
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Tags: graduate-admissions, recommendation-letter
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thread-13029 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/13029 | Who should recommend applicants for administrative positions? | 2013-09-27T12:42:55.070 | # Question
Title: Who should recommend applicants for administrative positions?
In a related question, Who should write a recommendation letter?, I came to the conclusion that letters of recommendation should be written by academics in the same field who knows the applicant's work, though, they may not know the applicant in person.
I wonder who should be named as references when applying for a senior administrative job such as **dean, vice president, provost, president**? In this case, the search committee should be interested in the applicant's skills for administrative tasks, rather than achievements in his or her academic discipline.
For example, a dean is applying for a provost position. Shouldn't the references be persons who have been directly involved in the applicant's role as dean in his current position?
# Answer
> 1 votes
The key when soliciting recommendation letters is to find persons who can provide insights into your credentials applicable for the job you are looking for. From this perspective the view you shared that letters "should be written by academics in the same field who knows the applicant's works" is only a special case.
When applying for a high level administrative job you need to find people at as high a level as possible. These should know your background, experience etc. but also be aware of the demands of the job for which you apply (this can be seen either in general or specific terms). There is thus no limit to whom you ask for letters but they will definitely not be as limited as for a regular academic position. Clearly anyone who has seen your capability to lead and administrate, for example, large projects, a department or research group will be appropriate. I can also add that you will most likely mostly look for letters from people in positions at similar or higher level than you (within academia, not necessarily so if you ask for letters from other professionals). But, the key is still to solicit support for the key aspects of the job to which you apply.
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Tags: university, job, recommendation-letter
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thread-14878 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14878 | Recommendation letter from a research supervisor who was not satisfied with my work | 2013-12-18T02:20:29.250 | # Question
Title: Recommendation letter from a research supervisor who was not satisfied with my work
Is it beneficial/harmful to get a letter from a research supervisor who was not satisfied with my work? (I wasn't interested in that topic, but I kept working in the lab for the money).
Or forget about that and instead focus on people who were satisfied with my research experience only?
# Answer
Talk with your advisor about this. Depending on your relationship with your advisor, you may still be able to get a decent letter. Use the following formula:
> Decent letter \> No letter \> Bad letter
If your advisor cannot write you a decent letter you will have to find someone else who is. Do note that not having a letter from your advisor will be a huge red flag; you will have to come to any interview with a ready explanation as to why your advisor did not feel comfortable recommending you.
> 6 votes
# Answer
Get a reference letter from your supervisor. Inspite of the fact that the letter may not be that great, it plays an important role.
But apart from that OK letter, you can also get a very good letter from the people who were satisfied with you.
So in the end you will have two letters with you to show and will give a fair opinion about you.
> 2 votes
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Tags: graduate-admissions, recommendation-letter
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thread-1369 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/1369 | Solutions to the lack of code transparency in economics? | 2011-10-15T15:23:51.833 | # Question
Title: Solutions to the lack of code transparency in economics?
Like most fields that rely on statistical analyses, economics has suffered from a few well-publicized coding errors (most notably the Foote and Goetz finding that when correcting Donohue and Levitt's programming error in the abortion/crime paper the conclusion is reversed), and likely suffers from far more which are never discovered.
What solutions have other fields used to ameliorate this problem, and how might the incentives of researchers be changed to encourage them to submit to these changes?
# Answer
You need the journals...
Nothing will move without it. The American Economics Review has taken the lead in requiring all data papers to make their data and source code available. Unfortunately, there's no real indication that other journals will follow suit, despite the formidable reputation of AER. Sadly, even the AER doesn't have a clear repository and not all code is available even though they require it of the authors.
Beyond that, David Card has a nice repository of sorts for structural econometrics data. Josh Angrist and David Autor should be praised for creating Data Archives that document their own work. But at this point it's still up to individuals to make their research transparent and their code available.
For what it's worth, I've been thinking about this issue a lot lately and decided to create a Google Code Project where economists can upload their code: http://code.google.com/p/econ-code/ ... That said, I have not yet tried to publicize it and think the ultimate key to adoption lies with the journals.
> 19 votes
# Answer
**Warning - anecdotal evidence ahead:**
We have a couple of pet statisticians that we run things past: they review our statistical methodology, and can check that the code does what we think it's doing. (That is to say, we borrow a few hours of time from colleagues in other departments. And in some funding bids / project proposals, we explicitly put in time for them). In some cases, we've coded up algorithms in different languages, and checked that results have been reproduced.
The incentives for cross-disciplinary collaboration are, I believe, already there. When we've explained to our statisticians what we're trying to do, for a stats health check, they've often been able to suggest additional tests. And they love getting their paws on new datasets, to go mining on. So it's constructive for all parties.
> 9 votes
# Answer
Another approach is to ease the process of making your data/code open. The Center for Open Science is an interesting non-profit that started this year. They're developing The Open Science Framework, which is a tool meant to assist with the research workflow--it facilitates collaboration, version control, and it reduces making your data/code open (completely or in parts) to a single click. I guess the strategy is to lure researchers into using the software by making a useful tool, and hoping that if openness is only a click away, more of them will just click the button. I could see this or something like it making a real impact.
> 4 votes
# Answer
I agree with dchandler. The journals have to require it and publicize it on their websites. There is no other way. There is another example from S. D. Levitt of Freakonomics fame in which a paper had erroneous conclusions that were demonstrated by trying to replicate the results. This is a serious issue that needs attention. Scientific rigor goes as far as the academic rigor, but academics have regrettably, large incentives to "make mistakes" in their coding to obtain conclusions beneficial to their research programme. There hardly is a more pressing issue in academic research than making the research process public. Technically it is a breeze to do, what is required is the political will for the journals to implement it. Hopefully, the issue can be raised in future annual meetings of the corresponding associations.
> 1 votes
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Tags: economics, code
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thread-14879 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14879 | Employment history and graduate admission | 2013-12-18T02:39:30.497 | # Question
Title: Employment history and graduate admission
Why do some graduate schools require an employment history for their application forms? Additionally, is it likely that they verify said history via one's social security number?
# Answer
> 3 votes
> Why do some graduate schools want to have employment history on graduate school application forms?
I can think of a few things:
1. If you're not coming directly from undergrad, they want to know what work you've been doing. In some cases, it may be entirely irrelevant, but nonetheless, they ask. While references are typically obtained from academic institutions, if you've been in industry for a while, one of your recommendations may come from your employer...
2. If you are coming directly from undergrad, you may still have been employed during school or have completed some number of internships. Again, while they may not be relevant, there's no reason not to ask, especially if they can positively affect your application.
3. Either way, employment, depending on what you did, could demonstrate responsibility, leadership, potentially research ability, etc.
> Is it likely that they verify it with SSN?
This almost seems like you're trying to determine if they can catch you in a lie--they do not need a SSN to do that. Don't fabricate anything.
# Answer
> 2 votes
It is unlikely that something will be verified but still its best for you not to write anything which is not true.
And your employment history tells a lot about you, here is a list of some points apart from those mentioned before:
1. It shows that you have the capability to handle industry environment
2. If its a really good company then it shows your excellence because you got through a very difficult interview process
3. It shows your communication skills and people management skills
4. It shows your ability in analytic tools also.
So it will be good if you mention all your employment history, be it in a education institute.
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Tags: graduate-admissions
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thread-14877 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14877 | Code in journal papers | 2013-12-18T02:13:23.503 | # Question
Title: Code in journal papers
Most papers do not specify a separate license for the source code, so presumably it would be licensed under the same terms as the rest of the paper. Typically, this means that the copyright lies with the publisher. Then,
* As a reader, do I need permission from the publisher to use source code contained in journal articles?
* Would using the source code be considered fair use in the US? What about countries that do not have comparable laws?
* As an author, what should I do if I want the code I publish to be freely usable by others?
# Answer
> 4 votes
I think the codes available in papers are provided as materials for several purposes, including
1. Help reviewers and journal's board to efficiently evaluate the work and identify its technical merit.
2. Enable readers to better grasp the algorithm/method proposed
3. Enable researchers to utilize the code in their future research to avoid duplication
4. Help (novice) researchers to play with the code for educational benefits
5. Provide opportunity to peers to further improve the proposal
However, you may contact the author(s) if the want to use the code for
1. Commercializing the algorithm/method
2. Use the code for activities that generates money
3. Register patent using available contents
In my institute, I see lots supervisor ask their master students to read recent papers and identify a small research problem to alleviate during their project work. Students either use the given code or contact the authors for code, which authors usually provide the code.
So, I think you don't need to explicitly state the code copyright in the paper. But, if you are really interested to do that, you can have a footnote in the first page allowing readers to utilize the code in full, if the EiC does not mind.
Hope it helps
# Answer
> 3 votes
> Most of codes are free if you use it for research purpose, you just need to include right citations
>
> If a code is commercial or GPL license then you need permission, for that you can contact the author directly and discuss the same
>
> If you want your code to be freely available just make it open source licensed that's it.
Each country has different rules for patents and stuff, so be careful where the code is available etc. So discussion with author is the best thing to do. The license is usually specified on the website where you get the code from and also in the .cpp or .h files header.
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Tags: copyright, code
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thread-14886 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14886 | Paper on project without any result - how to conclude | 2013-12-18T10:00:18.917 | # Question
Title: Paper on project without any result - how to conclude
I'm reporting on an engineering project that is in its early phases. Therefore, there are no results, but there is already a quite detailed plan on how the problems in the project can be conquered. Now I was asked to present the project at a conference. I want to present the current state, but I'm not sure how to structure a conclusion as there is no result, and I can't evaulate, if the planned methods will be successful. Still I believe presenting the intended methods will bring value to the community.
How do you conclude a project presentation that doesn't have any results but already has a quite concrete and detailed plan? What content could I provide? Or can one just not provide a conclusion in a paper? That seems a bit unbalanced...
# Answer
I think the **conclusion of a paper** and the **conclusion of a project** are two different things.
In my view, the conclusion of a paper is the summary of the paper while the conclusion of a project is the end results of the project. Your paper has the current state and the future plan of the project. These can be the conclusion of the paper. They are not necessarily the conclusion of the project.
If you don't feel comfortable with having "Conclusion" section in your paper without stating the true conclusion of the project, my suggestion is to write a ""Summary" or "Future Outlook" section at the end of the paper. This is a personal taste, in my opinion.
There are many papers without "Conclusion" section either by authors' choice or the final conclusive results for the problem/conjecture were not obtained yet at the time the paper was written.
> 6 votes
# Answer
What goes into the **conclusions** section in a paper is a bit field-specific. I am doing research in computer science (services / software engineering), and oftentimes, the conclusions are basically the place where you summarize the main points of your paper. It is not *required* in my field that the conclusions contain hard data / findings. If the paper is of more positional nature (a roadmap paper, a "Towards ..." paper, etc.), the conclusions will be more of an outlook on the challenges ahead.
> 5 votes
# Answer
The paper is about an analysis that has been performed to address some challenges and fulfill some objectives. The result of the analysis is a plan.
The plan should fulfill the objectives, it should be fault tolerant, it should consider the possible risks that may materialize during the project or it should do whatever it should do and it should be like whatever it should be (I don't know the specific details about the objectives and the analysis).
In any case, the conclusion should be that the plan fulfills the objectives that were set for the design of such a plan. If it doesn't then you should try to do the plan again, because that would mean it's wrong. I guess it's right, that's the main conclusion and that's the reason to publish a paper.
If after the project you find out it was wrong, then that could be a good reason to write another paper. With lessons learned, mistakes, etc. so that nobody else makes the same mistakes (we should make some progress in the state of the art of mistakes as well ;-) )
PD: Future lines are not exactly conclusions, a conclusion is something that ends. Every end implies a new beginning, and thus future lines (imminent beginnings) are included in this section, but let me note they are two different things (and opposite to a great extent).
> 2 votes
# Answer
You could include information about metrics for success, what a solution might look like, future directions, etc. And then the conclusions for the paper would summarize what you presented, rather than what you're going to do.
> 2 votes
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Tags: publications, conference, peer-review, writing, paper-submission
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thread-1915 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/1915 | Questions regarding PhD in Linguistics or Applied Linguistics at US universities | 2012-06-06T11:46:54.223 | # Question
Title: Questions regarding PhD in Linguistics or Applied Linguistics at US universities
I have a few questions regarding admission into a PhD program in Applied Linguistics or Linguistics at US universities. I could not find any other valuable online sources regarding Linguistics for the answers I seek. Let me start with my qualification. I am an international student with a Masters in English Linguistics and Literature with a percentage of 65.9. Although it's the best language university in my country but it is not that famous anywhere else. My grade average was B with no A or C in any of the individual modules. We don't have GPA system for language studies.
This percentage is regarded with high value in my country and I was one of the top four in my class. However, there is no set grading scale used by the examiners in my country and it is very rare, in fact, almost impossible to score above 70% in any language related field. And that is the case for the most perfect performance.
My Bachelor's scores are mediocre (59.9%). I was disappointed in myself for not being able to get admission into a medical school (marginally) like the rest of my siblings and ending up doing Bachelors in law and English Literature was a major shock for my planned future career (I had been a brilliant student before). I, however, slowly developed interest in Linguistics and did well in Masters.
1. My first question is, as most good Universities require a GPA of 3 or above with successful candidates usually having more than 3.6, what are my chances of admission? How can I go about explaining my situation as the % of students pursuing Linguistics doctorate at US from my country is very low. Are my scores too horrible?
2. My only research was Masters thesis in a literature related field, titled, 'Autobiographical element in Gabriel Garcia Marquez's "One Hundred Years of Solitude"' of almost 40,000 words. Will it hinder my chance for admission into Linguistics?
3. What else can I do to improve my application and up my chances specifically for Linguistics? How should I lay out my SOP? My ultimate preference would be Berkeley, UCLA and MIT. Should I even think about these universities with such scores?
Any help would be highly appreciated.
# Answer
> 2 votes
As an international candidate you need to think about what your scores mean. I think percentile rank, as opposed to GPA or raw percentage is what is important. In the US a 65.9 would be very bad and I would guess that in the US 75% of the students have a GPA of 3.0 or above and 10% have a GPA of 3.6 or above. In many European countries a 59.9 would be a borderline 2:1 and put you in the 50th percentile.
It sounds like you think your Masters work would be in the top 10%. That is very good. With a little help (both in your letter and by your recommendation writers) schools will figure this out.
One solid piece of previous research is really all that is need to get into a PhD program. 40,000 words is huge. You may want to work on shortening it so you can present it as a paper and send it as a writing sample if English is not your first language.
# Answer
> 1 votes
Your GRE scores would be very important, in this case. For a writing sample, a term paper in linguistics would be better than your MA thesis, given its length. Your writing sample should show your linguistics knowledge, if you're applying to linguistics programs.
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Tags: phd, university
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thread-14855 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14855 | Is it feasible to take an unsure PhD topic? | 2013-12-17T11:34:42.383 | # Question
Title: Is it feasible to take an unsure PhD topic?
I was working towards converting to a PhD but was unsure of what research I would do. Suddenly an idea striked my mind and I discussed it with my advisor. He doesn't have much experience in that exact field but has been in the area for around 6 months.
He said that he thinks that idea is feasible but doesn't know what would be the approach, and not sure whether the results would be positive in terms of PhD because there several parallel domains. Moreover, literature doesn't have much details on that exact topic. And my literature survey (pretty limited though) has only enhanced my confusion. Probably because my idea deals with application of a recent class of techniques to optimize a problem.
Is it worth to convert to a PhD with such an idea ?
# Answer
This is exactly how most of the really great PhD students I've seen have all started. Working on a problem with unknowns is a process called "research."
Clearly, you are going to have to find some collaborators with more experience in the field than your advisor, but that's part of the process as well. Hopefully, your advisor can assist with networking / introductions / etc. The support of your advisor will be critical (as it is for all PhD students).
The trick is to make sure you have a backup plan and a way to convert to it if necessary. Don't spend three years mucking around if you're not making progress. But, spending 6 months investigating if there is something there -- that's well worth it.
> 14 votes
# Answer
Not sure there's a correct answer here, but I would recommend against it. The goal of your PhD research is twofold:
1. Introduce you to the world of Academia
2. Earn you a PhD
By choosing your topic to be something completely exploratory, you put (2) at risk; the research may not pan out, or may be much more difficult than you think, or may be infeasible for technical reasons, or whatever, and your PhD would be at risk.
However, to reiterate, this is a function of the specific topic at hand, your risk appetite, your advisor's skillset and risk appetite, and your willingness to restart your research partway through your program. Take all that into account when making your decision.
> 6 votes
# Answer
I like **eykanal**'s answer, and I would add this: I know many people who changed the topic after one year of their thesis, and if they put enough effort into it, they still finished in time (being \<4 years here).
What I mean, if you start working on one problem and you finish solving another one, you still can graduate and get your PhD. However, depending on your subject, this might be more difficult: for us "theoreticians" who work in an office it's simple, for people who do complicated experiments it's of course much more difficult or even impossible.
> 6 votes
# Answer
While research is inherently risky, there are two red flags:
> He said that he thinks that idea is feasible **but doesn't know what would be the approach**, and not sure whether the results would be positive in terms of PhD because **there several parallel domains**.
What this tells me is that your advisor does not have the specialization to attack this particular idea that you are proposing; moreover, there are other areas of research that may be examining the problem that you are discussing.
There are a number of potential issues that come across from this:
1. You don't have an advisor who's familiar with the area, so you have to spend more time (either doing your own related work, or finding other faculty/collaborators) to discover the appropriate methods. Instead of having your advisor go, "Use this equipment and this research method", now you have to possibly discover what the method is and then acquire equipment for it. You will make mistakes numerous times because no one is there to help you avoid common mistakes. This makes your results take longer and uses more money.
2. If there are parallel domains, then there is a risk that the results that you and your advisor find from the work (that most likely took a long time because people are unfamiliar with the method) are possibly not as significant or as important as they first seem because this other area's already identified them first. Others familiar with the area might ask, "Why didn't you look at XYZ and ABC first?" and reject the paper. As a result, it will take additionally more time to familiarize yourself with these parallel domains in order to identify that what you're doing is important, relevant, and novel.
I think personally that (1) is a much greater risk than (2). Most people never come into an area with knowledge of what's there, so surveying related work, talking to people, and learning about the research area is usually work that has to be done anyway, but (1) can be very deadly. (1) and (2) in combination can be very dangerous, since it might indicate that your advisor simply doesn't have a lot of interest in Method (1) and in Result (2) - which means that your project might end up with less priority, less input, and less money. And all of that results in less papers and less impact.
Less papers, less impact means less opportunity to do important, meaningful work (and fewer job opportunities).
Thus, it does depend partly on what your personal goals are. If you do want to pursue this path for the sake of expanding your knowledge and the knowledge of the world at large, then one possibility would be to switch advisors or to find out who's doing this work in parallel domains and collaborate closely with one of these other researchers so you can get technical knowledge from those people.
> 5 votes
# Answer
```
Converting to PhD should not be dependent on an idea, I think.
```
If you want to do PhD then go for it. If one idea does not work other will. That's what research is all about.
Apart from taking up that idea further:
1. Your supervisor does not have enough experience in that field that means you are entering at your own risk.
2. Do a good 2-3 months detailed literature survey to understand it better and then take a call.
> 2 votes
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Tags: phd, research-process
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thread-6092 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/6092 | Are undergraduate reference letters adequate for PhD applications after a masters program? | 2013-01-09T05:01:35.323 | # Question
Title: Are undergraduate reference letters adequate for PhD applications after a masters program?
Currently I am finishing my masters (one year) in economics at a Canadian university and am intending to apply to Canadian universities to do a PhD.
The issue I have is that in the courses I had taken last semester the professors were closed to student contact making it near impossible to build relationships.
For my applications I intended to rely upon professors from my undergraduate university that know me quite well and who I know will write high-quality letters.
A colleague of mine mentioned that when applying for a PhD program, it is expected that my references will come from my masters university and it is generally not acceptable practice to have references from the undergraduate one.
Is this actually the case? If so, what is the best course of action?
# Answer
> 9 votes
A Ph.D. program is about research. Have you done research? If not, how do you know you want to study for a Ph.D.?
It is *your* responsibility to seek out opportunities for research. Protestations that your professors were not open to communication are not likely to be viewed positively by an admissions committee. If you've had some research experiences, have you considered asking those you worked with for a recommendation letter? If you haven't had any research experience, that will make it significantly harder to be admitted into a Ph.D. program, no matter who writes your letters.
And if you haven't been inspired to seek out opportunities to get involved in research, that would make me wonder whether you will truly enjoy a Ph.D. program. Going to a Ph.D. program "by default" or because "that's what everyone is doing" is a terrible idea; you should only join a Ph.D. program if you are passionate and excited about doing research, because that's what you are going to be spending most of your time doing in a Ph.D. program, and that is what Ph.D. programs are designed to prepare you for. So, you might also want to do a little bit of soul-searching to figure out whether a Ph.D. program truly is the right direction for you. If it's not, it's much better to find out now rather than after spending several years in a Ph.D. program.
It is acceptable to have letters of reference from a mixture of your undergraduate and your masters university. People would probably ask questions if all of your letters were from your undergraduate university and none were from your masters university. That might make the admissions committee wonder: What were you doing with your time at the M.S. program? Why didn't you seek out opportunities to get involved in research and other activities beyond coursework? Is there some hidden story? (For instance, did you completely alienate all the professors in your M.S. program? Or, do you have little self-drive to do research? Or, maybe you have little experience with research, and thus no idea whether you are good at and enjoy research, and thus little basis to judge whether a Ph.D. program is a good fit for you.)
That said, the most important thing is to have letters from people who know you well, and who know well how to evaluate candidates for Ph.D. programs. So, which professors (or other established researchers) know you well and can best comment on your research ability or research potential?
# Answer
> 0 votes
Not really. It is assumed that if you are a good student you would be able to get good reference letters from your masters courses. It would have to be from your undergraduate thesis advisor or some sort of exceptional activity you did during undergrad, not just a regular class with a good grade, if at all.
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Tags: graduate-admissions, application, recommendation-letter, economics
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thread-5808 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/5808 | Publishing similar/same paper twice? (regarding Economics Letters journal) | 2012-12-17T02:56:29.757 | # Question
Title: Publishing similar/same paper twice? (regarding Economics Letters journal)
I've always been under the impression that you're only allowed to publish 1 result in 1 journal. However, Economics Letters states:
> For instance, a theorist could submit to Economics Letters a thought-provoking example before the analysis is extended to a general theorem in a fully fledged paper that will go elsewhere. Similarly, an experimentalist or an empirical researcher could submit to Economics Letters some important preliminary results, where perhaps the threshold for robustness, thoroughness or completeness of the analysis is not as high as it would be for a complete paper.
Is this stating that you're allowed to submit early results of paper X to Economics Letters, then improve paper X until paper X is longer and more like a full paper, followed by a submission of paper X to an alternative journal? If it is what they mean, why don't more academics do this to boost their publication count? Economics Letters is actually ranked quite highly.
# Answer
*Taken from the comments as per request*
This is fairly common. For example, in CS, one might publish preliminary work at a conference, and then flesh it out for a journal (there's a "30% new material" rule in many journals to cover this situation). But to answer your question, doing this doesn't boost publication count except for very dumb ways of evaluating a publication list. Most people (except university bureaucrats) will list the conference and journal paper as one entity.
Note that it is upto the journal editors of the second venue to decide whether the paper is sufficiently different from the first one. They are free to reject it even if you think the latter paper is a nontrivially expanded version of the first one.
> 9 votes
# Answer
Indeed. Economics Letters is a journal where people read summaries of papers and get a good idea of the literature coming out in different specialties of economics, before moving on to reading full technical papers in other journals. So yes, it is quite understandable to submit a summarized watered-down version of a paper to Economics Letters.
> 0 votes
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Tags: publications, journals, publishers, economics
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thread-3272 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/3272 | Feasibility of enrollments in a Masters program at one university and a PhD program in another university | 2012-09-18T17:16:26.637 | # Question
Title: Feasibility of enrollments in a Masters program at one university and a PhD program in another university
Is it possible to be enrolled at a Masters program at one university and a PhD program in another university?
Is one allowed to do this? Or is this not possible in general?
# Answer
> 8 votes
Maybe, but why? Different topics?
In any case, you'd have to check the rules of both universities.
As a supervisor/employer of PhD students, I would not want my student doing this. A PhD is a full-time job, requiring full-time commitment. Financing is scarce and I wouldn't want to waste it on someone who is not fully committed.
# Answer
> 8 votes
You should never, ever try anything like this without explicit written permission from the administrations of both universities, from at least the department chair level, if not the dean. I once knew someone who was enrolled in two Ph.D. programs, and it completely derailed his career when this was discovered, even though his advisor had told him it was OK.
As Dave Clarke points out in his answer, funding is a big problem. It's much worse than it might appear from the outside: it's obviously questionable to accept payment from both universities for doing full-time work, but in fact this can be a serious problem even if one (or both!) of them is not paying you in any direct way. At least in the US, there are often payments being made behind the scenes within the university. This may sound like "funny money", since it just involves moving money between accounts within the same institution, but it really makes a difference in what departments are allowed to do, so they take it very seriously. (For example, at my university, the administration charges the department tens of thousands of dollars for every enrolled graduate student, to cover tuition. Sometimes this comes from grant funding, and sometimes from general departmental funds supplied by the administration. If a student accepts an offer of admission without actually putting in the expected time or energy because of other academic commitments, then that's tantamount to a serious budget decrease. That money comes from somewhere, either a grant or the department, and whoever spent it will be very unhappy. It's not as bad as stealing, but it will be treated somewhat similarly by the university.)
Anyway, there are many different ways universities are run, so it's possible that you'll find a way to make this work. But don't try it without making sure you have written proof of official approval (keeping in mind that individual faculty members are in many cases not authorized to give approval).
# Answer
> 0 votes
It is possible. Many PhD programs don't require a masters, just an undergrad, so it is definitely possible, but as mentioned, why would you want to do that? Is it in complementary subjects that you plan to you later on? It would be awfully hard to do well in both programs. They are much more demanding than undergrad. I would suggest first doing the masters and then moving to the PhD, but it is your choice.
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Tags: phd, masters
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thread-12989 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/12989 | Can I payoff student-loan debts working as a professor after getting a Ph.D. in mathematics? | 2013-09-26T02:06:26.220 | # Question
Title: Can I payoff student-loan debts working as a professor after getting a Ph.D. in mathematics?
I have been recently accepted into graduate school for my PhD in Mathematics. I feel very prepared and excited. However, my route is somewhat untraditional as I am "going back." That is, I am walking away from a well paying job. (I should mention that I am unmarried with no children.) I still have a lot of debt from undergrad. And, I am about to accumulate more (although an assistantship will help defray some costs). Obtaining my PhD and teaching at a college is my dream. As such, I am taking the plunge-no matter the cost. Working with the assumption that I will be about $100,000 in debt when I graduate, is it feasible to "live" even if I secure a tenure-track position? For instance, can one "request" to teach intersession and summer sessions for extra income (as a professor)?
# Answer
> 15 votes
Since nobody else has offered a direct answer to the title question...
> Should I take on debt in order to get a Ph.D. in mathematics?
## Absolutely not.
If a PhD program isn't willing to waive your tuition and offer you a stipend (in the form of an assistantship or fellowship), they don't really want you. Go somewhere else. If they decide not to give you more funding after a semester or two, you're done. Go somewhere else.
# Answer
> 14 votes
In most math PhD programs in the US, your tuition costs are covered by either the department or your advisor, and you receive a *stipend* on top of that to cover your living expenses. While it may not be enough to cover the lifestyle you are accustomed to as a working professional, it is certainly enough that you should not need to accumulate substantial debt as a doctoral student! Moreover, you should be able to put any subsidized loans you have in deferral during this time, so that they do not accumulate interest during this period.
With respect to income as an assistant professor, what exactly is permitted depends on the regulations of the particular institution at which you are working. At most schools, however, you are entitled to have "consulting contracts" which would supplement your salary as a faculty member; however, such contracts and the workloads associated with them normally have to be declared to the university. In addition, at many schools, you are paid only a nine-month salary; you can "earn" the remaining three months through external grants and other means (perhaps teaching summer courses, and so on).
# Answer
> 7 votes
Having a lot of undergraduate student loan debt and expressing the amount in dollars makes it sound like you are in the U.S. On the other hand, I haven't heard of a U.S. math grad school admitting anyone in September, so I'm puzzled by where you are. I'll answer assuming it's the U.S., but this answer may not apply in other locations.
As aeismail pointed out, U.S. Ph.D. programs in mathematics fund their students at a level that should let you make it through grad school without new loans. If such a program admits you but won't provide funding, then that shows a serious lack of confidence in you. It amounts to saying that you're welcome to try if you can afford to pay for everything, but they don't think it's a good use of their money.
It seems from your question and comments that you've been admitted now but will not learn about funding until spring. I would strongly recommend applying more broadly this fall, so you can see what your other options are. If the current school does not come through with funding in the spring, then you should view it as just barely being admitted (and you should factor that into your estimate of the likelihood of getting a good job - they might be totally wrong in their judgment of you, but this would indicate that they don't expect you to be one of their more successful students).
I'd recommend taking your favorite among funded offers of admission and treating unfunded offers as tantamount to rejection, but of course it depends on how risk averse you are.
> Working with the assumption that I will be about $100,000 in debt when I graduate, is it feasible to "live" even if I secure a tenure-track position?
Try a student loan calculator. The details will depend on your interest rate, repayment schedule, etc., but for an order of magnitude estimate, you'd need to pay roughly $1,000/month to be debt-free in ten years. Whether this is feasible depends on how frugal you are and how much you might make. I've linked to American Mathematical Society salary surveys. You should be careful not to get too optimistic: fancy jobs can pay starting salaries in the $80,000 to $90,000 range, but few people get such jobs and in any case typically after a postdoc. A typical starting salary for a tenure-track job at a teaching-oriented college is $55,000, and getting a tenure-track job at all is certainly not guaranteed.
> For instance, can one "request" to teach intersession and summer sessions for extra income (as a professor)?
Sometimes. If you find a job at a research university with a low teaching load, then deliberately increasing the teaching load would be a bad way to get tenure. If you end up working somewhere with a high teaching load, then you might not want to increase it, but I'd expect that you could take on summer teaching if you need the money. It may not pay very well, though.
# Answer
> 5 votes
Just my 2 cents here, but in my opinion, going into a math PhD which is not financially covered 100% more or less; meaning tuition and basic living expenses are paid for, sounds like a bad move to me. Even full teaching assistantships are paid very badly.
One can spend a lot of time in a PhD program. You said that after you graduate, you want to be a math teacher. Well, math teachers don't get paid that much.
If you aren't fully covered under your current arrangements, I suggest you try and find an institution that will fully cover you.
Having said that, you don't give a lot of details about what your financial arrangements during grad school will be, or details about your current debt. If you gave more details, people might be able to offer more concrete responses.
I think that asking about such things in a personal finance forum such as Personal Finance & Money would also be a reasonable thing to do, as this is partly a finance question.
# Answer
> 1 votes
If your dream is to do a PhD in math then go for it by all means, but take into account that you are not putting yourself in the best situation. Could you delay your entry into the PhD program to pay half of the debt with your current good-paying job? You could delay and apply to other programs as well to see if you get more funding. I mean by all means pursue your dreams, but please take into account the financials of it. Also, it might not be your dream after all, once you have spent a few years in the program. The reality might be different than the dream, and for that reason I would suggest working a couple more years, paying off the loan and then entering with a better situation the PhD program.
In any case, you should be able to pay the loan after the PhD straight after graduating, just as if it was part of your mortgage, but you'll have to make some sacrifices, and I assume there is the possibility of you getting married, having more responsibilities but also possibly another source of income. Please take this into account when making your final decision.
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Tags: phd, graduate-school, career-path
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thread-2808 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/2808 | Dismissed by my committee | 2012-08-10T07:17:35.660 | # Question
Title: Dismissed by my committee
I attended a doctoral program and was completing it in 3 to 4 years. I got a life-threatening sickness that set me back several years. When nearing my dissertation I was dismissed. I was told that I was let go because I had cancer. I never wanted to return to that school again, but not having completed my work has caused me great heartache and I am not able to pursue the career I desired. Is it at all possible to complete the degree elsewhere?
# Answer
> 11 votes
In general, I think graduate schools want students to pursue their entire PhD candidacy at a given institution. Moreover, schools may be reluctant to count work done a long time ago as part of the requirements for obtaining a degree, as it likely sets a bad precedent.
Moreover, there's the question of financing. If you're in a program where students are financed through TA's, it's a lot easier to convince a school to take a chance, rather than in the sciences. The reason for this is that funding in the sciences is often tied to specific projects—which means that you will most likely need to change topics if you pursue a PhD in such a department. This would of course set your time to degree back considerably.
That said, you may find a sympathetic department that's willing to take a chance. My best advice is try to talk to the graduate admissions officers of some of the departments you're thinking of applying to. They'll help you to figure out what are the requirements and possibilities.
# Answer
> 7 votes
This situation surprises me: in the U.S., one could likely file (and win) a lawsuit alleging discrimination, in such a situation.
Dismissal from a college or university on grounds that one is ill is not legal, I think. Accommodation must be made, so that perhaps things are delayed, but not simply cancelled.
Outright dismissal from a job (such as research assistant or teaching assistant) on medical grounds I think is not allowed, either. One may be required to take a leave of absence if one absolutely cannot do one's job even with accommodation, but there is substantial legal (and moral) push to accommodate and reach a compromise.
I think discrimination on admissions, on medical grounds, would also be essentially illegal.
Edit: you should talk to a laywer conversant with such things, who might be willing to talk to you without a huge fee if you describe your situation to their screening personnel. The situation is rife with lawyerism, indeed. Be careful.
# Answer
> 1 votes
I think you should try to fight it diplomatically but legally with the school. It doesn't seem fair or legal. It would be nearly impossible to continue in another institution unless you have relationships and also the reputation of the former school is considerably higher, which you wouldn't want to do anyway.
Depends if really the time you were away was strictly due to sickness. If you took several years more afterwards it is unlikely for you to win. Doctoral programs routinely turn away people who started, left, went to the real world, didn't like it, and want to return. They believe that somewhat freshness of knowledge and being current in the topics is important. Also they have some strange ideas about academic virginity that you want to take into account.
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Tags: phd, thesis, university, advisor, disability
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thread-5729 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/5729 | Is it possible to study abroad as a PhD student? | 2012-12-13T23:55:56.770 | # Question
Title: Is it possible to study abroad as a PhD student?
I hope to enter a PhD program in economics in the next few years, ideally at a top US school (Berkeley, Stanford, MIT, Harvard, etc.) Are there usually opportunities to study abroad during such a program? For example, if I attended Berkeley intending to focus on macroeconomics, would it be possible to study abroad with some of the macro theorists at Cambridge or U of Edinburgh?
This would not be an opportunity to "experience the local culture," which many undergraduate study abroad experiences focus on, but more a chance to gain multiple perspectives from academics in different countries. In my opinion the rigors of a top PhD program rule out the former.
# Answer
I don't think what you're describing is all that common, and I've never heard of any sort of systematic program, but it does happen. I ended up spending two months abroad during grad school to participate in a once off trimester program in my area of specialty. There weren't any standard arrangements in place, though: my home university (very generously) moved things around so I could do it. I think I've heard of other cases, all similarly involving unique circumstances like faculty moving around or particular personal connections.
> 7 votes
# Answer
In the mathematics milieu, there'd be little motivation to do this, and several motivations to *not* do it. E.g., if one is in a top-ranked program, contact and connections with the faculty *there*, e.g., one's thesis advisor, are critical, not only to eventually generate letters of recommendation but, presumably, to be exposed to their ideas, their ways of thinking, and many intangibles.
A scenario in which I could imagine "travel abroad" would be professionally useful would be in which one found oneself in a "second tier" program, but somehow had the opportunity to "visit" a "first tier" program for a substantial bit of time. *Then* the point would be to pay attention to the ideas and viewpoints of the faculty there... obviously... and eventually elicit letters, maybe?
Otherwise, merely dislocating oneself from one's base is pointless.
Edit: quite apparently (in light of JeffE's comments and whoever's downvotes and such) there are varying viewpoints on the benefits-or-not of "study abroad". Presumably this is related to one's mental model for what happens in grad school, especially the role of the advisor, but also the "maturity/responsibility" of grad students. Also, while "travel is broadening", depending on one's model "broadening" may not be the goal of grad school. Sure, the extent to which "travel" makes provincial prejudices harder to maintain, one might hope that being at one of the best places avoids that already. If one's model views advisor/student as master/apprentice, disconnection seems undesirable. If the model views the advisor as merely an older colleague who's been successful, then very different actions seem reasonable. The latter sort of model-feature is arguably a corollary of the "grad student as independent thinker" principle. (My preferred tweaking of this is to "critical thinker".)
To my mind, the bottom line is that some of the most interesting projects/issues have enormous and informative backstories very badly documented in the formal literature, so that even a very good grad student has tremendous difficulty assimilating things. Optimistically/ideally, one can get different perspectives on these issues by talking to different "top experts", hence motivating "travel". However, a key bottleneck is that it may take a few years of full-time attention to catch on to a mature expert viewpoint. If there were a unique, objective such, then one could get variations on it from various experts. However, it is not at all clear to me that there is such a unique, objective unifying "story".
In fact, the *variations* on what might have been "the standard story" appear to often be fairly critical, and the variations and nuances thereof take a long time to get a grip on. Thus my raising the "apprenticeship" model.
As hinted at, if grad school does take "several years", maybe there is more room to fit in residence elsewhere, but some of the elite programs like people to finish in three or at-most-four years, and then it's harder to see how this would work out.
> 1 votes
# Answer
It is possible but very rare. Professors think, if you want to work with us in your dissertation why could you possibly want to go abroad? Some people do internships abroad during the summer while they are studying. Others begin to work with a professor who then moves to a university abroad and the student follows the professor to the new school. That usually implies that the student ends up graduating from the second school and it is a major move. Finally, some students get a scholarship which sustains them for a year or two to study with a researcher at a top school. At Penn some professors received European students on a regular basis for a year or two, to work on papers together and the students then went back and graduated from their school having done their paper and network at Penn. But if you wanted to go from there to Princeton or MIT, good luck.
> 0 votes
# Answer
It seems like you are talking more about economics in your question, but in fields closer to engineering, doing internships at company research labs seems almost mandatory for excellent PhD students. Visiting other universities is less common, but certainly not unheard of. As such, I would not agree with the general tone of most answers here. I would say, **for engineering**, spending significant time outside of "your" lab is both common and beneficial to your further career.
I even know of (some) formal exchange programmes that are established to send students abroad. For instance, in Singapore, programmes exist for both incoming and outgoing visiting PhD students. These exchanges can last between 3 months and 2 years, as far as I know, and are supported by government grants. The government of Austria (my country of residence) also has multiple funding programmes running that scholars in various career stages can apply to for funding research visits.
> 0 votes
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Tags: phd, economics
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thread-792 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/792 | How good are entrepreneurial opportunities for faculty members? | 2012-03-17T19:48:50.560 | # Question
Title: How good are entrepreneurial opportunities for faculty members?
* How easy is it for faculty members working at a reputable university to become entrepreneurs?
* If the faculty member sees an opportunity for a great product and wants to set up a small office with a few engineers working with one or two students, will the university sponsor such a venture?
* How enthusiastic or forthcoming will the industry and VCs in general be towards this?
* Lastly, how common are such professor-run companies for, say engineering faculty in top US schools?
# Answer
> 11 votes
This is quite common in American universities, and there are probably thousands of start-ups that have arisen out of university-based research. The question of financing such a venture is of course a challenging one to answer, but with the right contacts, is usually available.
I can think of at least four or five such start-ups in the department I attended for graduate school, and I imagine there are several more in the planning stages.
As for how enthusiastic industry and VC's are, well, I think it depends entirely on the strength of the idea, and how "market-ready" the concept is. The sooner it's ready to go, the more enthusiastically people will flock to it.
# Answer
> -1 votes
I think the main issue is that a lot of entrepreneural mindset is eliminated from faculty, but if the faculty has the right mindset there is no limitation to a venture, especially if the faculty has tenure.
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Tags: professorship, university, industry
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thread-9773 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/9773 | Prolonging a PhD to improve research CV, is this good ? | 2013-05-02T02:16:14.403 | # Question
Title: Prolonging a PhD to improve research CV, is this good ?
I am in my 4th year of PhD. Few months ago I presented my thesis proposal which already included some of the results (that are actually published). I proposed to add another chapter (call it Chapter x).
One of the committee members told me that the results presented are sufficient for a thesis. He said that chapter x is not necessary, or it can be replaced by a literature survey (instead of presenting original work - as I proposed during the thesis proposal). He said that original work can be done during a post-doc instead. My thesis supervisor agreed.
Right now, I am in the middle of of the Chapter x \[and some other stuff\] (and I think I have original results that are not complete - they would be complete, if everything goes fine \[which is never the case in research\]).
*My question is:* should I write my thesis without novel results in Chapter x and then do a postdoc based on Chapter x ? Or: should I continue working on Chapter x even if this will result in a longer PhD ?
*The source of my confusion:* Wouldn't adding novel results in Chapter x improve my research CV ? but at the same time, will the long period of PhD negatively affect the research CV ? Plus, will I find the chance to work on this topic as a postdoc !
# Answer
As Irwin suggests, prolonging the PhD to improve your research track record is a standard strategy, especially for students who are interested in pursuing an academic career.
**The minimal requirements to get a PhD are fundamentally weaker than the minimal requirements to get an academic job.** Despite all high-falutin' talk to the contrary, the only *real* requirement for completing a PhD is convincing your thesis committee to sign the requisite paperwork. Most faculty have an image in their heads of the necessary work; for example, in computer science, a minimal PhD thesis is roughly equivalent to two solid conference papers.
On the other hand, the academic job market is a true competition. Only people with truly outstanding research records (and strong recommendation letters) get invited to interview for faculty positions, or accepted for research postdoc positions. It doesn't matter whether you're "good enough"; lots of people are "good enough". What matters is how you compare against other people on the market. So it's actually quite rational to delay completing the PhD past the point where you have a viable thesis, in order to improve your research record.
That said, phrasing the delay in terms of "making your thesis stronger" is totally missing the point. **Your PhD thesis is an administrative hurdle.** At least in computer science, if you're lucky, three people will *ever* read your thesis, including you and your advisor. (The standard joke ends "...and your mom.") Your colleagues will see and judge your track record through your peer-reviewed publications in conferences and journals.
So, the short answer is: **Do more original publishable research, and then publish it.** And then I guess you could show off to your committee by including those results in your thesis, but whatever.
Also, please slap your advisor for me.
> 28 votes
# Answer
As a grad student myself, I can't be entirely sure, but I would look at it like this: based on the information you've given, it sounds like the only significant difference between the two options is whether this new research is part of your PhD thesis or not. In the long term, I don't think it will matter. The project will show up on your research CV either way, whether you do it as a PhD student or as a postdoc.
But if you choose to do it as a postdoc, then you will be partway through a postdoc in, say, two years, whereas if you choose to do your research as part of the PhD, you will not yet be a postdoc in two years. All other things being equal - and I think they are in this case - I would think it is better to advance through the stages of your career (PhD, postdoc, professorship) more quickly. By this logic, you should go with your committee's recommendation and omit this project from your thesis.
I have also read things which suggest that completing a PhD more quickly is correlated with greater academic success later in life, although I can't remember a link to give you. I'm not even sure it matters, though, since there isn't necessarily a causal relationship.
> 7 votes
# Answer
There are a lot of details left unmentioned in your psot:
* How many papers have you *already* published? Is it only the three chapters of the thesis?
* How long would you extend your PhD program to add the additional work?
* How many publications or conference papers would you get out of this work?
If you already have four or five major publications after four years, then prolonging your stay for, as an example, two years for one paper might not be worth the time. However, if you only had to extend a year to get two or more publications, and you *know* that they will be accepted into top conferences or journals, then it would well behoove you to take the extra time.
However, there might be other reasons behind the sudden change in attitude. Do you know how the remaining time would be financed? Is it clear that your advisor would be able or willing to support you for the remaining time you'd want to spend?
> 6 votes
# Answer
I'm a bit late adding this, but another reasonable option is: let the market decide for you.
Apply for postdocs this year, based on the research you have already finished. If you get offered something good, then write up your current results and defend. If you don't, then spend another year in grad school improving your research, and hopefully you'll be in a better position to reapply then.
Of course, you'll want to have your advisor on board with this plan, and make sure you have funding available for the extra year.
> 4 votes
# Answer
I've known of a few cases of people prolonging their Ph.Ds to improve their CVs.
I have spoken with professors and students who "felt their students had not published enough" and held them longer to ensure that their CVs would be strong enough so that someone would hire them for a postdoc or a faculty position - the reasoning being that if someone zips through their Ph.D in a few years but doesn't have enough work on their CV, then that student is going to be damned as far as an academic career goes.
Thus, one thing to ask yourself is if that work you're doing for your dissertation will eventually become a paper that might have some impact. In other words, if you write about this in your dissertation, will you eventually publish it?
Also, as part of your academic "development" so to speak, you should have a good idea of how much is "enough" as well, and that is to know what is "important" and what is not. In your stated case, maybe X isn't that important of a research gap if both of them think that you can investigate it with related work instead of doing research work to that end.
Another possible reason that it's mentioned as not being necessary is because they both feel that it will take much, much longer (in other words, the investment isn't worth the reward). Or, if the results merely incremental, they may not be enough of an improvement to warrant a new publication.
I realize that this isn't an answer and it's more of "things to consider" but I hope it helps you eventually come to a decision.
> 3 votes
# Answer
Just do what your advisors told you. They are going to grade you anyway and give you letters of recommendation. Why would you want to do something different after already asking for what you are proposing? Would you want to annoy them just to get more material in your dissertation. Do you think it actually advances your career opportunities?
> 0 votes
# Answer
Let the market decide. If your results are ready when the job market comes along then your adviser can feature them prominently in his/her letter, whether or not it's a part of your thesis. You can complete the high quality work as a post-doc as well. If your adviser can see that your chapter-x has potential then so can the professors in schools trying to hire you.
Staying in school a year longer only makes sense if it will significantly impact how you are valued by the market and if it enables you to significantly improve your portfolio of working papers. Your committee member's comment that "original work can be done in post-doc.." makes me think that he/she was being euphemistic and was perhaps worried that you maybe be trying to delay facing some harsh job market truths in the guise of doing "original" "chapter-x" stuff .. if everything goes fine "which is never the case in research".
The point of a thesis is to get a job to enable you to contribute in research. If your current thesis gets you a job then move on and don't look back.
> 0 votes
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Tags: phd, postdocs, thesis
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thread-14900 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14900 | Why ask for GRE score on the form? | 2013-12-18T17:12:44.323 | # Question
Title: Why ask for GRE score on the form?
This might seems like a silly question, but I don't understand why grad schools ask for GRE score on the application form. In almost all instances, they also require official score to be sent to them before they even start reading application anyway. So is there a reason why they ask for self-reporting of those score?
Also, is there any harm in not putting the score into the application? As in let's say the GRE being taken too late, and the score is not known at the time of application.
(talking about both revised general and subject score)
Thank you.
# Answer
> 5 votes
It's to make the application form easier to review. That way, all the fields on the application form can be printed in one handy package, which could then be sent to a program chair for easy review.
No one in the admissions office wants to have to gather and collate transcripts, GRE reports, and other application information into one printout (or file) just to be able to send the package somewhere for review. Moreover, when reviewing, no one wants to shuffle through a bunch of papers just to find the information they are looking for. This way, GRE scores are always right there on the left-hand side, in Box 10.
In a word, it's for the sake of convenience. It's much easier on everyone at the university if you simply type your GRE scores into an application form where you are already typing so much other pertinent information.
As for why you have to submit the official results, too, that's simply to verify the scores you self-reported.
# Answer
> 3 votes
In most cases, the GRE scores go the the university admissions department, not to the department in which you are enrolling for graduate study. The graduate adviser will read your application and determine whether or not to accept you (your GRE score is one of the metrics that he/she will use). If you are accepted by the department, then the University orders all the official paperwork for verification. If you have the scores, i would put them on the application.
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Tags: graduate-admissions, gre
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thread-14925 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14925 | In statement of purpose, good to mention about learning from some professor's lecture notes and books? | 2013-12-19T07:39:23.777 | # Question
Title: In statement of purpose, good to mention about learning from some professor's lecture notes and books?
In statement of purpose for applying to a PhD program, is it good to mention about learning from some professor's lecture notes and books (not papers, because don't get to read them yet), and finding them helpful? Will it make the statement more personal and therefore good?
Or is it better not to say so, and rather to keep the essay short?
# Answer
> 11 votes
You do not want to convey the message, *"I am applying to your school because I think Professor X is great."* Everybody knows Professor X is great. That's why they hired her.
The question is, why should they want **you?**
A message you do want to convey is, *"I am applying to your school because my research goals are well-aligned with existing interests in the department."* If you can incorporate Professor X's notes and books into that story, great. Otherwise, leave them out of it.
# Answer
> 3 votes
On the whole, indication of awareness, of taking initiative, is a very strong positive.
On the other hand, if one attempts to do this artificially, to "create an impression", there is risk of "looking silly", to say the least. For example, do not try to mass-produce in an afternoon "awareness of Prof. X's notes and papers" for Prof. Xs at a dozen+ different schools to which you're applying. Such things tend to result in extreme superficiality, and inevitably some silly errors, such as referring to Prof. Y at University Z while purportedly addressing the admissions committee at Univ. W about Prof. X. Good for a laugh at your expense, sure, but, ... :)
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Tags: graduate-admissions, application, statement-of-purpose
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thread-14935 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14935 | How to change the idea that supervsiors got about you? | 2013-12-19T16:40:18.333 | # Question
Title: How to change the idea that supervsiors got about you?
In the beginning of a research program students (like me) may be lazy or find things hard and do things that make their supervisors get angry such as not completing specific job in the right time. They may be strongly criticized by their supervisors and their supervisors may get an idea that these students are not good enough. How can students change this idea that is in the head of their supervisors? What should they do?
# Answer
> 12 votes
The same way you would change anyone's perception of you for any other reason: Prove them wrong.
If you started out lazy, then kick yourself into high gear: Get tasks done ahead of time; predict future work, and get it done before it's asked for. Turn out quality work at a high pace. This sounds hard **because it is**. Unfortunately, you may have burned good-will at this point, and you need to rebuild it.
If you found things hard, or found that the supervisors expectations of velocity were unreasonable, discuss it with your supervisor. Discuss what background she may not know you have missed, discuss how you spent your time, and why things didn't get done fast enough.
Key here is the relationship. Your relationship sounds like it's on rocky ground, and if you're in it for another 3-5 *years*, then don't underestimate how much effort you're going to need to making sure that relationship doesn't break down.
# Answer
> 4 votes
... and, if your supervisor is an experienced, mature person, while they may have been irritated by sub-par "performance", such things should not completely surprise them. People in grad school are in a transition time in life, not only regarding the stresses of grad school, etc., and have not yet "arrived" themselves at the mature professional state they will (hopefully) reach. In particular, helping people *get* to that state is part of a supervisor's job with grad students (and probably any senior person in any professional situation).
So, while it's not good to have under-performed to the extent of setting-off your supervisor, and not a "good start", there should be much room for "forgiveness", if you can take a lesson from such a scenario, etc.
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Tags: phd, research-process, university
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thread-9382 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/9382 | Is a researcher with the same name in a different field likely to cause confusion? | 2013-04-16T12:02:03.043 | # Question
Title: Is a researcher with the same name in a different field likely to cause confusion?
I would like to get some advice on what may or may not be a problem, namely the lack of unique identifiers for scientific authors.
So there is a researcher with the same first and last name as myself, who works in a different field (physics vs computer science), but is in a similar stage of academic career (PhD candidate).
Are there potential problems? Is there a danger that publications are associated wrongly, with negative consequences for either one of the authors? Will this cause confusion in databases like arXiv?
What would you suggest?
* don't care?
* disambiguate by adding middle initials to future publications?
* ...
When I add initials for future publications, is there a change that I might somehow "lose" 3 earlier publications?
# Answer
First, you don't lose anything by adding initials. They will make it easier to search for your name in databases, until the day comes when academia has a unique/canonical researcher ID scheme in place.
If you have a middle name (or middle names), you can use those. If you don't, **just choose a "pen name" by adding initials**, chosen to make the combination of your name + initials unique (for now, of course… you cannot do anything about someone having the same name and starting to publish in a few years). I recommend doing that.
What can happen is that other people searching for your publications in the future might miss your first three papers. But if you have a publication list on your webpage (you have a webpage, right?), it's no big deal. Also, three seems like a large number now, but it will not always be that way.
> 21 votes
# Answer
One, which is a common solution, it to have a webpage and make it explicit who you are (and who you aren't). See e.g. contact info at (one of) Mark Newman's webpage:
> I am not the only professor called Mark Newman at the University of Michigan. I'm the physicist who works on networks. There is another Mark Newman in the UM School of Information who works on human-computer interaction.
> 14 votes
# Answer
There are several other scientists named "Noah Snyder" and I've never had any problems with confusions. Obviously if you were in the same field you'd need to do something, but my 2 cents is that since you're in different fields why worry about it?
One simple thing you can do is set up a google scholar profile, so that google scholar will be able to distinguish which papers are yours. Note that you'll need to do that even if you add initials.
> 10 votes
# Answer
Open Research Contributor ID (analog of DOI to researcher names) has been proposed recently to solve the problem. - http://orcid.org/ However, it is just out and is not yet widely adopted in industry. If you change your "academic name" to disambiguate then you can always contact arxiv and other systems asking to merge two authors. I did that for DBLP which is very important in Computer Science. But in general, if you are not John Smith, having not so unique name is not a problem in academia:)
> 6 votes
# Answer
After having just one publication out of my MSc and during the early years of my PhD studies, I married. One of my decisions was to change my name; from Mikael Johansson to Mikael Vejdemo-Johansson, adding my wife's name.
One of the larger reasons I did this was because there is already a well established Mikael Johansson in a nearby field of research, with whom I had already been confused in academic contexts.
> 4 votes
# Answer
I have the same problem. First, I would make a decision on how many initials to put on the papers and then stick to it. There are many different "standards", some use two initials (US?), some three (British?), while in, for example, many central European countries one intial seems ot be the norm (there may be more to it than this). In any case, you can use as many as you feel comfortable with and so that you feel you can be distinguished from others in the same or related fields.
If you have namesakes in other, to yours, non-related fields, it would normally not be much of a problem since the article titles would give it away.
The important thing is to make a choice and stick with it. It will then be easier to find your references in databases etc.
An associated problem may occur if you marry and change name for that reason. You then have a different problem to sort out. See for example the question Indicating a name change after publication
> 3 votes
# Answer
Definitely do what you can to ensure lack of ambiguity. It will make so many things easier: getting promoted, finding number of citations, etc. It is better to have a unique name, even if you lose 3 earlier papers. It is only 3. The future has more.
> 3 votes
# Answer
Get an ORCID ID - https://orcid.org/register. This is an international, non-profit initiative to "provide a persistent digital identifier that distinguishes you from every other researcher and, through integration in key research workflows such as manuscript and grant submission, supports automated linkages between you and your professional activities ensuring that your work is recognized"
> 2 votes
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Tags: publications, authorship, personal-name
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thread-14930 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14930 | Balanced number of sections in paper? | 2013-12-19T12:27:41.977 | # Question
Title: Balanced number of sections in paper?
> Longer monographs should have an odd number of chapters \[the Internet,1700-xxxx\].
Does this rule also apply for papers? I've got a paper with four chapters and I'm wondering if I should make it five. I could split up the outlook & conclusion part, but that would result in two really short sections.
What does the style police suggest?
# Answer
> 11 votes
I don't think that any style guide or policy (besides maybe some journal about aesthetics in writing) will force you to an odd or even number of sections or chapters. A scientific text should get the number of chapters it needs and not a number that fits aesthetic principles–basically you write it to tell the scientific community about your findings and not to please them.
If you manage to write a scientific paper in Haiku form, this will be nice but it may also make some referee think you don't take your research serious enough. More or less the same holds for odd or even chapters. If you force the text to fit a certain number of chapters by dividing a chapter into two pieces, the reviewers might also consider *that* bad style.
# Answer
> 4 votes
There's something of a story that "having an odd number of chapters in your thesis" will make it more likely to get past the committee, or something like that. For example, in this personal website about theses, the author states that "Chapter headings - use 7 or 9! An odd number of (total) chapters gives a balanced appearance to the work (CC has a reference to back this up)."
I confess that I heard this as well when I was writing. I didn't end up structuring my thesis as a result of that advice but I heard it too. In the end, there's a 50% chance that your paper will have an odd number of chapters after you structure it. :)
Since I cannot find any other substantive evidence (other than the UCL link above) about the number of chapters in a thesis I must conclude that, at best, the effect of the number of chapters on the quality of a thesis is unknown; ostensibly, the odd or evenness of chapters having no effect would probably apply to scientific papers and scientific journal articles as well.
# Answer
> 3 votes
You write as many chapters as you need in order to get your message across. this applies to all types of writing, papers, reports or theses. I am sure some people might avoid 13 chapters or whatever number they feel unsettled about, but that will not have anything to do with scientific writing. Likewise there is nothing that says any form of scientific writing needs a certain number of chapters. That said, the Introduction-Methods-Results-and-Discussion (IMRaD) format, which forms the basis for most scientific papers, leads to four main chapters and in addition an abstract and a Conclusions chapter. Again, this is because it is a standard logical form not a "magic" number.
There are, however, many other typographical rules that influence the formatting of pages and chapters. For example, a chapter should start on an odd page number to follow traditional rules. There are thus many aspects of typesetting that influences the format of printed text but not the number of chapters.
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Tags: publications, writing, paper-submission, writing-style
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thread-14944 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14944 | is there apprentice training in master of engineering? | 2013-12-19T22:46:56.223 | # Question
Title: is there apprentice training in master of engineering?
Do the M.Eng students in Electrical Engineering have apprenticeship? Do the students get money for their apprentice training? & how much?
# Answer
There really aren't "apprenticeships" associated with most traditional college degree programs. On the other hand, many engineering programs, including electrical engineering, do have what are usually known as *internship* or *co-op* (short for "cooperative learning") programs available. These programs are inherently designed to allow students to work in engineering-related companies during their degree program. The conditions that apply to each program are school-specific and even department-specific, so be sure to check with the individual departments you're interested in.
> 3 votes
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Tags: graduate-admissions, university, masters, engineering
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thread-14949 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14949 | Applying for a graduate course not related to my previous research experience | 2013-12-20T10:01:19.940 | # Question
Title: Applying for a graduate course not related to my previous research experience
I did research on drug delivery for my masters degree and it has been published. But in the end I knew that I had no interest in it at all. Actually my interest was computational drug design, which I couldn't find a professor specialized in that in my school. Now that I want to apply for a graduate school, I'd like to work in a computational field. Although I know a lot about it, I have no published experience. My question is: Is it a wise decision? I mean, having no published experience would lower my chances of getting admitted in that course, but on the other hand, if I chose drug delivery, I might have not much motives to improve due to the lack of interest.
# Answer
I'd say, go for it! Two reasons:
1) If you stay in academia, you're going to use your creative and imaginative skills a lot. And my experience is that they don't work much if you aren't interested in what you're doing.
2) You will have an interesting edge over other candidates since you come from a close, but not overlapping area.
It will take determination to enter a new area, but I think you're absolutely on the right track in pursuing what you're passionate about; and yes, you're still in time! Don't give up. :)
> 5 votes
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Tags: phd, research-process, graduate-school, graduate-admissions
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thread-14946 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14946 | How to effectively explain casual research assistance projects on CV | 2013-12-19T23:32:34.507 | # Question
Title: How to effectively explain casual research assistance projects on CV
Recently, alongside my day job (high school teacher), I have been taking up casual short-term research assistant jobs - these are not only paid, but also include me being a co-author of the paper(s) that result.
On my CV, I would like to have all this information, what would be an effective means to include all achievements of these projects?
I am hoping for specific examples if people have done this before.
# Answer
> 3 votes
In order to answer your question, you need to first understand *who your CV is written for*. If your CV is for you, and you are simply trying to document what you did, then you can simply list each research involvement as something like:
* **January 2014--July 2014** Research volunteer, Dr. Bigwig's lab. Collected samples from subjects and ran computer simulations. Contributed to 5 publications.
Ideally, you will also be able to list the publications to which you contribute.
If you are building the CV because you want to actually use it for something (getting a raise, getting another job, going back to school, etc.), then you should seek to formalize your relationship with the lab:
* Do you have a title? If not, ask for one. Since you say you are being paid, you probably have one already. You should know the title and list it.
* List the dates of the appointment. Typically they are for a year or a few years, even if you are only being paid for a small fraction of that.
* Since you are currently a high school teacher, you may wish to list your research appointments in a different section of your CV than your teaching appointments.
Good luck.
# Answer
> 3 votes
1. Detail the employer and your role, make clear that your work was part-time or casual.
2. Indicate that you contributed to a number of reports, perhaps even citing the number of reports that you contributed to.
3. Make a specific reference to any reports that are appropriate to the job you're applying for.
# Answer
> 2 votes
For HR specialists reading your CV there will be important not just employment history, but also another perspectives of your CV.
1. a project history you have done or participated, then they need to know short one simple sentence of project description and your role on the project.
2. publications you have made or co-author.
If this is significant enough, put this to the Overview, what should be on the front page of your CV. Overview generally should contain teasers for the rest of CV. How many projects, how many publications, etc.
Take an example of different perspectives for example from Linked-in portal, which are: Overview, Employment history, Project history, Personal initiatives, language skills, Certifications, Courses, Skills, Education, Recommendations, Publications, Organization membership, Prizes, Academical Results, Patents, etc. Order is up to your priorities.
Example: So, I can imagine you could have Overview, Education, Project history, Academical results and Publications in top order.
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Tags: publications, cv, research-assistantship
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thread-14975 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14975 | Indian CGPA to US GPA system | 2013-12-21T16:52:50.133 | # Question
Title: Indian CGPA to US GPA system
I study in India and in here we have 10 pointer system. I wanted to convert my CGPA to american based GPA system of 4. I googled and got this website.
So does that mean I need only \>8.5 to get a 4.
This may be a stupid question to some but please consider that I know nothing of american CGPA system.
# Answer
> 3 votes
A US GPA is computed as an average of grades, mapped as follows:
* A = 4
* B = 3
* C = 2
* D = 1
* F = 0
In some universities, there are interpolations between these:
* A- = 3.67
* B+ = 3.33
and so on for B-, C+ and so on.
I've heard of an A+ being awarded a 4.33, but that's not the case in my university where A is the maximum grade.
At least in my recollection, this maps non-linearly to the Indian CGPA system which is
* A = 10
* B = 8
* C = 6
* D = 4
Because of the non-linearity, you can't just for e.g divide your score by 2.5. Moreover, there are statistical normalizations that complicate the process. Personally, if possible, I'd just list the CGPA as is. Your transcripts will reveal the grade specifics, and that's more useful than just the summary number. I wouldn't trust the link you provided since they don't appear to provide any rationale for the mapping.
Separately I'd have a hard time seeing an Indian CGPA of 8.6 and considering it a 4.0. Even with grade inflation, that would be over optimistic.
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Tags: graduate-admissions, university, grading
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thread-14986 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14986 | Should PhD students be goal or opportunity driven? | 2013-12-21T21:53:17.347 | # Question
Title: Should PhD students be goal or opportunity driven?
PhD students usually go through a specific topic in depth for several years: understand it and contribute to its literature. Some topics are multidiscipline by nature. Thus, while studying, students may find nice contribution opportunities in not-directly related areas to their research problem.
is it better to be goal-driven (i.e focus on the thesis problem alone) or opportunity-driven (i.e spend your PhD in different problems you encounter in this topic)?
# Answer
Although naturally the details of the landscape differ from subject to subject, here is my picture from mathematics:
In addition to the obvious point that one should "both" stay focused on a long-term project *and* be alert to incidental opportunities, I would claim that the *best* kind of thesis projects (and projects in general) are those that help *create* incidental opportunities along the way to a worthwhile large-scale goal.
(This in addition to "educational" benefits of well-conceived projects.)
The obvious hazard is to get distracted from a reliable, long-term project by too-speculative "cooler" possibilities one encounters along the way. The hazards here are like "... but don't quit your day job" as advice to aspiring rock stars, etc.
> 6 votes
# Answer
Graduate students should be somewhat opportunistic. How far afield from their "home base" they should travel, however, is a different question that depends upon the expectations of their field, and what is allowed by the terms of their appointment.
For instance, a student who is entirely supported by a professor's research grant to study a particular topic will have a much harder time justifying spending lots of time on external problems that may be interesting but might not be covered by the grant in question. If such an arrangement is desired, then some sort of negotiation with the faculty member is probably needed to make sure everything is handled in above-board manner.
On the other hand, someone who is entirely supported by external fellowships that do not have funding "strings" attached is much more likely to be free to pursue whatever opportunities may present themselves.
> 4 votes
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Tags: phd, research-process
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thread-14971 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14971 | Academic dismissal from PhD program. What next? | 2013-12-21T10:08:17.140 | # Question
Title: Academic dismissal from PhD program. What next?
A couple semesters after beginning my PhD program (in the US), I was dismissed from the program because:
1. My GPA was slightly below the program's minimum (after being on academic probation for one semester already).
2. After months of work as an RA in a research group, at the end of the semester, my adviser informed me that he was not satisfied with my research and would not continue to fund me.
3. After that, the department was not willing to hire me as a TA, because TA funding was seen as an "interim" measure, and having a new adviser was necessary to continue in the program.
4. I couldn't find a new research adviser because everybody would freak out about my GPA.
However, I have done very well on exams, and I had a great GRE score. What are my options now? Applying again? What could I say about my messed up situation in applications? What if I applied to another school?
# Answer
> 45 votes
I agree with the points in J.R.'s answer. I'd like to specifically address your question: "What if I re-apply to another school and hide my records in this school?"
**This is a very bad idea.** As pointed out in J.R.'s comment, most departments will require as part of your application that you list all schools you have attended, and send your transcripts. It would be unethical to omit your current program, and judging from your comments on J.R.'s answer about copied homework, ethical behavior is very important to you (which I commend). And on a purely practical level, it's extremely risky; if you get caught, it may very well end your career in physics and academia.
It is true that in the US, federal privacy laws prohibit your current institution (let's call it University X) from releasing your education records without your permission. However, these rules do not apply to so-called "directory information", which include your name and dates of attendance. If University Y calls up University X and asks if you have ever attended there, X will tell them. They won't tell them how you did while you were there or why you left, but Y will know that you falsified your application. So if anyone at Y ever suspects that you attended X, they can verify it.
If you don't mention X in your application, Y may not think to do this. But if they eventually find out (and they probably will, see below), you'll be kicked out of the program and the years you spent at Y will have been wasted. If you received a fellowship or tuition waiver, you could potentially be required to pay it back. If you make it to graduation but they find out later, your degree could be revoked; this will probably get you fired from whatever job you hold by then. Basically, once this becomes known, your professional career will be over. It's a Sword of Damocles.
And it's going to be very hard to ensure that nobody at Y ever finds out you were at X. Interview questions: "So what were you doing for the two years after your bachelor's?" You'll have to never mention your time there or anyone you knew at X in any conversation with advisors, professors, or fellow students. And the academic world is small: there's a very good chance that your advisor or someone else at Y knows someone at X, and your name could easily come up in casual conversation. "Hey, I saw your new paper with your student user10165; I guess he's come a long way since his time with us at X."
Summary: **Don't do this.**
# Answer
> 60 votes
This answer is going to sting, but it's how I read the situation based on what you've written here. It sounds like there is something going on that you haven't addressed.
If a department wanted to keep someone who they felt was a promising student, who they thought could contribute with good work, I think they'd find a way to waive the GPA for another term, seeing that it's so close to the threshold. On the other hand, if they felt like a student was not worth keeping, they might be relieved that the student's GPA fell below the specified threshold, so they could use it as grounds for dismissal from the program.
As for the lab reports, there's a difference between being *late* and being *unreliable*. One is a fact, and the other is a perception. You emphasize the fact, but I suspect it's the perception that is behind their unwillingness to rehire.
As for the GRE score, those scores used to measure potential *from an admissions perspective*. Once you're in the program, GRE scores become pretty much meaningless; from that point on, you're judged by the work you do at the institution. (The fact that you even mention it makes me wonder if you have a habit of overestimating your own value in a way that annoys your professors and your peers.)
As for your options, I wouldn't recommend reapplying. That's an uphill battle; they seem to be sending pretty clear signals that they'd rather be done with you. That leaves transferring somewhere else. Given that your GPA is so close to 3.0, I'll bet you could find a school willing to accept you as a transfer student; however, they might have second thoughts based on some of the reasons for your departure. I would be very careful about who I listed as a reference from the school that is dismissing you now.
You might want to look in the mirror, and try to more accurately assess why you are being let go. As I mentioned, I think it has to do with intangible qualities such as personality, reliability, and teamwork – things that are hard to quantify, but easy to spot notice once you start working alongside someone, especially in an environment where the goal is to achieve a complex and long-term endeavor.
# Answer
> 24 votes
As everybody can tell, you are emotionally stressed.
My first advice to you, **calm down!**. This is not the end of the world. You still have options.
You can go to industry if you want although I think you prefer not. You still have the passion for Academia since you are asking this question on this site. So, I am not going to suggest that.
If you want to stay in Academia, others have given you excellent answers. I am not going to repeat them. I want to point out things others may have missed.
First, you have to admit that you messed it up. How to re-enter Academia is your question. I think you'll have to look for the schools in the next lower tier. Transferring to a school of the same tier may not be possible at this time. For example, if you are in the top 20, apply to the top 50. I think you have the chance. If you still don't get to top 50, go to top 100. There is a will, there is a way!
Go to your advisor and tell him you would like to transfer to another school. Tell him that you made a mistake and want to restart your academic career somewhere else. He will be glad to help you to transfer because he has some responsibility to fulfill. At least, you were his student.
Again, calm down. Being emotional will not help you. Find another school is your first priority. Good luck!
**Edit**
Let me address your specific issues here,
> And what to tell about my messed up situation in applications? Is it recommended to apply to other schools without mentioning that I had attended this one?
Your question boils down to, **Can I erase my past?**
My answer is no. You can't. The key is the recommendation letters. Whom do you go to for those letters? The people who knew you during your undergraduate days? They know you were in your current school. Are they going to wonder what happened to you in the past couple of years? In these days, information travels fast. A couple of e-mails between your undergrad prof. and the profs. in your current school will reveal everything. Get help from your current school to transfer to another school is the practical solution.
**End of edit**
# Answer
> 13 votes
I realized that a PhD program was not working out for me for various reasons. They were trying to get me to transfer to their Masters program. I decided a more generalist Masters in my home town would be preferable because continuing where I was would only continue the difficulties I faced. My old cohort is now facing the publish or perish monster while teaching undergrad students at State schools across the country.
Sometimes you need to take one step back to take two steps forward. In the end, you get that PhD, and it's publish or perish. Your ability to publish will be greatly hindered if you've been struggling along the way.
Take a step back and get a fresher perspective. Maybe earning a Masters in applied mathematics or another applied science that has requirements that would create a record of academic success instead of failure would give you a firmer foundation on which to earn your PhD, perhaps at a better school. While you're doing that, you can keep the bigger picture in mind, do more self-studies, and build a toolbox of skills that would help you succeed.
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Tags: graduate-school
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thread-14974 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14974 | Can I be admitted into graduate school in the US without undergrad degree (if I have master degree) | 2013-12-21T16:28:59.563 | # Question
Title: Can I be admitted into graduate school in the US without undergrad degree (if I have master degree)
I am considering getting a PhD or an MBA in the United States. I do not have a bachelor's degree, but I'm working on finishing a MSc in Computer Science from a UK university. By the time I'll be done with the degree, I will have more than ten years of experience in the IT sector in various positions and in various corporate environments (startups, corporate, government).
Do most universities in the US waive the undergraduate degree requirement if applicants have a UK master degree (without any undergraduate degree) from an accredited UK university?
# Answer
The simply fact of the matter is that you have to ask each program you are interested in directly. Some schools have a specific bachelor degree requirement, some don't. Like all bureaucracies the costs of bending this rule can be quite large. Being an international student might actually make it easier since the offices that deal with international students have to do a lot of personalized evaluations anyway. What all schools do have is a contact address for exactly these kinds of questions usually it can be done by e-mail now. So my best advice is to ask directly the people who make these decisions and not the "internet."
Once you learn whether or not there is a possibility of this plan working then you can worry about funding. The resident versus non-resident price difference only applies to public run universities but can be very significant. It does vary by which state the school is in does really matter. For example in North Carolina I know of a person who work for three years as a sheriff deputy (county-wide police officer) who was not granted in-state status at their universities.
> 4 votes
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Tags: phd, graduate-admissions, masters
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thread-15007 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15007 | Working further on idea from patent for student project and publishing | 2013-12-23T06:52:50.237 | # Question
Title: Working further on idea from patent for student project and publishing
I have simulated and aerodynamic concept from a patent based on aerodynamics for reducing Drag. Can I publish my paper ?
What is general trend ? **Most patents on Aerodynamics concepts are just ideas or first they obtain promising result experimentally or numerically, then they publish patent.**
# Answer
Writing a paper solo is hard. Not only do you need to do all the experimental work yourself (in this case, simulating aerodynamics), but you also need to be on top of the relevant existing literature.
You need the latter, so that when you come to write up, you know **what** gets written up, **how** it gets written up, and **when** and **where** it gets written up.
Without that, you won't be able to write a paper that would get accepted by any reputable journal.
To find precedents in the literature for a particular patent, take the names of the holders of the patent, and then search for them as author names in the usual literature databases for your subject.
There are specific literature databases that will give you false negatives, but few false positives: that is, they will find much but not all of the good relevant literature, with relatively little junk literature, e.g. sciencedirect. Then there are general literature databases, that are much more inclusive, which means you're less likely to miss important papers, but they'll be buried amid a lot of junk results - e.g. google scholar.
As to your specific question: filing a patent is usually (depending on the country) time-consuming and expensive. Which means that patent-filers will either have done their due diligence on novelty and validity, including experimental and numerical analysis; or they've got sufficient money (or are so unaverse to risk) that they can file the patent application first (perhaps to establish precedence, or just out of vanity), and then do the work later.
> 3 votes
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Tags: publications, patents
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thread-14997 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14997 | Are there tenure track academic jobs where teaching and research are given equal importance? | 2013-12-22T16:18:33.190 | # Question
Title: Are there tenure track academic jobs where teaching and research are given equal importance?
I have asked my advisers this question recently (since in a year or so, I expect to go on the job market) and received a variety of answers, specific to the USA. Very generally, as I understand, with reference to the US, there seem to be jobs which are either primarily research based (R1 universities) or primary teaching based (liberal arts colleges).
I understand that in either case, you are expected to do some amount of teaching and some amount of research but the focus varies depending on the university. In my university, research is *generally* seen to have more importance than teaching.
I was wondering, specifically with reference to the whole world, whether there are academic jobs where teaching and research are ***both*** given equal importance.
I am very interested in discipline and country variations in this.
Thanks.
# Answer
> 12 votes
As a TT at a small liberal arts college let me just say that to gain tenure I have to do both. In my field this amounts to having five or six new articles or a book before tenure. There is a very large spectrum of liberal arts colleges and the top end (figure top 100) all claim that research active professors are better able to teach up to date content in their field and to better demonstrate to their students why the field is exciting and worth studying. (By \`all' I mean I do not know of a counter example.)
At the very top end of the liberal arts spectrum you have schools that give their professors R1 teaching loads and more funding. The only thing they would lack are the graduate students. Sure at the lower end of the spectrum are places that only expect teaching. Then there are the community colleges which openly admit they are teaching only institutions but they acknowledge that their mission is distinct.
Another section of schools I'd suggest you could take a look at are the second tier state schools, places like CSU Pamona, or University of Central Florida. These are not flagships and focus more on teaching than R1s but you still have to be research active to get tenure.
Next time you go to a conference, chat up those folks who seem to be pre-tenure and ask them what their institutions demand. The US is a country with other 4000 colleges and universities. They do not form a linear order from liberal arts colleges to R1 universities. So as always, the situation is more complex than you might think at first.
# Answer
> 6 votes
I'm not sure what would constitute valuing teaching and research equally. As best I can tell, every department at every school has it's minimum standards in each category. If you are seeking institutions with high standards for both, I would second BSteinhurst and Noah Snyder's referral to top liberal arts colleges. There are many outstanding faculty at liberal arts colleges, and I am aware of a few faculty advising doctorates at nearby research universities. As an extreme example, Bryn Mawr's math department has a PhD program despite being at a liberal arts college. Additionally, there are research oriented institutions that pay more than lip service to teaching. In particular, Dartmouth and Wesleyan come to mind as having this reputation. This can also vary a great deal from department to department, even within the same institution. You may discover that certain departments in your area value teaching or research to an unexpected degree, relative to institution-wide standards.
# Answer
> 5 votes
The basic problem is that you have "research institutions" and "teaching institutions." As a result of this, most schools have a pre-selected bias toward placing either research or teaching as the primary metric in determining tenure.
As BSteinhurst indicates above, at most schools you do have to do both teaching and research. The difference is that in the "minor" area the standards are considerably lower. At a school such as MIT or Harvard, for instance, significant teaching credentials before tenure is awarded is not necessarily looked on favorably by all departments, as that is considered a potential sign that too much time is being spent on teaching relative to academic activities. Similarly, I doubt that faculty members at liberal arts colleges are expected to bring in large amounts of research grants or publish multiple papers per year in high-quality peer-reviewed journals.
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Tags: job, job-search, tenure-track
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thread-14990 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14990 | What does "This question is left for future research" imply? | 2013-12-22T08:15:46.817 | # Question
Title: What does "This question is left for future research" imply?
In computer science, and probably other disciplines as well, it is common to end every paper with a "future research" section. I always wondered what is the utility of this section. In particular:
A. How common is it, that a question from a "future research" section is actually researched by the *same* research group?
B. How common is it, that a question from a "future research" section inspires future research by *other* research groups?
Both these questions can be studied quantitatively, even semi-automatically, by comparing the contents of "future research" sections to the titles and abstracts of papers published in a later date. Has such a research been done?
# Answer
The existing answers are good. Let me just add one more phenomenom I've seen in my area: it is not uncommon for the "future research" section to contain ideas that the authors don't plan to follow up on, but they think might be interesting. Maybe they hope to inspire other researchers. Maybe they're just curious, but don't have time to continue to pursue those questions.
Occasionally, the future work section is used by authors to respond to criticism that "you should have done experiment X" from reviewers. Adding a sentence to the future work section is an easy way to respond to the reviewer and be able to claim you've acted on their comment in some way: it lets the authors respond to the reviewer comment with something like: "our future work section makes clear that we didn't do experiment X and we consider it out of scope for this paper, but we agree it would be interesting, and we've added it to the future work section". You can form your own opinion about whether you think this is a good phenomenom or not; I'm just reporting on what I've seen. Sometimes I've even seen authors include this kind of statement in the future work section of a submitted paper, as a preemptive innoculation against comments the authors anticipate getting from reviewers. I don't know whether it is really effective, but you can keep this in mind when you read future work sections. Occasionally this additional perspective may help you understand better why sometimes stuff gets written in the future work section.
> 13 votes
# Answer
I cannot provide a quantitative answer, but from my personal experience I can say that these are often questions that the the same group will study.
Consider that due to the publication process, at the time the paper is published the research is often much more advanced than the results published in the paper. For this reason, the researchers may wish to add "future research questions" regarding what they are currently working on (and may even have some preliminary results on). In this way they "set up" the conceptual continuity and importance of their current work.
> 12 votes
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Tags: research-process, publications
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thread-15014 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15014 | Online job application systems | 2013-12-23T13:12:26.203 | # Question
Title: Online job application systems
Some tenure track positions require you to submit a CV and fill out online forms with the same information. Do search committees use the online information or just the supporting CV and teaching and research statements?
# Answer
> 3 votes
I think both. Scanning lists of applicants within the electronic system, only the info entered is visible. Only when looking more fully at an individual file (as opposed to scanning aggregate lists of applicants) is the "custom" information visible. So it's good to take the trouble to be sure that the "entered" information is accurate, otherwise the CV itself may never be seen, etc.
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Tags: job-search
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thread-14951 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14951 | My advisor tried to find my faults and kick me out of the research? | 2013-12-20T12:40:54.077 | # Question
Title: My advisor tried to find my faults and kick me out of the research?
I am a international student in a Ivy League school under a J1 visa (I can work only in school). I am now working as a researcher after I got my degree. I signed a contract that I will work for 2 years with funding. The contract said that I will work mainly for one particular project but I also have work with any other works that the school wants too.
My adviser has two funded project in his hand. One is a cellphone project and another one is a Darpa project. In the beginning, I worked on the cellphone project. This project is planned to be commercialized and funded by private investors. There were two people mainly working on this cellphone project, me and my friend. We have separate funding from different sources to work on this project. After I had finished the project (6 months), I was moved to work in the Darpa project, with another team. My friend who I worked with on the cellphone project is still working on the final part and marketing it (also continuing to find money from investors).
One day, my cellphone-project friend's funding was all gone (he started this work one year before me). His fund is about two years and he cannot find the investors to put more money in his cellphone. Then this is my problem because I am not a main person in both the cellphone and the Darpa project. My adviser want to move my money to support my friend and want me to quit (because no need for my programming skill anymore, programming part is done). He started by telling me that I watched YouTube in the lab. (He did see me once that I listened to the music while I was programming). He told me that no one in the lab watches YouTube, everybody just reads papers for relaxing. (All of my friends watch YouTube and Facebook, trust me). Then he continued with I am not eager to improve me code and make it faster. He told me that all PhD researchers are eager to make it very fast. (I programmed something is called SIFT and the speed is the best I can do, due to the nature of the algorithm.) Anyway, 3 months ago he told me the speed is good enough for this work, that's why I didn't improve it. He told me that I have a problem in communication (I asked him could you give me some examples about the communication problem, then he changed the topic).
Since I am holding a J1 visa, if he kicks me out, I have to go back with nothing. I feel this is very unfair. When he asked me to work, it was very nice. However when I completed the work, he want to kick me out and get the money back. I have no idea what to do. What should I do after this? I feel really bad about my adviser.
PS: my professor is the member of the start-up-company of the cellphone project. but I am not, I am just a researcher
# Answer
> 13 votes
OK, well, you have a problem. By the terms of your appointment, you are entitled to stay for the 24-month period. The faculty you're working with made a commitment to support you for 24 months, and generally speaking, it is his duty to do so. However, that's not the whole story. You also have an implicit obligation to do good research that advances his interests as well. And, depending on your goals, you probably also need his intellectual support and mentorship to achieve many of the benefits of a visiting scholar position. So, you need to work out a mutually satisfactory resolution with him. This is more a situation for interpersonal negotiation and compromise than a situation where standing on your rights and thumping the table is going to help you.
You might need to make some compromises, compared to how you thought this position was going to work out. To help with that, to begin, you should start asking yourself some hard questions and figure out what your goals are. What are your career goals after you finish this position? What would you like to achieve? Are you looking to get a good reference letter from the faculty you are currently working with? Are you looking to strengthen your c.v. with a stronger publication record? Do you think you can do good research on your own, with no mentorship, collaboration, or support from your faculty member? What kind of job are you looking for after you finish? Are you looking for a research position, or for an industry position? Can you make productive use of the next 16 months (in a way that will help your longer-term career prospects)? How strongly do you feel that you want to stay in the current position for the full 24 months if you have no support and no interest from your existing faculty member? The answers will determine how you act at this point.
Keep in mind that there might be no perfect solution to your situation, so your job at this point is to try to guide things to the least-bad outcome that is at all feasible. To do that, you absolutely must know what your priorities are and what your "nice-to-have's" are.
I can see a couple of possible options for you:
* You could sit down and have a frank talk with the faculty you are working for. You could say, look, you offered me a 24-month position, you made a commitment, now it is your obligation to fulfill it. You can be polite but firm. However, this might not win you any friends, so if you were hoping for a good reference letter from this faculty member or collaboration and mentorship for continuing research, you might be out of luck, and you could be stuck in a toxic environment for the next 16 months. If you take this tack, you are basically offering the faculty member nothing positive in return, so the best plausible outcome is that the faculty member honors his commitment and ignores you for the rest of your appointment. The worst outcome is that the faculty tries to find some way to screw you.
* Alternatively, you could try to understand better your faculty member's situation and then try to find a way to make yourself valuable to him. Personally, I think this is probably a much more promising direction. You can always fall back to the "you have an obligation" option above if this fails.
From your position his actions might appear arbitrary and capricious, but there is probably a logic behind them from his perspective. You could try to understand what is motivating your faculty mentor and then use that to see what you can offer him. For instance, maybe he is under tight pressure to see results, and you are not contributing in the way he had hoped. Keep in mind that you are biased; you might feel like you did an awesome job and met all of his expectations, but he might not feel that way. Or, his goals might have changed. So, you could try to understand his perspective, and then figure out how to make yourself valuable to him. Basically, look for a way to make this a win-win situation.
You say the faculty seems more interested in working with your friend right now. Well, that's a valuable clue. Maybe your friend is making contributions in some way that you aren't. Have you considered trying to find a way that you can contribute, that your faculty member would value and that would make him eager to keep working with you and make supporting you a priority for him? Have you tried asking some questions to probe about that? His needs can change over time. There's an unwritten assumption, when you join someone's group, that you will act as a team: that you will both act in each others' best interests. In particular, this is not a zero-sum situation (or it should not be); if you're doing things right, when you do great work, it should benefit both you and your faculty. You need to be flexible. If your faculty member's needs change, you might need to change your focus and your energy to support his direction. If your faculty member's needs have changed and you are not adapting to make yourself a valuable member of the team as his goals change, then that could explain his reaction.
You say your faculty has a DARPA contract, and that contract continues, but you are not a main person on that project. Well, have you considered trying to make yourself a main person? Have you considered making yourself indispensable to that project or finding a way so that you can make major contributions to the success of that project? This is not something that is appointed or handed out; what makes you a main person is not a title that someone else hands to you, but rather your own independent action. In the research world, people typically aren't going to tell you what to do. Instead, they're expecting you to identify a way you can be valuable to the project, and then go do it. You're a smart person; I'm sure you can find a way to make a contribution to that project that they will find helpful, and that will be beneficial to your career. Go do that a couple of times, and before you know it, you *will* be a main person on that project, not because anyone else decided you are, but because you decided to become one and you put in the energy and hard work to be.
From your question, we only get your perspective, not that of your faculty member's perspective. Personally, I wouldn't be surprised if you haven't fully appreciated your faculty member's perspective yet.
Overall, my advice is:
* Enter this with a willingness to compromise and change. Adapt. Be prepared to find a compromise with your faculty member. Don't start from the position that you're entitled to a great working situation; you may be, but realistically, at this point, that kind of attitude won't help you attain one. Open your mind to compromise solutions you might not have previously considered, even if you have to accept something that's less than ideal from your perspective.
* Find someone else you trust (a secondary mentor, another faculty member, something like that) and talk to them about the situation. Ask them for advice. Respect what they are telling you: be a good listener (if you find yourself arguing with them, time to back off and listen and try to understand what they are telling you). See if this can get you any additional information about what might be motivating your faculty or ways you might be able to resolve the situation. You're in an Ivy League school; odds are that someone else in your department cares about visiting scholars.
* Go talk to your advisor. Ask questions. Listen. Empathize. Try to find a win-win outcome that both of you can feel like offers something positive. You can be frank and honest that your relationship seems to have gotten off on a bad foot and you'd like to work out a way to improve the relationship and find a way to be useful to him that also benefits your career. Ask him for help crafting a performance improvement plan that from his perspective would help you do a better job of meeting his expectations.
Do not start from a position that you are entitled to his enthusiasm. Do not accuse or argue. This is not a confrontation or a debate; this is a negotiation. You start by trying to gather information and understand your faculty member's perspective better. When you understand his logic and motivations, then you can try to brainstorm together ways that you can change your behavior in a way that benefits both of you (especially him). What you can offer is your willingness to devote your time and energy to work on problems that are relevant to his needs, and your flexibility and willingness to change. Maybe after having this kind of conversation, you will find some new project or new focus that both of you will be excited and enthusiastic about. Or, failing that, maybe you can find some compromise solution that is tolerable for both of you: maybe neither of you walk away exactly excited about the collaboration, but you can both live with it.
Your job at this point is to make the best of the situation. Realize that the resolution might not be perfect. Sometimes, that's life. You just have to roll with the punches and work with what you've got.
# Answer
> 8 votes
The situation sounds both contentious and untenable, which are signs that you need to start escalating your concerns.
If you've tried speaking to your supervisor and it didn't go well, or if you aren't comfortable speaking to them, then go to the department head, ombudsperson, or chair; There's always someone (usually multiple someones) to handle conflict between student and supervisor. You're going to need to show the history of the situation, and how it's gone wrong.
Sit down before that meeting, and make your case for yourself: Show the requirements of the program, how you're fulfilling them, the changes your supervisor wants, and why they must not be done.
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Edited: Actually, I realize now, I'm not entirely clear. Is this your academic supervisor, or your workplace supervisor, or are these two one-and-the-same?
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Tags: research-process, university, advisor, funding, research-assistantship
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thread-15022 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15022 | Does the journal Physical Review require an institution in the affiliation field? | 2013-12-23T21:14:42.953 | # Question
Title: Does the journal Physical Review require an institution in the affiliation field?
Does anyone know what politics or rules the journal Physical Review follows in regard to not writing an institution in the affiliation field?
# Answer
To my knowledge, there is nothing preventing someone from submitting a paper to a journal without a formal institution as part of the reader's address. You might have to write something in a web form such as "self-employed" or something similar if institution is a required field for submitting the form.
However, it is fair to say that under most circumstances, if you are submitting a paper without institutional affiliation, it will probably be subjected to heightened scrutiny relative to a paper with more "traceable" affiliations. Unaffiliated authors are usually treated with some skepticism in the academic community, and papers by such authors tend to to be viewed as "crackpot" papers. (Granted, having an affiliation does not preclude the possibility of submitting such papers, but the likelihood is somewhat lower.)
> 5 votes
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Tags: publications, affiliation
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thread-15019 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15019 | What should be done about conflicting invitations for graduate school interviews? | 2013-12-23T19:21:13.913 | # Question
Title: What should be done about conflicting invitations for graduate school interviews?
I have received offers from a few graduate schools to interview in the coming months, but there are only so many February weekends available and two schools already have the same interview weekend. I accepted the first one when the invitation arrived, and now the second has arrived. Both are top choices in my book, so it's hard to drop one.
What can be done about conflicting interview dates for science grad school?
# Answer
> 14 votes
This happened to me when I was interviewing for graduate schools—two different schools offered only one weekend per year, and picked the same weekend. However, a number of students had the same problem, and contacted them. As a result, the departments in question agreed to "share" the weekend, with part of the time spent at one school, and then part at the other.
If the schools are not geographically close, and you have no way to split the weekend in such a manner, then you should contact the schools in question, to let them know that you have a scheduling conflict. In some cases—particularly if the department is large—they may be able to schedule you to visit on another date. To some extent, such a visit might be even more useful than the scheduled group visit, because you get to see what the department is actually like when they're *not* trying to impress everyone!
# Answer
> 4 votes
I absolutely agree with Aeismail.
Contact one or both of the schools, TELL THEM you have a conflict for the proposed date, and ask if you can reschedule.
They know you're talking to other schools. They know you have a life and/or a job. You aren't the only one who is going to have to make this request. This isn't the only day when they're going to be scheduling interviews.
Note that the same answer will apply when interviewing for Real World jobs. Or indeed for most things. Simply being honest with people and asking if they can work with you to solve a problem is almost always the best approach.
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Tags: graduate-school, graduate-admissions
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thread-15032 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15032 | Is it okay to cite the abstract(English) of a foreign (non-English) article? | 2013-12-24T12:23:22.980 | # Question
Title: Is it okay to cite the abstract(English) of a foreign (non-English) article?
If you don't know any languages other than English (e.g. German, Italian, French, etc), is it okay to cite the abstract (which is in English) of a foreign article without reading the full text (which is in the native language)? I appreciate if you provide a reference too (e.g. APA Manual, etc).
# Answer
> 10 votes
Ultimately, you and your co-authors are responsible for the contents of your manuscript. You can cite abstracts of works you haven't read in full, in any language, including your native tongue. However, misuse of such abstracts can always be called out by the reviewers of your paper. You will be responsible for defending your choices in the review process, if need be.
Ultimately, however, citing a foreign-language abstract ultimately is no different than citing one in English. The exact details depend on the citation format for the journal you intend to submit to, so check their guidelines. In general, you do *not* translate titles of articles or journals into their English language equivalent (unless the journals have done so themselves!).
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Tags: citations, abstract
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thread-15027 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15027 | Will a graduate student publishing in different disciplines confuse potential employers? | 2013-12-24T10:08:50.293 | # Question
Title: Will a graduate student publishing in different disciplines confuse potential employers?
I'm a third-year computer engineering PhD student. My dissertation topic is re-configurable caches (computer architecture) and my supervisor is a very nice person. I have four publications with him in well-known conferences in my area. But currently I'm in a weird situation. In my 2nd year I fell in love with computational neuroscience and started working on it with another professor in my university simultaneously with my PhD research. Obviously my PhD supervisor encouraged me. Recently I got two high-impact journal publications as a first author on cognitive neuroscience. I am very happy with my dissertation topic but also want to include my neuroscience papers in my résumé. I would like to try for faculty positions after the PhD. Do you think my résumé can create confusion among potential recruiters or will it show multidisciplinary research interests?
# Answer
> 12 votes
The only real danger you will have with prospective employers (presuming that you look for a postdoc before your faculty search) is that a potential advisor might be concerned that if you aren't engrossed in their research, you will seek out opportunities in other areas. If it's their money that's supporting your time, then you'd be expected to devote your effort to the line of research you've been hired to do, not what you'd like to do.
This is something that you'd have to explain in your cover letter in any case. But you'll need to explain—as you have—that your lateral move was encouraged and done with the support of your current advisor. Otherwise, it could be a concern.
# Answer
> 3 votes
I am in a similar situation (atmospheric physics and education), I was advised to include them all in my resume. A caveat that I was give is that the majority of papers be in the area that you wish to pursue as a career, but by writing in 2 areas, this can open up more opportunities for you.
The reason I was given was that all the papers demonstrate, as you have said in your question, strong interdisciplinary research skills. Additionally, all papers show that you are capable of writing research that contributes something new - with this, it does not necessarily matter that they are from different disciplines.
# Answer
> 3 votes
I strongly agree with the latter. I am in a similar situation right now (change of plans regarding my Ph.D topic, even field if you like),I was strongly encouraged by my supervisors to publish a journal paper in my previous field (which I did eventually). I can understand your fear of having an impression of jack of all trades-master of none, but if you've managed to publish good papers in both fields, it actually shows you've mastered (or in the process of mastering) both, which in turn means you can conduct your research in an independent manner and contribute to existing knowledge. I reckon academics as well as industrial parties would acknowledge this fact if you include that in your CV.
# Answer
> 1 votes
I would disagree with one premise that underlies your question and state flatly and unequivocally that it doesn't matter one bit what *most employers* may think. Whether you choose to go deep in one research area or publish widely is something you can resolve by looking at what you want to do in life and weighing your current opportunities to make the most of them.
* Why would you care about any employer that is so confused about your studies that they don't take the time to understand deeply your unique talents as someone who delayed entering the workforce to complete a PhD?
Now, you might have some soul searching to do to figure out why you are choosing to frame this current research time allocation dilemma in terms of nebulous "future employer" impressions, but try to look closer to now as opposed to what you think might look superficially good to others but ultimately not reinforce who you wish to become. If you have identified a small set of high likelihood employers and they generally prefer breadth or depth, then now you have an interesting question if you want to maximize your chances with this narrow set of employers.
In the end, only you can decide if ruling out some employers due to their views is a feature or a bug in your plans for your degree.
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Tags: phd, publications, computer-science
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thread-14474 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14474 | What is a "distributed paper" and is it worth the effort? | 2013-12-01T21:29:35.810 | # Question
Title: What is a "distributed paper" and is it worth the effort?
Looking for interesting conferences I stumbled upon some remarks that there were *presented papers* and *distributed papers* at a conference session. This distinction was new to me, so I did some web searches: It turns out that this is pretty common among the International Sociological Association and the European Sociological Association. According to one of their Conference FAQs a "distributed paper is a written paper which the author(s) brings along to the session to distribute to those attending" in contrast to an actually *presented paper*.
Of course, it is an individual cost–benefit analysis whether that kind of a conference contribution is worth the effort (and fees), but it is hard to do the math withouth any experiences what I could expect from such a conference contribution.
Do you have experience with this format? I am especially interested in:
* What kind of feedback (quantity and quality) can I expect from a *distributed paper*?
* In comparison to a poster or a normal presentation, what could be advantages of a *distributed paper* for the "distributor"?
* Do you have suggestions how I could optimize a "distributed paper" to get better feedback (or feedback at all)?
# Answer
> 3 votes
I was at the European Sociological Association conference this year and only in one session did I encounter a distributed paper. The paper was duly given out at the start of the regular session and the (experienced) chair asked the author without any warning to present it. Although the author hadn't specifically prepared a presentation for his distributed paper, he did talk us through the paper and the audience asked a couple of questions based on superficially skim-reading it.
To answer your specific queries, the level of feedback would probably depend on how much time the Chair decided to give your paper. You might be able to negotiate this with the chair by email or in person just before the session, especially if the session is generously timed or somebody has dropped out, both of which are quite common at the ESA. It might even be possible to give a short Powerpoint presentation based on the paper as well. The advantage of a distributed paper could be that your paper ends up in people's hands and they might read it if they suffer a bad talk later on that day.
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Tags: conference
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thread-15024 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15024 | Presentation Rules (e.g. 7x7 in Undergrad Communications Courses): are they supported by evidence? | 2013-12-24T01:20:00.117 | # Question
Title: Presentation Rules (e.g. 7x7 in Undergrad Communications Courses): are they supported by evidence?
I taught a Business Communications course that brashly asserted that good presentations follow the 7x7 rule (max 7 lines of text per slide, max 7 words per line). I also "learned" this in my undergraduate communications courses at a fairly decent state university (and in some MBA prerequisite work).
I see docs online at Columbia (and, other, sources - this one linked to by MIT...)that hold forth in the same manner.
I did find this bit of research that may give some credence to the above doctrine, although it failed to reject the null hypothesis, that there is no difference in number of lines per slide, in favor of the idea that retention was better for 5 lines per slide versus 10. (But it's still *something*, some kind of evidence, right?)
**So if the evidence is spare and specious, why are we reciting it like it's the gospel truth?**
In industry (and to a lesser extent in graduate level education) we sometimes see vast amounts of information contained in single slides, and it is unclear what is the specific downside of this, particularly when well-warranted (i.e. the visible whole paints an important picture that would otherwise not be seen viewed at finer granularity, slide by slide).
A lot of information is packed into those slides, but I print them off one or two to a page. Decks don't get much bigger than a dozen or so pages, and the information I'm particularly interested in may be packed into one or two slides. And the audience is fairly sophisticated, whereas the accepted introductory wisdom might be targeted to more average audiences.
**So the question is, are these heuristics worth sticking to? Or are they artificial constructs designed to give criteria for ranking the ability of neophytes to follow instructions?**
Or are they a little of both?
# Answer
> 14 votes
All axiomatic principles with respect to presentations should be taken with a heavy dose of salt, not just a pinch.
The important issue at hand is that you need to communicate your information to an audience effectively. Putting too much text on a slide makes audiences read the slide, and possibly tune out your elucidations and elaborations of the material on the slide. Similarly, putting too many graphs on the same slide causes the same problem—there's too much to focus on, so you get "lost" in the course of the talk, which again is entirely unhelpful.
Principles such as the "7 x 7" guideline are an attempt to balance between having too much and too little information on a slide. They're useful as rough guidelines, but need not be treated as strict rules to follow.
# Answer
> 5 votes
**Note:** I have never heard of the 7X7 rule.
Increasingly, I find that in my area (HCI/usable privacy), there are few actual words on each slides. Rather, points are made with images, visualizations, animations, videos and sound clips.
I have never heard any of my advisers, fellow colleagues and other academic acquaintances in the greater areas of computing and information science ever mention this rule. Rather, the objective has always been to get your point across in the minimum number of slides as possible.
# Answer
> 4 votes
Style guidelines have some merits in balancing between too much (typically) and too little content per slide. If you find yourself consistently having way more content per slide, you can probably improve. These kinds of things are also very domain-specific, so your mileage may vary.
**That said...**
We routinely use slides that violate this "rule". Clearly a wall of text won't help your audience in any way, but restricting yourself to such formats for no particular reason won't magically make presentations better either.
I prefer slides with some more content over going back and forth between slides (while it may make sense for the presenter, it is terribly confusing to watch). Sometimes you simply need to include a fair amount of information on a single slide to be able to associate different bits and pieces.
Additionally, I despise what I like to call *Blitz*-slides, which contain so little content that they only last 5-10 seconds before moving on. I'm starting to see this often, particularly by non-scientists (though I may be biased). *Less isn't always more*. For me, a good slide contains enough material to let the audience ponder about the matter, whatever it may be, to kindle their interest in what the presenter has to say.
The best validation is to present slides for someone who hasn't helped in making them as a test prior to the actual presentation (*far* better than style concerns such as X words with maximally Y characters on Z lines).
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Tags: presentation, communication
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thread-14302 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14302 | What factors determine application fees? | 2013-11-22T17:54:49.910 | # Question
Title: What factors determine application fees?
I have no serious need to know the answer to this question, but I'm mostly just curious (after applying for undergraduate schools 4 years ago and applying for graduate schools now).
What sorts of expenses are institutions trying to pay for when requiring application fees for the applications? Why is there a wide range of fees? (I know Stanford graduate school is $125, and Chicago is $55, and I've only applied to 5-6 schools so far.) Are the institutions just breaking even, or do some of them use their prestige to earn a little extra money?
# Answer
Application fees are primarily there to moderate the number of applications and in the case of universities receiving huge numbers of applications partially finance the application process. There is of course many services for which one can argue to cover costs. This includes personnel to handle applications, personnel to evaluate applications, costs for paper handling (at least earlier including postage if anything had to be handled through regular mail). When looking at the costs for taking in the money and possibly distributing it within a system that likely involve many persons it becomes clear that a well defined cost analysis is not likely done, it is not cost effective. Instead the pricing can be used to signal, for example, prestige and to ward off chance applications. The level of the pricing will likely be determined by these factors but also include considerations to what levels will be reasonable for the uptake of students *visavi* ethical and social goals for the university. In short, the pricing is more of a tool "for" recruitment than a precise estimate for the costs involved in the application process.
> 3 votes
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Tags: graduate-admissions, fees
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thread-15050 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15050 | Conferences on “Technology Foresight” | 2013-12-25T06:50:10.730 | # Question
Title: Conferences on “Technology Foresight”
I am working on research in the field of renewable energy and technology transfer. The research methodology that I have applied in my study is called the “Technology Foresight”, where I am using methodologies such as STEEPV analysis, Delphi surveys and scenario building and so on. My question is with relevant to the conferences. With the literature survey that I did at the initial stage of my studies I came up with a technology Foresight model that can be applied to my study. This is sort of a unique model which my supervisors suggest me to publish it in a conference. The reason they asked me to do so, is to network with other research community who are very much familiar with this methodology “Technology Foresight”.
But I have no idea as how to find good conferences which consider “technology Foresight” as one of their main them. My supervisors are also not that familiar with this methodology as they are from the renewable energy and technology transfer fields. I would really appreciate if you can suggest me good conferences in the field of “Technology Foresight”.
# Answer
> 4 votes
You won't have done your work in isolation: so you've already built up a list of references that you're working from. From this list, pull out the top ten that are most pertinent to technology foresight. If necessary, supplement this with a quick literature search in the usual places for papers in technology foresight in other areas.
From that list of papers, take the list of authors. Now, look at the web pages for each of the authors - they'll mostly, if not all, have a page of publications. You're looking for the section on conference papers.
Make a note of the conferences that they've presented technology foresight work at. You're looking for those conferences which keep cropping up on the pages of your authors of interest.
This should build up a picture of where the key players present at.
Just be careful with "futurology" conferences - they can be a real mixed bag. Some lack rigour, don't report on the development of protocols and methods, and lack other academic qualities. And thus they will bring you no useful networking, nor constructive feedback.
You might find some of the energy-systems modelling conferences useful too, as they can have sections devoted to scenario development, which will overlap a fair bit with technology foresight - but don't invest too much effort there, because it's a bit of a stretch, unles your own work overlaps a lot with energy-systems models. FWIW, my opinion is that you shouldn't spend too much time looking at the International Energy Agency (IEA): they've been behind the curve for decades, and that's not changing yet.
The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) have been looking a bit at foresight and technology transfer: they're a very young and growing organisation, so there might or might not be something useful there, but do keep an eye on them.
And the UK Energy Research Centre (UKERC) maintains a list of international energy conferences that you might find useful.
On the technology transfer aspect, I guess development conferences might be where it's at, but that's a lot further from my own area, so that's just wild speculation on my part.
<sub>Disclosure: I'm not directly affiliated with any of those organisations, but friends and colleagues are.</sub>
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Tags: conference
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thread-15059 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15059 | Could I arrange random gifts for the participants in my research? | 2013-12-25T18:34:34.223 | # Question
Title: Could I arrange random gifts for the participants in my research?
I've seen in many research projects that they give people who fill the questionnaires or participate in the experiment (more often the latter) some amount of money to acknowledge their help. But I can't pay that much because it's a small project. But also I want to attract many people to fill my online questionnaire. Is that right (according to research ethics or anything else) to say to them that I will give only **random gifts**, for example only 10 gifts when more than 500 people participate? My concern is that the participants subjective perception that they will receive the gain for their participation is **not true** (in terms of probability) and maybe I'm cheating on them, in a sense ?
# Answer
Questionnaire design is a science.
Within that science, there is a body of literature on the ethics of incentives, and on maximising response rates. Behavioural economists and other social scientists have put a lot of work into this: you just need to make best use of their findings.
Just because questionnaire design looks easy, and lots of people do it shoddily, doesn't mean *you* should. Apply to questionnaire- and incentive-design the same academic rigour that you will apply to the analysis of the results.
In other words: the answer to your question is in the literature, so consult it: and then you've got some proper peer-reviewed literature to cite in your methodology section. And discuss the ethics with your university's committee and with your more experienced colleagues.
> 11 votes
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Tags: research-process, independent-researcher
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thread-10629 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/10629 | How much code to include in a Physics paper? | 2013-06-15T13:47:18.083 | # Question
Title: How much code to include in a Physics paper?
This question is related to Physics research papers, particularly one that will be coming up for my ongoing PhD research (4th paper in all).
A core part of the research is developing, testing and validating relevant self-written code. So, my question is how much of the code should be included in the upcoming paper? Should it be the whole thing, or a written summary of the main components/subroutines used?
# Answer
If the goal of your paper is to show that your code solves a particular problem or performs a specific task, then it is your responsibility to prove to the reviewers that your code does what it claims to do. The easiest way to do this is to include the code as part of the supporting information for your paper.
However, *reproducibility*—which is what you're asking about, to a certain extent—is a not-so-simple question when it comes to showing codes do what they're supposed to. For instance, a code that runs one way under one configuration may return a slightly (or perhaps \_very) different result when run under another configuration. This doesn't mean that one result or the other is wrong—it just means that this behavior needs to be taken into account when evaluating the correctness of software.
One way to help this is to provide as much information as possible on your testing environment, so that any differences between the system on wich you were working and the conditions the reviewers and future potential users of your code will have can quickly be identified. This would be included, perhaps, as a text file that accompanies the code in the supporting information.
> 12 votes
# Answer
I would second @NPcompleteUser's answer about having the code and some sort of walkthrough for reproducing your results online. However your question about how much to include in the *paper* is very journal specific. There are a number of publications specifically for computational science with formats where large chunks of code are expected, but if it's a journal whose focus is more on the science than the techniques, I would just describe in words the tricky parts of your algorithm and give a footnote reference to the website where the code lives.
> 8 votes
# Answer
I would put the current version \[of the code\] on gist. Providing inputs and gnuplot (matplotlib/whatever) scripts for graph reproduction.
> 7 votes
# Answer
Papers on physics which utilise code should primarily describe the algorithms and their relevance to the physical problem at hand, and not focus on nuts and bolts of the code. There are several reasons for this: the printed article is the wrong place to include code, as page space is generally limited and not suited to formatting of code; there are issues with copyright as in most cases the ownership of the code is transferred to the journal, or if open access then put in the public domain; generally the audience of a paper should be broad enough to be useful to a wider range of researchers than your specialist area.
As others have suggested, you should release your code on GitHub or similar and apply a suitable licence, and simply refer to it in the paper. There are some exceptions to including code in a paper, generally when understanding the algorithm is essential for the reader or complicated, in which case pseudo code is acceptable since the essential information is included without any language specific distractions.
> 2 votes
# Answer
Another option, in the field of astrophysics, is to submit your code to a repository, and register it in the Astrophysics Source Code Library (ASCL) at https://ascl.net, which is indexed by the SAO/NASA's Astrophysics Database System (ADS), the official compilation of literature (and now source code and datasets) in astrophysics.
If that's your case, you look at this link to find out how to submit your code to it: https://ascl.net/submissions
The page has additional resources telling you how to cite said codes, and this is what a citation might look like:
> Garrido, J. et al., 2013, AstroTaverna, Astrophysics Source Code Library, record ascl:1307.007
With the record being held at https://ascl.net/1307.007, and the ADS entry at http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2013ascl.soft07007G
> 1 votes
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Tags: phd, publications, code
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thread-15074 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15074 | Should one provide a reference list and a bibliography in an academic paper? | 2013-12-26T12:21:09.210 | # Question
Title: Should one provide a reference list and a bibliography in an academic paper?
I was wondering whether it is good practice to present a reference list (works one actually cites) as well as a bibliography (additional literature that has been used but that is not referred to). Is there any difference between MLA and APA in the matter?
Both MLA and APA go quite deeply into how to construct a reference list, but a bibliography is seldom mentioned.
# Answer
> 4 votes
Typically, academic papers have traditionally provided the lists of works referenced, rather than bibliographies. Primarily, this is a matter of space, as well as recognizing work that has actually been used. Otherwise, it's too easy to include a bunch of random entries that have nothing to do with the paper in question. (It's still possible to do so in a works cited list, but you at least have to make the effort to work it into the paper *somehow*.)
In general, you should only include both lists if the journal in question allows such behavior. If you are publishing the paper in a venue that does not have such requirements, then you are of course free to include both lists if you choose. (Although I would not repeat the references list in the bibliography list, again to save space.)
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thread-15048 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15048 | What exactly does one do in a PhD? | 2013-12-25T05:30:39.210 | # Question
Title: What exactly does one do in a PhD?
I am a first year undergraduate student pursuing a B.S. in Chemistry (I'm very much interested in Biology too), and I am new to this world of Academia. It would be very helpful if someone could answer my questions.
What exactly does one do in a PhD? I know that in the first year, you take a lot of advanced courses on your specific field of study, and then you decide on a topic and start researching. But when do you stop? I see that there is no definite time limit for completing a PhD. It can be anywhere from two years to... is there an upper limit? Do you complete a PhD when you have discovered something new and published a paper on it?
I realise a lot of what I'm saying might be my own ideas of what happens. Please feel free to correct me.
# Answer
To answer some of your questions, a lot of this will vary from university to university, and vary by location.
One major aspect is to determine your research focus as early as possible and plan long and medium term objectives, and how these objectives are to be met at the beginning, in consultation with your advisors (that is the advice I was given).
**Duration**
There is usually an upper limit of how long a student can take to complete the dissertation, and it is generally expected that the research, experiments, dissertation write up is performed within the time frame dictated by the university. Note, the length of time taken to complete the PhD is not necessarily a measure of how credible it is. (I completed my PhD in Physics in 2.5 years).
Papers are often published in consultation between you and your advisor(s). But, during my PhD I was advised that it is a good idea to get some publications completed while you are studying (I completed 4 while completing the research).
**Courses**
This varies between universities and places, for example, I was not required to take any courses whatsoever - just pure research. That is something you will need to check with any university you apply to.
I did my PhD while working full time in an unrelated field, so I arranged regular (fortnightly) Skype meetings with my advisors, where short term goals were set and the medium and long term goals checked up on.
As you are doing sciences by the looks of it, it will involve a considerable amount of experimentation (potentially) - some of it can be tedious, make sure you plan and get into that as soon as possible, while ensuring you get the most accurate possible data in a safe and efficient manner.
**Completion**
You complete your research when you have met your objectives and have, through research and experimentation, 'answered' your research focus.
What happens then varies between universities, some you will be expected to defend your thesis, and some, as in my case, your thesis is peer-reviewed. Once all that is done and your advisors and the university are satisfied, you will be told that you have passed (in my case, I received a letter stating as such).
But, the research never really ends, once you have that passion for that topic - you may find that the research continues, but now to be published as papers (this also has been my experience). Find a topic that ignites the fire in you and you'll find that the PhD is just the start of the journey.
Finally and critically, make sure what you are doing is something that you find fascinating, something that you won't mind putting in many hours of research and work into. Choose something that is either your passion or something related to it. Get ready to challenge yourself on a regular basis.
I hope this helps.
> 12 votes
# Answer
First, it may be important to remember the purpose of graduate school and a research education. When you receive a PhD, it signifies that you have reached the pinnacle of the education system (some compare this to a pyramid where the Phd education is at the top; there is no higher way of organized education). You have reached a level where you should be able to learn on your own without supervision or advise. More specifically, you should also have reached a level of critical and creative thinking where you can successfully function as a researcher, coming up with new ideas, applying and receiving research grants, be considered an expert in your field, able to teach and advise PhD students. These are all overarching goals with a PhD education. As you can see it is partly a deep understanding of your field but also deep understanding of general academic skills.
Phd programs are different in terms of length and content. Some will have up to two years of courses (such as math programs in my country) and some may not have any course requirements (sometimes defined by an individual study plan defined by the student and his/her advisor). The course work is there to provide necessary background for the project done within a PhD. In most cases, I would argue that the exact courses taken during a PhD are of little formal value, the PhD thesis is what counts in the end. In general, the course work should provide you with whatever basic skills you need. My own experience in graduate school was, however, that I found that I did not need all the courses I planned for when I started. I simply felt that courses became inefficient ways of learning, that I could do it on my own faster. This, for me was a revelation, but, I believe, a natural development. So the amount of course work is individual and depends on the field/topic you are studying.
The length of a PhD project will vary from, for example, 3 year as is the case in the UK to maybe 6-7 years in other academic cultures. Around four years seems to be a fairly normal period. What is achieved within this period is defined by the results but not in terms of excellence of the results. There is of course nothing wrong if you come up with ground-breaking results, but that is not something that can be ordered. Instead the importance lies in the skills you display in terms of the scientific investigations (techniques, analysis) through the conclusions you draw from your work and to how well you write up your findings in a thesis (be it a monograph or a collection of papers). Your advisor should be there to coach you to take the necessary steps towards reaching these goals.
> 8 votes
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Tags: phd, graduate-school
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thread-15081 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15081 | Should one refer to the title of an article or to the title of the magazine when the author is unknown (MLA/APA) | 2013-12-26T14:57:11.867 | # Question
Title: Should one refer to the title of an article or to the title of the magazine when the author is unknown (MLA/APA)
I think the title is quite clear.
If the author of an article is unknwon, should one refer to the title of the article, or to the magazine itself? The same goes for electronic sources.
Let's say this is my source.
> “An Interview with Susan Bassnett.” *Channel View Publications Blog*. Channel View Publications. n.d. Web. 5 dec. 2013.
Would I refer (inline) like so:
> Bassnet states that ... ("An Interview with Susan Bassnett").
or like so
> Bassnett states that ... (*Channel View Publications Blog*).
# Answer
> 1 votes
According to the *MLA Style Manual*, which is excerpted on many sites (such as the Williams College Library homepage), they recommend using a partial title as the citation.
So, in the case above, you'd probably write
> Bassnett states that . . . ("Interview" 201).
unless you have multiple works with unknown authors whose title starts with "Interview." Then you'd need more of the title to distinguish it:
> Bassnett states that . . . ("Interview with Susan Bassnett" 201). Smith responds by claiming . . . ("Interview with Robert Smith" 12).
# Answer
> 1 votes
The Purdue OWL says for APA
> Unknown Author: If the work does not have an author, cite the source by its title in the signal phrase or use the first word or two in the parentheses. Titles of books and reports are italicized or underlined; titles of articles, chapters, and web pages are in quotation marks.
So ideally you would write:
> In "An Interview with Susan Bassnet" (2001) Bassnet said ...
But you could write:
> Some silly statement ("Interview," 2001)
I think if you have two sources from 2001 with no author, you would use 2001a and 2001b, so you would not need to change the short title.
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thread-13064 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/13064 | How shall I report my education and calculate my GPA? | 2013-09-28T18:12:45.397 | # Question
Title: How shall I report my education and calculate my GPA?
I studied in program A, and received a master degree in A, and at the same time received a master degree in another program B by taking a certain number of courses and doing a thesis. Then I continued to study for a PhD degree in program B, but without finishing it.
In my resume for either graduate school application or job hunting,
1. How shall I report my education?
* First master study in the two programs, and then PhD study in program B, or
* master study in program A, and graduate study in program B receiving my master in B but not finishing PhD study in B.
2. I was wondering how to report my GPAs for my studies in program A and B? In particular,
* for my master studies, can I calculate my GPA for program A using all courses I took, and my GPA for program B using only the courses that I used to meet the master degree in B?
* for my PhD study in program B, shall I calculate my GPA by including those courses that I took to meet the master degree in B or not?
How much flexibility do I have to calculate my GPAs? My university doesn't calculate GPAs for graduate students.
# Answer
Since your university does not calculate your GPA, you should also not calculate a GPA unless you are told to. Most people do not care about your GPA from graduate level programs. As for reporting the PhD work, it really depends on what you did. Assuming you passed all the university requirements to be actually a PhD student, some universities require you to pass qualifying exams before you are actually a PhD student, you can list the PhD if you want. If you always intended to take the Masters and quit, you don't have to list the PhD if you do not want to.
> 2 votes
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Tags: gpa
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thread-13175 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/13175 | Recommendation letter for application to CS graduate program from professors in math? | 2013-10-04T04:30:17.330 | # Question
Title: Recommendation letter for application to CS graduate program from professors in math?
I graduated from Dept A with a master degree, and then pursued a PhD in Dept B (which is applied math). But I left the PhD program in B this fall. I am now applying to some CS master programs (including some professional master programs and non-professional ones).
My research in Dept A used some computer programming and machine learning methods, although A isn't CS. In Dept B, however, most of my experiences were taking courses and doing TA, and very little research in stochastic processes.
I asked my previous research advisor in Dept A for a letter of recommendation. He politely say no, because we didn't have academic interaction in the last three years after I joined Dept B. Also I guess that the fact that I didn't finish PhD in Dept B may be another reason. Note that he recommended me when I applied to PhD program in Dept B, and he knew little about computer programming.
So I find some professors in Dept B, whom I took probability and stochastic processes courses from or was a TA for. I was wondering if their recommendation letter will help my application to a CS master program (including some professional master programs and non-professional ones), given that these are two different areas and my experience with CS was mostly from my master study in Dept A?
Does recommendation from my previous research advisor in Dept A really not help much, because our collaboration was too old, compared to recommendation from the professors in Dept B?
What if I am applying to PhD Programs in Statistics, instead of CS master programs?
# Answer
When applying to graduate school (either PhD or Masters level), it helps to have letters from any past research supervisors or graduate programs. The fact that your advisor at Dept A refused to write you a letter means that you probably do not want that letter. Letters from people who only know you from class or teaching are not as useful as research letters, but they can still be helpful.
> 3 votes
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thread-14253 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14253 | What are the opportunities to do research under good professors/organisations? | 2013-11-20T11:31:18.513 | # Question
Title: What are the opportunities to do research under good professors/organisations?
I am an electronics and communication engineering final year student. I have a 6.5/10 GPA. I do not have an exceptional academic record, or any finished research papers in my name to boast about. But I always wanted to be a researcher and problem-solver. I love computers and electronics.
This is why I took up engineering. But being taught lots of theory without being provided with practical implications for the same killed my interest. I tried to find out things myself, but after the first year, workload caught up.
But now I am doing my final year project and it has rekindled my interest in applying what I learn. I feel stupid for not having done anything productive for the past 3 years, but I want to change that. I want to learn about embedded systems and HPC, from a practical point of view.
I wish to pursue M.S, but I am afraid I do not have enough understanding of the subject, or grades to get into a good university.
Is there any way I can work as an intern/research assistant under a good professor/organisation with my average academic grades, so that I can gain experience and learn the subject more thoroughly?
# Answer
> 3 votes
This is a common scenario for many students. The answer really depends on your flexibility and any networking you have done. If you are willing to live in any country and gain the appropriate visas and work for nothing, then you will have more opportunities than if you restrict yourself to a single university and require to be paid competitively. Ideally you will have some professors who can help you find a lab that might be interested in your services. Otherwise you will need to do a lot of work to find someone who is willing to look at your CV.
Another option is to simply set your sights on a lower ranked MS program and do well in that.
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thread-14335 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14335 | Statistics PhD - Sending the math GRE score | 2013-11-23T21:56:59.463 | # Question
Title: Statistics PhD - Sending the math GRE score
mGRE is only recommended when applying for a Ph.D in statistics. But obviously sometimes it's better not to send a score than to report a bad score. Stanford, which is the only place that actually requires mGRE, post that their average is the 82% quantile. But this also includes graduate students in probability, with much higher level in mathematics.
How would you cut the threshold between send/not send/indifferent?
# Answer
> 2 votes
It really depends. Obviously if the score is required you need to send it. If you are applying to top programs, a 68% at anything is not going to help your case so I would not send it if it wasn't required. At lower ranked schools, a 68% might be okay, but again it is probably not going to impress anyone. I would probably draw the line at the 90th percentile for providing something that is not required.
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Tags: graduate-admissions, gre, statistics
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thread-15066 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15066 | How can women improve their chances to get postdoc positions in computer science? | 2013-12-26T04:39:01.417 | # Question
Title: How can women improve their chances to get postdoc positions in computer science?
I am planning to apply for postdoc positions in computer science (CS) departments, preferably in the US or Europe. I have searched several computer science departments/research groups at different universities to see the current projects and Postdoc researchers. I saw that most current postdocs are men. So, the following questions came into my mind:
1. Is it because either women did not apply for the position, or were the women's applications unsatisfactory to get the position?
2. Is it true that women do not have much interest and hence success in CS than men? or lets say are men *in general* better in CS than women?
3. Although it is unethical, is it true to assume that the CS members have tendency to hire men more than women in reality?
4. If answer to Q3 is "yes," what would be the most effective motivations to encourage the hiring of women postdocs in CS?
5. For women who have recently finished their PhD's, is it better to apply for academic research fellows or industry research positions?
# Answer
> 18 votes
I can only answer for Europe, but I assume JeffE is going to provide high-quality info for the US anyway.
> I saw the most of current postdocs are men.
With some exceptions, this is unfortunately very true across Europe. And not only post-docs. It gets worse the higher "up" you go in hierarchy.
> 1- Is it because either the women did not apply for postdoc or women's applications couldn't make the CS community or individual faculty members satisfied?
In Vienna, where I did my PhD, we simply received basically no female applications. It was not a question of my professor not being satisfied with the female candidates - in the majority of cases, there simply were none.
> 2- Is it true that women do not have much interest and hence success in CS than men? or lets say are men -in general- better in CS than women?
I am sure that women are able to do CS just fine. We just "lose" them some time during school. How this happens is a question of reasonably heated debate (gender studies etc.), and I do not feel qualified to answer it competently.
> 3- Although it is not ethically feasible, is it true to assume that the CS members have tendency to hire men more than women in reality?
This will surely be true for some individuals, but by and large the official university policy in most places is that "equally qualified" female candidates should be hired over male ones, and this actually seems to be the case. In general, as most universities are pretty desperate to increase their quota of females in higher positions, being a top female researcher will actually make it easier for you to get a strong postdoc or junior faculty position in Europe. **Edit:** I should make clear that the last sentence is based on personal opinion and anecdotal evidence more than anything else.
> 5- For the women who newly finished PhD, is better to apply for academic research fellows or industry research positions?
Follow your heart. I don't feel gender should play into this decision. Anyway, in Europe there are preciously little *industry research positions*, so for the most part it's either academic research or industrial practice over here.
# Answer
> 7 votes
> Is it due to lack of applications or lack of qualifications?
I am sure it is mostly due to the lack of applications due to the extremely small number of women studying computer science. Listen to episode 54 of the stack overflow podcast where they discuss how few applications they receive from women. If you consider women are a very small minority of people who have CS bachelors degrees (qualified for SO position) then we can assume that only a tiny percentage of those will continue studying for a PhD.
> Is it true that women aren't as interested in CS? Or are they not as good at it?
It is obvious it is the former, women are not as drawn to the profession. Although they are as good as men at CS, if not better. There are societal pressures and influences that may subconsciously guide women to work in a profession that is considered more feminine (humanities, nursing and teaching for example). In this way women are more attracted to other areas because of social influence and simultaneously pushed away from CS. I feel that most of the time these are not conscious decisions. However it may be a conscious decision but women don't like explicitly stating social pressure as the reason for their career choice.
There is also the case where women would like to work in the profession but are repelled by the idea of working alongside mostly men as they feel they won't fit in with the group. They may also feel that they would be discriminated against in the hiring process and career progression. There are many reasons why women are not as interested in CS but not being as good as men is not one of those reasons.
> Do some members of the CS community favour men over women?
Some, but only a small minority of people favour men over women. In fact many organisations encourage the hiring of women.
> Should a woman apply for an academic institution or for an industry position?
This is up to the specific person and you cannot simply generalise by gender in this situation.
# Answer
> 1 votes
Something to consider is the atmosphere at a particular institution. Where I attend, about 20% of our CS staff are female. That is, unfortunately, quite high for a CS department. But the problem is not unique to Computer Science. This disproportion exists across many of the sciences. Try to find an institute where the number of women---both faculty and students---is high. That department will be one that is already proactively hiring females. If the tables were turned, I would be more comfortable in that setting, anyway, but that may be my personality.
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thread-15089 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15089 | Doing a masters degree level research without following a Master Course | 2013-12-26T17:40:37.433 | # Question
Title: Doing a masters degree level research without following a Master Course
I have a degree in computer science but I don't have any research experience. But everyday I read research papers from free journals. I also managed to understand the content of them. Now I want to do a research like that. Can anyone help me to learn standard procedure of doing a Computer Science research and publish it in a free journal ?, it's better if you can some give books reference on "how to do a computer science research" with your answer and format of standard thesis.
I read about several question like This. But they don't tell about standard format of thesis and research methodologies.
# Answer
> 6 votes
I don't know that there's going to be a single book that describes what you want, however, I'm going to make some suggestions which may help you on your way. I'm a little biased towards CS and research-heavy MSc, so I think I can be of some help here.
## Topic
A master's degree typically is going to consist of two phases: One of breadth: where you try to find what you're interested in enough to specialize, and one of depth: Where you start to push towards the edge of human knowledge on that subject.
If you're already reading papers, then you should be finding the kind of papers that hold your interest the most, those which have you tracking down their references.
Once you've already got a topic, start to find the papers from the best conferences and journals (in CS, good conferences are often as good or better than Journal papers) in the area. Creative use of Google can often track down full-text even of papers which are officially 'paywalled'.
The goal of your reading here is to identify a gap in the understanding. This might be as simple as working on comparative evaluations of techniques, or as complicated as trying to create a new technique for yourself. What you'd like to do is answer a question the community is interested in.
## Background
While you're doing your reading and trying to find your topic or get up to speed on the state-of-the-art, you should also be building up your background. There's always room to grow your background to support research. In CS, there are certain foundational topics which are (almost) always going to pay dividends when doing research: Algorithms and algorithmic analysis, statistics and probability, and utility programming (Data munging, shell-scriptng, etc.).
As you get further into a specialization you'll notice more techniques being deployed which will require more background --- i.e. your specialization might require more calculus than you know, which then will involve learning the calculus required.
## Research
I know you asked for a methodology, but in my experience, research is a process of creativity and perseverance. At the highest of levels, you're going to come up with an idea, work on it, and find out it doesn't work. Rinse and repeat until you find out something that works --- in a special case. If the special case is interesting or common, you might be able to publish it! Otherwise, you'll work on generalizing the idea until you can.
## Communication
To be recognized as a member of the research community, eventually you'll have to publish. This means learning to write.
I'd suggest learning to write informally first -- Start a blog, and document your learning. If you're not a native English speaker, use this time to practice writing in English. Get everyone and anyone you can to read your blog, and tear it apart on style, grammar, content, concision.
After your confident in *informal* English, start to transition into Academic writing. Read good papers. Take notes on what makes them good in your mind. Read about writing good papers. Write papers. Take previous projects, and start writing them up like you would submit them. As you write, you'll find the holes and flaws. Finish it anyhow, then sit down, and edit them: Why wouldn't they be accepted. Keep doing this! As far as format and outline, it's going to vary from field to field, and even venue to venue to some extent.
## A Caveat:
This is going to be a very difficult process to do alone, with little guidance. Ideally you'll seek out and find a mentor. This might involve actually signing up with a school for a Master's program.
Most of the pieces I wrote about above will be an order of magnitude easier with an academic guide.
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Tags: research-process, computer-science, independent-researcher
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thread-15067 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15067 | Should a dismissal from PhD in graduate application be listed as academic misconduct? | 2013-12-26T05:36:39.777 | # Question
Title: Should a dismissal from PhD in graduate application be listed as academic misconduct?
I'm wondering whether dismissal / withdrawal from a PhD program should be listed as disciplinary action on subsequent applications. A Master's program application usually asks questions like:
> Have you ever been found responsible for a disciplinary violation at any post-secondary institution you have attended, whether related to academic misconduct or behavioral misconduct, that resulted in a disciplinary action?
I was academically dismissed from a PhD program after four semesters for not being able to maintain the minimum GPA. I plan to fully include this information in my application (e.g. through transcripts from the institution from which I was dismissed), and address why I was dismissed (and what steps I have taken to address academic concerns) in my Statement of Purpose.
**Q**: However, I am not sure if my dismissal counts as one that is due to "disciplinary violation" related to "academic misconduct or behavioral misconduct". I was simply dismissed due to not being able to maintain the required grades. Should I answer the above question in the negative?
# Answer
> 37 votes
"Academic misconduct" is not the same as "Lack of academic performance." "Academic misconduct" is things like claiming undue credit, fabrication of research or sources, outright plagiarism, etc. Simply not making the grades might reflect on your academic aptitude, but (unlike academic misconduct) does not necessarily reflect upon your character.
# Answer
> 19 votes
I believe that failing to meet the grade standards do not constitute an academic misconduct or a behavioral misconduct. In my opinion, those refer to cheating, sabotaging others' research projects etc. So I would answer that in the negative. Actually, I would want to be more sure than a random StackExchange answer in answering that question, so I would contact the department to ask, or ask one of my professors from undergrad/grad school.
By the way, as a word of advice, many schools have a separate section ("other circumstances" etc) for explaining that awful thing on your application. If I were you, I would save my SOP for actually talking about the research that I am interested in, and not make that a place where I make excuses. You have to give them a reason to be excited about you. By explaining your circumstances in the SOP, you lose your best shot, and they would at most feel mediocre about you.
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Tags: graduate-school, application, disciplinary-action
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thread-15073 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15073 | For graduate admissions, is it better to attend a well-known undergrad program with advanced coursework or one where I can write a bachelors' thesis? | 2013-12-26T11:37:45.317 | # Question
Title: For graduate admissions, is it better to attend a well-known undergrad program with advanced coursework or one where I can write a bachelors' thesis?
I am currently enrolled in a 4-year mathematics undergraduate program in a university (let's call it A) in South Asia and here are the circumstances:
1. There are very few math majors in the program. I suffer and feel the lack of peers.
2. Professors are extremely friendly. They work on harmonic analysis, representation theory, Fourier analysis, analytic number theory, functional analysis, category theory, game theory and C\* algebra. However, we don't have people working in commutative algebra, algebraic geometry, algebraic number theory and other areas.
3. At the end of four years, I can at best get courses in real analysis (in one and several variables), complex analysis, general topology, discrete mathematics, analytic NT, ODE and PDE, linear algebra, groups, rings, fields and other courses from the research interests of my professors.
4. To get an Honors degree, I'll additionally write a Bachelor's thesis.
5. There are two other places in our country (Let's call them B) which are really good- their programs are tougher, they offer more grad courses, have the best peer group, etc.,have some of the best researchers in the country, cost much less. To move to B, I will have to sit for an admission test and start afresh.
However, they do not have a provision for Bachelor's thesis and are 3 year programs.
My primary concerns are:
1. Since I want to apply to the top universities in the US, I feel not getting courses like differential geometry, algebraic geometry, algebraic topology at my current institution A will severely affect my application. But I will write a Bachelor's thesis.
2. If I move to B, not writing a bachelor's thesis will make my application weaker as I will have no proper independent project or something like that to show my research potential but I will get grad level courses.
Here are two questions:
> 1. Should I try moving to B or stay at my current institution, A?
> 2. Am I at a significant disadvantage being at A compared to B?
I am willing to provide further details without divulging my id.
# Answer
> 3 votes
If I were you, I would try to move to B based on the assumption that B is better than A and A is probably less recognizable in the US than B schools.
You are right that research potential is an important factor the admission committees of top schools will pay attention to. However, bachelor thesis is not the only way to show that you can do research. You can do research papers with professors' supervision at school B if you want.
I suggest B since you can learn a lot more in B than in A. Building the foundations during undergrad stage is more important than doing research prematurely.
When you apply graduate schools, you need to provide GPA, GRE/TOEFL scores, recommendation letters and any evidence that you can do research. One of the first things the admission committee will look at is your transcript to determine if you are competent in math. If you stay in A, all you can show is basic to intermediate level math courses. Given that all other conditions will be equal, i.e. you'll get the same GRE/TOEFL scores, about the same recommendation letters (I am not too sure about that), the only thing you can use to beat other applicants is your very good quality bachelor thesis. But, how can you write a very good thesis without having solid math knowledge?
Thus, I am suggesting B. I do understand how tough is the admission exam in that part of the world. It's bloody. Good luck!
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Tags: graduate-admissions, thesis, mathematics, coursework
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thread-15075 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15075 | Independent research post-PhD strategies | 2013-12-26T12:31:51.627 | # Question
Title: Independent research post-PhD strategies
After reading The nightmare of being an independent researcher, Applying for research funding as an independent researcher? and On getting reviews for research work as independent learners and reflecting on many a post PhD academic who, for whatever reason, are not able to get a foot in the door in academia after they complete their work.
I have seen this go both ways - the post-PhD after a while just gives up and gets any job they can, or they go down the path of independent research (usually, as in my case, while working full time).
From experience, this independent research is following on from the PhD topic, still in collaboration with others and at least one established academic, but it is the kind of situation where experiments are performed on the weekends in the backyard, using equipment borrowed or made, and more often than not, all self-funded. Papers still get published and conferences attended (where possible).
What my question is, what strategies are there to maintain motivation in independent research?
Additionally, how well recognised are independent researchers?
# Answer
> 4 votes
By an "independent researcher", do you mean that you are not associated to an institution, or that you have become independent from your advisor?
The first case, I am not certain what to say; it really seems that if you are not associated to an institution, you have to deal with a lot of stuff; prejudice from more traditional academics (if he is good enough to be doing research, why is he not associated to an institution? Hence, his research must be terrible), difficulty in accessing published materials (although this is becoming easier and easier, where many recently published papers are in public domain one way or another), etc.
In this case, I suggest that you have at least a few **very** close academic contacts who are well-respected. These people should be able to explain your situation (about why you are not following a more traditional route) and become your champion. They can also occasionally get you the research papers that you cannot access otherwise, and should you decide to return to school, they will vouch for you by writing you letters, etc. They can also invite you to give talks, participate in conferences, and in general make sure that you are not forgotten in academia.
I think staying in academia as an outsider is much harder if you cannot find people like this, and in all the cases that I have seen, these people sooner or later leave academia. So you need to plan ahead -- if you are still in school, cultivate these relationships. If you have already left, start by getting back in touch with your advisor and close friends who may still be in academia.
In the second case, I think everyone feels some nervousness (and hopefully some excitement) from becoming independent. I think the most crucial thing is to make sure that you have some low-hanging fruits as well as the ones that are just outside your reach as your research projects. Keep yourself busy, and you will find that you have become a pretty good researcher during your time as a graduate student!
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Tags: motivation, independent-researcher
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thread-14833 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14833 | Distance learning: taken seriously? | 2013-12-16T23:11:01.797 | # Question
Title: Distance learning: taken seriously?
I'm currently in the first year of a six year bachelor's degree aiming for astrophysics. The course is a home/distance learning setup run by the Open University. While I am enjoying it thoroughly, I am aware of the academic politics that can dog professional science. So my question is thus: Upon soldiering on with the degree, then masters, and then PhD, will I be taken seriously within a professional setting given my inability to reference a leading university for my education? Will the format for my studying be "pitied"?
*Edit:* I suppose a bit more info may help. I'm 27,wife, 2 children, and I currently work as a full time chef, and self employed part time IT technician. I flunked my GCSEs, with no further education. The past 3 years have been a revelation for me, and I have discovered a before unexperienced love for academia; specifically, physics and astronomy. Last year I completed a 1 year OU maths brush up course, which at the time I really struggled with. This year I had a bout of madness and took the plunge for a BSc degree in astronomy. I am now loving the math within the physics so far (yet to hit calculus though!)
PhD, and even masters, is a long way off. Also, since this original post I've improved my understanding of what a PhD actually entails. So I realise that if I get there, it may well not have anything to do with the OU!
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It occurs to me that a lot of my initial queries could have been avoided with a better understanding of the educational and qualification system itself. I now have a greater appreciation as to what a PhD actually *is*, realising that its a long way off and not necessarily needed for a fulfilling career in research.
I think trying to repair my broken education and fight my way into a worthwhile (and productive!) career is enough of challenge at the moment. There will be plenty of time later for worries concerning doctorates.
It is good to hear that there is at least an open mind towards distance educated professionals.
As has been said, if you've got it, you've got it - you just have to be ready to prove it.
# Answer
> 13 votes
## **Distance-learning students report retaining and applying less than face-to-face students**
Students overwhelmingly report retaining and applying less from online courses versus face-to-face courses.
```
http://74.220.215.89/~businfm5/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/2012-ABC-Waner.pdf
```
However, this may be due to a difference in factors other than distance learning.
Irrespective of why, there is an overall perception of lower value created.
## **Distance learning creates value, and may still be the best option for many students**
Some students live far from institutions that offer degrees in their desired fields. Sometimes the closest institution of higher learning may be 100's of miles away. Even if there is an institution nearby, it may not be well suited to the students' abilities. Distance learning provides students with options they would not otherwise have.
## **Is distance learning taken seriously?**
Distance learning is not as respected as face-to-face learning. However, it may provide credentials that otherwise would not be available to successful people who carry gravitas that they have earned through means other than that education.
If you want your education to be taken as seriously as possible, you should prefer getting your degree at a brick-and-mortar institution and attending classes in person.
If the institutional gravitas is of less importance than going through the course of study and earning the degree itself, perhaps if you require the knowledge gained or the credential on your resume to advance in your job, then the distance learning aspect is of lesser importance.
## **But *should* distance learning be taken seriously?**
Some distance learners may prefer distance learning because of an inability to stick to the deadlines required in face-to-face classes, and perhaps they perceive the classes as easier to succeed in than a local school.
Others might not have local options available, or their lifestyle (perhaps as caretakers or providers) requires the flexibility that distance learning offers.
It is best not to paint all distance-learners with a broad brush. There is a great deal of heterogeneity in the distance-learning population, and although they have chosen to earn a degree that is known to carry less weight than a face-to-face, each should be evaluated on an individual basis, taking into consideration the reasons and circumstances under which the degree was earned.
# Answer
> 13 votes
My own experience of having an open university degree (computer science) is that "it depends on who you talk to". Some people value the degree highly, others put it at the bottom of the pile. I've found that the longer I've held it (ten years now!) the more value it seems to have accrued. This could be to the fact it becomes less and less relevant where your studied the more experience you build or the fact that it's become a more accepted route of study since I gained it.
Disclaimer: I work in academia, but am not an academic. I currently work for a big academic institution and they perfectly happy with my degree.
# Answer
> 7 votes
It is true that open universities / distance learning institutions are not taken equally seriously, even if sometimes the work is harder due to the vast number of exercises. Still, in research it is mainly what you publish (and where) and what you are really capable of doing. In this sense, the sky is always the only limit a) if you have the ability and b) work extremely hard regardless of initial studies.
You are also too young to worry about PHDs, MSCs, since you do not know if spending your time studying is more fun to you than working and getting some real money from some real job (after graduating). So, do the best you can for now, keep your grades up and your eyes open and towards the end of your study you will know what you want to do. If you are really good, you will find your way.
# Answer
> 3 votes
IMO, distance learning does not have a huge effect on a PhD. People in your field will know enough to judge you by your work, and many PhD students spend semesters away from their home institutions, or away from their advisors, and they turn out just fine.
The worrying part is your bachelor's degree -- in the US, PhD admission is competitive (at least on the top level; I am not sure what the competition is like in the lower-level universities), and the fact that you won't know any of your letter writers personally is already going to hurt you A LOT, as there is no way your letters are going to be as strong as the ones for the students who attended universities.
I do not think that you are an American, so it is possible that distance learning is considered pretty prestigious in your country, and you have some contact with the professors. But if I were you, I would trade the possible prestige that is associated with your distance-learning university, for a lesser university close to home that I can attend in person. You would get better grades, and better letters that way.
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Tags: phd, undergraduate, online-learning, distance-learning
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thread-14943 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14943 | Writing Sample for Graduate School | 2013-12-19T21:20:10.843 | # Question
Title: Writing Sample for Graduate School
When submitting a writing sample for a graduate school application, what exactly are review boards looking at?
I ask, because when looking at my own writing I find it is difficult to judge beyond the grade I was given and when I can judge, there are different strengths and weaknesses.
For example, writing wise (clarity, concision, etc.), my strongest writing sample is on a topic that was written for a course in my field (Art History) but is still relatively tangential to the field itself (about visuality rather than Art History per se). That being said, topic wise, I have a paper that was written on the same topic as my fourth years honours thesis (still a work in progress) that speaks to the areas that I want to continue studying. It is still a good piece of work that received an A grade, but I personally feel that the writing and organization is weaker.
Which is better to send as a writing sample? The more on topic, but weaker piece, or the stronger tangentially-related piece.
# Answer
> 2 votes
I am only familiar with the humanities through my wife. When she reads writing samples for admissions she seems to talk about the quality of the research, organisation, and clarity. She doesn't seem to care about topic so much. It seems many Art Historians change their topic area early on during the PhD process in the US.
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Tags: graduate-admissions, writing
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thread-15003 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15003 | Does anyone have rate the relative quality of scientific papers, rather than authors? | 2013-12-22T21:28:09.347 | # Question
Title: Does anyone have rate the relative quality of scientific papers, rather than authors?
I've seen plenty of places where authors are rated on how much they publish and are cited. There are also metrics like the h-index and i10-index that try and assign a number to the relative quality of a given researcher (for better or worse). But, is there anything similar for individual articles?
It seems to me that people would want an easy way to see if a piece of research has been reproduced or not, peer reviewed for quality of methods and/or analysis, retracted, cited by other papers, the quality of the papers cited, etc. I would think that this would be an extremely useful tool to help people see if the paper they are reading, and potentially citing, is a quality paper or not. However, I've never seen or heard of anything that does this.
So, is there a service or metric out there that has something like an h-value on a per article basis rather than a per author basis?
# Answer
> 4 votes
Rating the quality of a paper is extremely difficult. Journal impact factors tell you little about the quality of individual papers. Citation counts are also misleading since papers that are wrong tend to get lots of citations. There is really no substitute for reading and making your own decisions.
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Tags: citations, bibliometrics
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thread-15110 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15110 | Can I use a Google map in my PhD thesis? | 2013-12-27T10:46:10.177 | # Question
Title: Can I use a Google map in my PhD thesis?
I want to use a map downloaded from Google maps in my PhD thesis. Does Google allow me to do this? Do I need permission from Google?
# Answer
Google provides you the right to employ a Google Maps map on your thesis. See Permission Guidelines for Google Maps and Google Earth (first two points of *The basics* and *Using maps in print*).
However, they ask you to provide correct attribution for those pictures. It will be something like “*Map data ©20xx Google, Sanborn*”. As they write, you have to find the correct copyright statement on the map you would like to reproduce in your thesis.
Alternatively, it may be possible for you to use OpenStreetMap which is Open Data material and has more permissive licensing.
> 16 votes
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Tags: thesis, copyright
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thread-15122 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15122 | What should be the order of references in a research text? | 2013-12-27T17:06:01.427 | # Question
Title: What should be the order of references in a research text?
In many research articles numerical values are used for citing references in the text. I have seen the numbering of such references in pretty weird orders. In some texts, the references are sequenced as they are cited in the article. For example,
Case 1:
> Statement X\[1\], says that the technique ABC\[2\] solves the problem by utilizing the Y method\[3\]
While in a few, they seem to follow random ordering like
Case 2:
> Technique X\[95,46,38\] has been long used for solving the problem discussed in \[12\]
In some others
Case 3:
> Technique X\[56\] has been used in \[23\] to solve Y.
Are there any standard conventions or best practice for ordering the references ?
(My field is computer science)
# Answer
> 13 votes
The order is determined by the standard applied by each journal to their publication. In some cases, references are listed alphabetically in the reference list. In this case, the order of appearance of the numbers in the text may seem random (this is equivalent to your cases 2 and 3). In some cases, references are listed in the order they appear in the text. This yields the first example you provide.
So there is no right or wrong, there are different standards and which you need to follow is given by the journal in which you aim to publish.If you are concerned with which system to use in a report or your thesis, you should simply check with your department or organization to see which they follow. If there are no guidelines, I would suggest the system you find most commonly used in journals that lie close to your subject but you could essentially select whichever one you want as long as it is consistent and logical.
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Tags: research-process, publications, citations
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thread-15117 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15117 | Why is there a lack of transparency in US tenure-track job searches? | 2013-12-27T12:07:29.120 | # Question
Title: Why is there a lack of transparency in US tenure-track job searches?
I find it strange that most US departments have so little transparency in tenure-track jobs searches. In the UK the system is a little cleaner. Jobs are generally announced in one place (jobs.ac.uk) and the interview date is often set in advance. In the US there is no central list of jobs and it is difficult to determine where in the process the search is. Why don't search committees set a date for the short list to be decided at the outset and make it publicly available? Even for searches that move sequentially through the short list inviting candidates one at a time for interviews, could still send out a notification. It seems it would reduce the stress of the search for many applicants and not be too much work for the search committee.
# Answer
> 12 votes
There are several factors at work here:
* Remember that there are several thousand colleges and universities in the United States. A central database of such jobs would be significantly harder to publicize and organize.
* Most universities in the US are private. They are under no such compulsion to post their jobs on any particular web site, unless constrained to do so by the funding sources that are supporting a particular position, or legal requirements to do so. (To my knowledge, there is no such requirement.)
* The more deadlines and constraints you build into the cycle, the more pressure you put everyone under—applicants, recommendation writers, support staff, and departmental faculty involved in the search.
So I think there are multiple reasons not to publicize the results of a search, and I think most hiring committees would be reluctant to do so. There could be a better job done of *announcing* searches, certainly, and that would make things easier (but again, the places that currently advertise would likely complain about losing their business to a central source!).
# Answer
> 6 votes
In math, jobs in the US are announced on mathjobs.org, and you apply centrally through this website as well. Although you don't always get notified on the status of your application, we have a place called "mathjobs wiki", where people post "rumors" (in reality, since the TT interviews are announced on the department websites, it's not really a rumor) on the status of the job search. I am told that several other disciplines have something like this.
I would have thought European searches have less transparency; it seems to me that many European (mathematics) departments hire based on who you know, and their jobs are much less advertised.
# Answer
> 3 votes
I will tackle the \`\`Jobs are generally announced in one place (jobs.ac.uk)'' part. As user14449 mentioned in his(her?)(its?) answer some disciplines have society run central job boards. The AMS and MLA are the particularly effective ones from my experience but even they do not attract all the jobs in their fields. Then each state university will post all of its jobs to their own Human Resources job board. But there will never be a centralized site like jobs.ac.uk because the US system is not a single system. many of the colleges and universities are privately run, the rest are run by the state governments, and four run by the military. There is no central authority that can determine how hiring is done beyond anti-discrimination and equal opportunity laws. So any such website would have to start off as a third party endeavor. And since the job ads in the Chronicle of Higher Education already service this purpose but do not cover the entire market it is hard to say that there would be promise for any new one.
Just a side note on the scale of the US job market from Wiki there are \`\`4,495 Title IV-eligible'' colleges and universities. Title IV-eligible means students at those institutions are eligible for federally backed student loans.
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Tags: job-search, united-states, tenure-track
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thread-15080 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15080 | Literature Review versus Literature Survey. What is the difference? | 2013-12-26T13:46:36.337 | # Question
Title: Literature Review versus Literature Survey. What is the difference?
I have read several articles about literature reviews. At the same time I found some guides about literature *surveys*. I am confused... how is a literature survey different from a literature review? What is the standard procedure to conduct a literature survey without making it a literature review?
# Answer
> 37 votes
Reviewing the literature relevant to a given field is a standard part of doing research, as this serves to put your work into the context of the larger discipline in which you are working.
If there is an actual difference between the "literature survey" and the "literature review," it's that the latter can serve as a paper in and of itself, and is much more extensive than a literature survey, which is typically a major part of the introduction of a research paper.
The literature review as a standalone article could be compared to a "curated" overview of the literature in the field—who has done what, how do papers relate to one another, and what are the most important present and (possibly) future directions of work in such a field. Such papers can also be considerably longer than a traditional research paper, and some reviews might cite as many as a thousand references!
In comparison, the literature survey of a standard research article is usually much shorter (1-2 journal pages), and will not cite nearly as many papers (anywhere from 10 to 100, depending on the topic and the amount of relevant literature available).
# Answer
> 34 votes
Well, I have written couple of survery/review articles published in prestigious journals here, here, and here and hence I think I can give you some hint on this question.
*First View:* One of the most important things to consider is that, these terms have been used differently in varied academic disciplines and even in some cases they are used interchangeably with negligible differences. Even in CS (my field), the way image processing scholars look at these terms may be different from networking researchers (I once experienced the comments I received from experts in image processing and realize how different they look at the works). So it might not be wrong if consider *insignificant differences* between these two terms.
What I describe here may be more applicable to CS. There are two different views at these terms that I describe here
Technically a feasible description around these two terms is that in survey works you should review the published papers and analyze, summarize, organize, and present findings in a novel way that can generate an original view to a certain aspect of the domain. For example, if researchers review the available research findings and conclude that electrical cars are emission-free vehicles, another researcher can review the same results and present an argument that building batteries themselves produce huge emission. The second contribution opens door for new research around emission-free production of car batteries. If we consider that survey paper is the result of literature survey, we can use the following definitions from CS journals.
* According to the definition of survey paper provided by IEEE Communications Surveys & Tutorials journal (one of the best CS journals), "**The term survey, as applied here, is defined to mean a survey of the literature. A survey article should provide a comprehensive review of developments in a selected area**".
* In ACM Computing Survey (another prestigious CS journal), survey paper is described as “A paper that summarizes and organizes recent research results in a novel way that integrates and adds understanding to work in the field. A survey article emphasizes the classification of the existing literature, developing a perspective on the area, and evaluating trends.”
* In Elsevier journal of Computer Science Review, you will see here that “Critical review of the relevant literature“ is required a component of every typical survey paper.
To summarize, these two terms can be distinguished using following notes (or maybe definitions)
**Literature Survey:** Is the process of analyzing, summarizing, organizing, and presenting novel conclusions from the results of technical review of large number of recently published scholarly articles. The results of the literature survey can contribute to the body of knowledge when peer-reviewed and published as survey articles
**Literature Review:** Is the process of technically and critically reviewing published papers to extract technical and scientific metadata from the presented contents. The metadata are usually used during literature survey to technically compare different but relevant works and draw conclusions on weaknesses and strengths of the works.
*Second View:* The second view over literature survey and review is that in survey, researchers usually utilize the author-provided contents available in the published works to qualitatively analyze and compare them with other related works. While in the former, you should not perform qualitative analysis. Rather it should be quantitative meaning that every research work under study should be implemented and benchmarked under certain criteria. The results of this benchmarking study can be used to compare them together and criticize or appreciate the works.
So basically you can look at current literature and find which approach is dominating in your field. Hope it helps. I try to revise it if I came a cross other points or useful comments here.
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Tags: research-process, literature-review, literature-search
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thread-15116 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15116 | Is it feasible to pursue PhD with BE Degree/16+ years of experience, and is it worth it? | 2013-12-27T11:58:37.460 | # Question
Title: Is it feasible to pursue PhD with BE Degree/16+ years of experience, and is it worth it?
Is it possible to pursue PhD with only BE degree and 16+ years of Software Industry experience? I know that most of the institutes expect a Masters degree to pursue PhD. Do they consider Industry experience to relax this criteria?
And, then the big question - Is it worth it to pursue a research/academic career after 16 years in Software Industry? Has anyone done this? what are your experiences like?
# Answer
Your assumption depends on your location. If you are interested in obtaining a PhD in Computer Science at a school in the US, then in fact many programs do *not* expect you to have a Master's degree prior to beginning your doctoral studies. However, if you've been in industry for 16 years, it may be difficult to secure the letters of recommendation required for entry. Certainly letters from employers are accepted, especially in your case, but if they do not show a strong desire and aptitude for research, they will not be worth as much. However, don't let that dissuade you. Apply anyway, if that's what you want to do.
> 4 votes
# Answer
From my experience, even in the US, the situation apply to specific subjects of study. I would suggest you do a masters degree because it will help you and open up your ability to do a wider range of research. If the PhD subject your want to study has a coursework before research then the best way go about it is to do a masters degree because in most PhD coursework exams, you're required to know most of the things done at undergraduate and masters level. The best thing about doing a masters before doing a PhD is that studying masters degree takes only one year in most universities around the world. You can manage one year.
> 3 votes
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Tags: phd, career-path
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thread-15135 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15135 | Relation between a recommender and a PhD applicant | 2013-12-28T02:30:50.507 | # Question
Title: Relation between a recommender and a PhD applicant
Online PhD application systems usually ask for relation between the recommender and the applicant.
The applicant was in a PhD program and the recommender was a professor in the department. The applicant approached him for some research opportunities at first, and later did some research in one of the recommender's projects, directly mentored by an assistant research professor. There was no formal title of "research adviser" for the recommender to the applicant, or for the research assistant professor to the applicant, as the student was still in the process of finalizing research direction and adviser. The student then didn't finish the PhD, and later applied to PhD programs in other universities.
Can the relation between the recommender and the applicant be "research adviser" in PhD application? What is best to describe that relation? By the way, the recommender was also an instructor to the applicant in some courses. But a relation besides "instructor" was preferred, if possible.
# Answer
You may consider two roles for the students in previous institute; one as a PhD student looking for topic and the other is a short-term research collaborator. As the recommender was not engaged in your PhD job, he cannot be PhD advisor.
However, since the recommender was primary investigator (or head) of the project student worked in, the relationship is **research collaborator** or more focused, **primary investigator in a collaborative research**. Your output of the collaborative research with him as technical report, conference paper, or journal article would prove the relationship.
But I think student needs to convince the new graduate school that why did he fail/dismiss previous PhD.
> 3 votes
# Answer
There's a certain level of hairsplitting here.
* **PhD advisor** or **thesis advisor** should definitely be reserved for the person advising a student completing her thesis research.
* A **research supervisor** can be much broader in scope. For instance, someone performing a bachelor's or master's thesis needs a supervisor, as well as students doing summer research projects within your research group.
However, the important thing is to make clear **in the letter** the exact relationship between the referee and the applicant. Then no confusion is likely to ensue.
> 3 votes
# Answer
This seems fairly clear to me that this person is a "colleague" to you. The terms "supervisor/advisor" are reserved for the person who supervises your PhD thesis, for which you do not qualify for. Everyone else can be labeled as a colleague.
I strongly recommend that you do NOT label him as a research supervisor, as the letters from your supervisor tend to get read more closely than your other letters; you are confusing the hiring committee (and lowering your chances of getting hired) by labeling him as your supervisor.
> 2 votes
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Tags: phd, application, recommendation-letter
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thread-15041 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15041 | Some questions about math postdoc offers | 2013-12-24T15:45:20.797 | # Question
Title: Some questions about math postdoc offers
I am a math PhD student and on the postdoc job market for the first time. I would like to know how job offer (hopefully) comes and what I should keep in mind in accepting the offers. I am interested in the US job market.
The first question is: When do most job offers go around? I am aware of the earliest deadline (most math department agreed with this). So I think the early offers go around in January and only the best people get an offer in January. I would appreciate it if someone could tell me about your experience.
Is it appropriate to ask about my application after a certain time? I think once one accepts an offer, one cannot decline the offer. So I may want to send inquiry to the school I want to work for before accepting the offer from some other schools.
I also heard of short lists (for assistant professorship). Could anyone explain how short lists work (I have only vague idea of what they are)? And are there short lists for postdoc positions?
# Answer
> 29 votes
Here's a little more detail about timing of math postdocs offers, since that seems to be a particular focus of this question. What I'll describe applies only to research-oriented postdoctoral positions offered by mathematics departments in the U.S. Tenure-track jobs and anything teaching-focused are on a somewhat different schedule, and positions outside the U.S. may be totally different.
Everything is synchronized by the AMS common deadline, because most or all of the top candidates (depending on how strict your definition of "top" is) will have accepted offers by then. In particular, just about every position will have been offered to someone by then, but many of those offers will be turned down. Most departments will not set an earlier deadline than the AMS deadline, but they nevertheless encourage earlier decisions if possible. When a position is turned down, a competent department will try to make another offer as quickly as they can. Who gets the next offer depends not just on relative rankings of candidates, but also on factors such as research specialty and game-theoretic issues such as perceived likelihood of accepting the offer. Administrative dysfunction may limit how quickly offers can be made, but it's not uncommon for a department to go through several rounds of offers in January.
In practice, it seems to work out more or less as follows:
A few people get offers in December, but this is rather unusual. You shouldn't worry at all if you have no offers as of January 1.
The people perceived as top candidates generally start to get offers in early January. If you make it a couple of weeks into January with no offers, then you probably aren't going to end up getting tons of offers, but you shouldn't feel discouraged. All you need is one offer you're happy with.
As January progresses, more and more offers are made. Quite a few candidates, but certainly not all, will get an offer in the second half of January.
If you do get an offer, you should immediately do two things. First, you should withdraw any applications to (or turn down offers from) places you are no longer interested in, so they don't waste time and so you don't tie up offers someone else is waiting for. It's reasonable to hold onto several offers at once if you genuinely can't decide between them, but you do this only when truly necessary. Second, you should write to any departments you would prefer to your current offers to let them know about your upcoming deadline. The competition may increase their interest in you, and in any case they need to know they'll miss their chance at you if they don't move fast enough.
If you haven't yet received an offer, the second half of January is a good time to make inquiries. You can do this yourself, but it's sometimes better if your advisor looks into it. (All you can do is express interest, but your advisor can put in a good word for you and try to find out how things are going through back channels.)
As the AMS deadline approaches, there's a flurry of activity. Many offers are turned down or accepted around then, and departments are eager to get their favorite candidates before they accept another job, so there's a lot of turn-over for offers.
If you make it past the first week in February without an offer, it's a bad sign. It's certainly not a disaster, and plenty of strong mathematicians have gotten offers later than that. However, this is the point at which you need to start taking action, with your advisor's help. You need to figure out which positions are still open, and make sure they are aware that you are still interested. It's really useful if your advisor can work his/her contacts to help figure out what might still be a possibility and to make sure you don't fall through the cracks.
The more times passes, the more you need to actively search for a job, rather than just waiting to see what happens. If you hit March, then you're in trouble. You can still find a job then, but you need to be open to possibilities you weren't originally hoping for. For example, there are often late job postings for unpredictable openings, such as a temporary replacement for someone on sabbatical or leave. In March, you should be applying for every new opening you would be willing to take (and you should have a backup plan for what happens if you don't get a job at all, to help you decide where to draw the line). This is also a good time to review options with your advisor. Could you delay graduation for a year, or spend the next year as a lecturer?
I don't mean for this to sound discouraging. It's certainly possible to get a job quite late in the season, and you might even get lucky and find a really good job. However, I think it's worth having an overview of what the plausible outcomes are at each stage.
TL;DR: If you are hoping for a research-oriented postdoc in math, don't worry until late January, worry somewhat in February, and worry a lot in March (but don't panic).
# Answer
> 24 votes
Here are my two cents (I am faculty in a math department, and I've served on postdoc recruiting committees):
Most math postdocs are department-wide competitive positions (e.g. "RAP"). More rarely they are attached to specific profs on specific grants. This answer addresses the former case:
Offers do go out as early as late January but the process extends well into February and even March. I've heard of people getting offers even later, once the landscape has "settled" more.
A short list is an internal list of top candidates, so that if one rejects a postdoc offer, it's easier to decide whom to give an offer to next (by only considering people from the short list). Offers are not always given in order starting from the "best" candidate -- as you can imagine there is some game theory involved on both sides.
It's definitely appropriate to contact places upon getting an offer. You can write: "Dear \[X\], I got an offer from \[Y\] but would prefer to go to \[X\] instead. I have a deadline of ...". Lots of things often get decided under such circumstances. And you can send such an email to multiple places. I wouldn't do it to toy around, but only write to places you genuinely prefer over \[Y\].
Until you accept an offer, you can feel free to try to drag out the deadline, contact other places you prefer more, etc. Universities try to get the best postdocs they can, and students try to get the best positions they can. Everyone understands this is how it works. But once you accept an offer, you can't really change your mind.
# Answer
> 4 votes
I can at least comment on the "short list" phenomenon—the other areas are outside of my purview.
A "short list" is the list of finalists for a position. These are the candidates who are invited to the campus for a formal interview. However, it can also refer to the final ranked list of candidates to determine in what order they will be invited to accept the position being offered.
In general, short lists are restricted to faculty positions and "competitive" postdoctoral fellowships (such as the named fellowships at the US Department of Energy national laboratories, and at most mathematics departments as well) that are done at a departmental level. For a traditional postdoctoral vacancy, no such list is likely to exist, because hiring is done by the professor whose grant is supporting the position.
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Tags: phd, job, job-search, postdocs, mathematics
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thread-15098 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15098 | Refereeing papers on behalf of a professor: should it be listed on a CV? | 2013-12-27T01:36:50.107 | # Question
Title: Refereeing papers on behalf of a professor: should it be listed on a CV?
My professor sometimes asks me to referee papers for him. Should I list the corresponding journals in the professionals activity section of my CV?
# Answer
Yes, if your professor explicitly lists you as a reviewer or sub-reviewer with the program committee of the conference/journal; no if your review is then edited by your professor before submission.
> 5 votes
# Answer
Yes. It is the very prototype of service to the professional community that you want to show that you are willing to perform.
The question that Scrooge linked to has good advice for how to do so.
> 7 votes
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Tags: cv, peer-review
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thread-14755 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14755 | Yardsticks for the worth of a Ph.D | 2013-12-14T05:22:11.123 | # Question
Title: Yardsticks for the worth of a Ph.D
I am about to do a Ph.D. in applied Mathematics/Theoretical Computer Science. The organization I'm going into is not a university, but a research institute in Europe. I'd like to assess my prospects after the completion of the Ph.D. So I would like to know how my Ph.D. would appear to potential employers. Will I be sidelined because I'm not from an esteemed university in the US, or will the actual contribution or my thesis be what I'm evaluated on? Will the former overshadow the good work I may have done and detract from it?
I thank you for your answers.
# Answer
For any job where a PhD is actually necessary, it is the quality of your work that is important (it is you that they want to hire, not your supervisor or institution! ;o). In particular, if you have good papers published in top journals, that ought to count for a lot more than the university where you study, as it is likely your ability to produce top quality journal papers for which you will be hired.
> 1 votes
# Answer
There are two issues here. The first is the importance of the institute you get your PhD from being a University. This is a non factor as nobody cares about if you get your PhD from a research institute or a university. The second issue is the reputation of the place you get your PhD from. This has some importance, but your supervisor and the quality of the PhD are generally more important.
> 2 votes
# Answer
Your PhD will be worth exactly as much as the PhDs obtained from other universities. In fact, research institutes have many excellent professors, and they are probably better in terms of the quality of the faculty than many second-tier universities.
However, you will have one serious flaw in your postdoctoral applications; namely, you will have zero teaching experience. Unless you are one of the best in your graduating year, teaching experience is absolutely necessary, and in the US, you need a letter of recommendation addressing your teaching. So in that regard, your prospects are not so good.
But just write a great thesis, and you will be fine.
> 1 votes
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Tags: university
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thread-14658 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14658 | Learning contracts | 2013-12-10T13:56:33.703 | # Question
Title: Learning contracts
I'm starting a new program in the spring and one of the first things that we will be tasked with is the creation of a 'XYZ Learning Contract'. After a bit of digging in the search engines I see that there is a pretty broad spectrum of thought on the value and composition of learning contracts. Having never dealt with them before I find myself wondering:
* How common are they?
* If the contracts can be, and some sources say - should be, modified then how is obligation and adherence managed?
* Following on to the last question, how are they enforced?
I understand that every department is going to be different and that an advisor's milage may vary but I'm also curious if there is some general consensus on learning contracts among those that have had to deal with them.
# Answer
> 2 votes
I've seen learning contracts been suggested for two types of situations:
1) As a motivational tool, to make students realize that there are things that they want to learn to accomplish their career goals. The idea is that once the student realizes that what (s)he is being taught in particular course is important for them, (s)he should be more motivated to make an effort in learning the material because it is really in his/her best interest to do so. In this type of situations, it seems to be that the enforcement is very soft/flexible.
2) To ensure fair, non-subjective grading of students in independent studies, research programs and internship programs. Departments undergoing accreditation programs (like ABET) tend to do this because they need to prove/show that there is consistent grading, that the students know what is expected of them, and that they know their grading criteria. These learning contracts are obviously more strictly enforced, but it is up to any individual department implementing this to decide whether they can be modified on-the-go to adjust to unexpected challenges that may arise during the semester.
In the end, though, it doesn't matter if they are "typically" very strictly enforced or not, because you should not care about the general/average case; you should care about your particular institution and we cannot know what their policy on learning contracts is. Just ask them. I am sure they'll be happy to answer any questions you may have.
# Answer
> 3 votes
## **Are Learning Contracts Common?**
I have earned over 169 undergraduate credit hours and earned a Masters degree from decent state schools (in Florida). I have also taught at some small business schools in NYC. I have never seen learning contracts in practice. I would venture to guess that they are uncommon, although one may find reference to them in academic literature. I would also venture to guess that the reason that they are uncommon is that they would require a great deal of individual attention per student from the institution offering them.
## About Contracts
Legal contracts while having set components have many possibilities of variation, and I would expect learning contracts to be no different. For example, legal contracts require competent parties, legal subject matter, meeting of the minds, offer and acceptance, consideration, etc...
Some relevant aspects of legal contracts:
**Legal Subject Matter**
The subject of the learning would have to be restricted to the scope of the institution's design for offering the contract. It is important that the contract should be as specific as possible in this regard
**Offer and Acceptance**
One party should propose the terms, likely the student, and another party would have to accept, likely an advisor on behalf of the institution. When one party accepts the other's terms, we then have a contract.
**Performance**
The terms should be clearly stated. For example:
* Deadline, degree of flexibility allowed
* If keeping a journal and/or writing a paper, Quantity of Content
* If keeping a time-sheet, degree of completeness, terms for making up missed times
* Subject Matter, scope boundaries
* The institutional representative who will determine completeness
**Consideration**
There is consideration, i.e., compensation, for the one obliged to complete the contract (the student), if considered to have performed, as meeting one of the terms of completion of perhaps a series of hurdles towards earning a certificate or degree.
## **Modification**
On the question of Modification, if the original agreed-upon terms allow for future modification, then so be it. There would likely be an expected period after which the two parties would assess the progress, and then determine if the terms of the agreement should be adjusted. If no agreement can be reached, the original agreement will remain in place.
## **Enforcement of Performance**
If the terms of the agreement are reached, then the contract can be fulfilled. That is, when the student delivers evidence of their learning, likely contingent on an assessment agreeing that it is good delivery, the institution can deliver their consideration.
## Conclusion
These contracts do not appear to be common (if we exclude academic codes of conduct). They can be modified by agreement, but terms for their modification should be clearly stated prior to the performance period to properly manage expectations. Enforcement is managed by the terms of the contract, likely that the institution has to agree that the student's evidence of learning is sufficient to merit verification that they have performed.
My impression, although unevidenced, is that students with learning contracts tailored to their educational goals would be more likely motivated to focus more on the objective of learning than those checking off boxes in a standardized curriculum.
# Answer
> 2 votes
Started to think on our concept of "learning plan", which sounds bit light-weight version of the learning contract of the original question(?)
*Commonality:* In our universities everyone has the opportunity & obligation to do a (short) personal study plan (and this applies to all student levels). One example here: http://www.helsinki.fi/socialsciences/studying/new/HOPS.html . Each university/department/professor might had some small differences of the content, but basically it was a self-made "project plan" for year(s)/goal ahead.
*Obligation & Adherence*: Personally, I think making the plan was really useful as it helped to outline the schedule and requirements, and helped to think how to get all done. However, main drive was assumed to come from student herself - the desire to advance in timely manner.
*Enforce*: (?) One enforcer is/was to obtain a certain minimum quantity of credits that had to be done per year to get the student benefits. Anyhow, I think our system relies mostly on the students' personal drive. It's relatively hard to get to desired faculty, so most of those who get in won't waste the opportunity.
Anyhow it's bit tricky - one can has "perfect" study plan, but still studying can get stuck, for one reason or another...
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Tags: graduate-school, contract
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thread-15119 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15119 | Should one mention multiple, albeit somewhat unrelated research interests? | 2013-12-27T15:46:27.577 | # Question
Title: Should one mention multiple, albeit somewhat unrelated research interests?
As the question implies, I have two main research interests in the natural language processing and computational genomics domains. While I have a preference for the former, I am also very interested in the latter. I ask because I am not sure if it would look like I am too unfocused for a PhD. Many professors seem to have multiple areas of interests, some of which are not too related, but nonetheless I want to make sure that mentioning multiple interests will not hurt me.
# Answer
If you can convey your enthusiasm for the **overlap** of these two somewhat distinct areas, you will be ahead of the game. A PhD candidate is expected to extend the limit of human knowledge, and one of the better ways to do so is to research within the overlap of two (or more) disciplines. I would tend to see having more than one area of interest as being an advantage rather than a disadvantage. Of course, as your question implies, a multiplicity of interests can backfire by causing a candidate to appear unfocused. Focus on the overlap, and make your application shine!
> 7 votes
# Answer
Your PhD should be somewhat focused, but before that, you're not in general supposed to have real scientific results. I would surely mention both, unless you feel that one of them is significantly unsignificant.
If you managed to have multiple results as a master student, that makes you a very good candidate for a PhD, because not many people have that!
> 3 votes
# Answer
The answer depends on you, the professor and when and how you communicate, .
**Mention Both**
* Better mention both than fear. Until you handle the fear to stand for both interests it will not go away. When you are clear about what you fear you may know the answer already.
* Showing that you have a broad interest means that you are open to change.
* You may get angry at yourself for not having mentioned the other interest. Especially because professors know other professors to redirect to.
* If you *write* you can make sure that it is clearly understood that you have two interest. Such as by choosing a headline for each. The professor may then choose what to focus on.
* If you *talk* to the professor you get responses what (s)he likes most. Then you can focus on that.
**Mention One**
* When there is not enough time for both topics it could be bad to mention both.
* Mentioning both can mean that the professor does not choose you because (s)he only takes in people with one interest who can be put under more presure because they can not choose to go somewhere else.
* Sometimes professors are really proud of themselves because nobody ever tells them they are wrong. You may have to adjust what you say so they do not fear your intelligence in a field they do not know.
I come from a computer science background. There may be different cultural influences in other professions.
> 2 votes
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Tags: phd, graduate-admissions
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thread-14964 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/14964 | Is there a stigma in computer science toward too many postdoc positions? | 2013-12-21T01:09:38.893 | # Question
Title: Is there a stigma in computer science toward too many postdoc positions?
I am wondering if there is a stigma attached to holding too many soft-money positions when looking for a tenure-track position in the area of computer science.
In computer science, postdoc positions were uncommon, but after the Dot-com bust and a general trend toward not hiring tenure-track faculty in the early 2000s, there are now many more postdoc positions in that discipline.
Do people who hold too many postdocs (or too long of a postdoc) get disadvantaged? Do they acquire a stigma of "This person can't hold a tenure-track job" or "This person bounces around too much" or "This person can't do independent research and relies too much on soft money"?
I know of a handful of faculty members who have been hired after multiple postdocs and visiting faculty positions so it seems that it isn't a permanent roadblock, but it could be a path I might not want to go down just in case it is.
# Answer
> 17 votes
There are multiple simultaneous trends which are working against one another:
* The number of PhD recipients is growing at a much faster rate than the number of available tenure-track positions.
* More and more locations have been instituting term limits on the length of postdoctoral positions.
* Hiring committees are not as receptive to applicants who have done too many postdoctoral positions.
This leads to a lot of challenges for many academic aspirants. Personally, my impression is that the dangers are as follows:
* Remaining in any single postdoctoral position for more than about three years.
* Accepting more than two postdoctoral assignments.
Once either of those thresholds have been crossed, I think it starts to hurt an applicant later in their career. The exception to this might be "research professorships" and "staff scientist" positions that are seen to be more permanent than a postdoctoral position. Even in these positions, however, there is always the challenge that it can be difficult to transition to a different position afterwards.
# Answer
> 6 votes
In computer science, it's not yet common for people to be doing multipe postdocs before acquiring a faculty position. It's more common to see someone doing a single postdoc (or a virtual postdoc by working in an industrial lab). So it's hard to say whether there is a stigma or not. If anything, I suspect that having a postdoc might improve one's chances at getting an interview at department, assuming that the candidate has used the postdoc to
* beef up their resume
* establish connections (and letters of reference) with well known researchers
As a general matter though, if someone appears to have gone through a series of postdocs, I might at least wonder why. But I'm sympathetic to the vagaries of the job market and might not think more of it if the candidate looks promising in other respects.
# Answer
> 1 votes
My feeling is that multiple postdoc positions are harder on yourself than the others. Most people fully understand that a lot of the tenure-track selection that goes on can be somewhat random, and that the job market fluctuates. So I think that simply by being unlucky, you can get stuck with many postdoc positions.
However, my experience is that most people who go through multiple postdocs eventually get tired of the itinerant lifestyle of an academic. CS postdocs have enormous earning potential, and at some point, they get sick of it, and accept an industry-level job (higher pay, living in a great city, the settled-down grownup lifestyle, etc.) I mean, can you imagine being a postdoc for ten years?
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Tags: job, job-search, postdocs, soft-money
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thread-15179 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15179 | Should historical data be considered ambigious if not proven as fact? | 2013-12-29T06:09:40.153 | # Question
Title: Should historical data be considered ambigious if not proven as fact?
Simple question, if there is few data points that allow concrete hypothesis (ancient history has many), should the information always be accompanied by some sort of disclaimer? A example would be you often hear descriptions of early nomadic tribes based upon generalizations given by a conquering foe only, very little if any from the nomads themselves.
# Answer
Any time you have a single source for information (generalizations given by a conquering foe), there is no other supporting evidence, and there are no counter-examples, then yes, it should be accompanied with disclaimers since the data is actually quite weak.
It would be like saying "John Smith reported the sky turned red just before the earthquake." This is far better than saying "The sky turned red just before the earthquake." The latter implies that there are multiple independent sources for the information where, indeed, there might only be one.
> 3 votes
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Tags: research-process, citations, writing
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thread-11608 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/11608 | What's the difference between a Doctor of Computer Science and a Ph.D. in Computer Science? | 2013-08-03T00:50:03.430 | # Question
Title: What's the difference between a Doctor of Computer Science and a Ph.D. in Computer Science?
I'll be starting a Masters of Science program soon and wanted to make plans for my professional/educational future. I've been looking at different doctorate level degree programs and I'm having a bit of trouble in understanding the difference between a Doctor of Computer Science program and a Ph.D. in Computer Science program. I've seen it listed both ways which leads me to believe that they're two separate programs.
Could someone explain what the differences between the two are and identify which is more appropriate for someone with a development and software engineering background?
Here are two programs that show the difference in titles. These are not necessarily the programs I have in mind but they're the first ones I could find that show the title difference.
Colorado Technical University - Doctor of Computer Science
Nova Southeastern University - Ph.D. in Computer Science
# Answer
> 22 votes
This is the first I've heard of a "Doctor of Computer Science" degree. Not having a dissertation requirement is a clear sign that this is different from a "standard" Ph.D program. A Ph.D (in any discipline) requires you to produce an original piece of research that you defend to a committee of experts. In addition, most Ph.D programs will have course requirements, residency requirements and so on.
**Update**: Some googling led me to the Wikipedia entry on 'professional doctorates', which most closely match the nature of the degree the OP describes. As Austin Henley points out, this is close in spirit to an MD (USA) and JD.
# Answer
> 15 votes
If you are interested in a career in research, I would strongly recommend avoiding "executive-format" programs such as the one you've linked to. A program like that is *not* a standard PhD program, in that you are not required to produce a piece of original research, and therefore cannot claim to have met the standard of being an independent researcher (and problem-solver) at the end of your program.
If your long-term interests, however, run more toward being in management and other non-technical careers, then perhaps this would be an option—but I would only recommend it if you were already working in industry.
# Answer
> 9 votes
The Doctor of Computer Science program at Colorado Technical University has a dissertation requirement. At one point there was an optional four paper option but it is really a dissertation broken out into three papers that are the dissertation chapters broken out separately. The fourth paper is a publishable journal article. Thus you are doing much more work if you elect not to do the dissertation. The current program has removed the four paper option and is now dissertation only.
I am an alumni of the program and currently in a tenure track role at a state university while also holding an honorary position at a Tier 1 (top 100) institution. When I was in the program we had three residencies per year and now they have two. Remember that not all institutions are allowed to have a PhD but may have another terminal (doctoral) program. My Research Gate profile is below however you may contact me on LinkedIn to ask any questions. Additionally, I can point you towards other alumni who are professors West Point Military Academy, George Fox, Alabama A&M University, The Oklahoma State University, and other institutions.
Research Gate Profile https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Maurice\_Dawson2
LinkedIn Profile http://www.linkedin.com/in/mauricedawson
Both programs are great but you have to look at publishing peer reviewed research immediately to bring value to your terminal degree. Again feel free to reach out to me.
-Mo
# Answer
> 3 votes
Sorry for late response but was busy with grades and research activities. Colorado Technical University has always had the dissertation option however they had the four paper option as well. The four paper option has been phased out completely. The dissertations can be found on the IEEE Digital Library and through the institution's library. Also the 12 research and writing courses are the dissertation courses for the three year period. If you view the catalog and do a search on dissertation the word comes up a 144 times. See http://catalog.careered.com/~/media/Catalogs/ctu\_6/course\_catalog.pdf On pg 36 where you will see the following for the Doctor of Computer Science degree plan and description.
> **Graduation Requirements** In addition to the successful completion of the above 96 credits with an acceptable GPA, students must also satisfactorily complete and defend their research proposal and final dissertation.
Since the program and degree is relatively small it is easy to come to conclusions. It should be noted that the college has the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) accreditation and is a National Security Agency (NSA) & Department of Homeland Security (DHS) National Centers of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance Education Program (CAE/IAE). Additionally, the most similar degree would be the Doctor of Science (D.Sc. or Sc.D.) which very few institutions have. I hope this assist and thanks for checking as well.
See ABET accreditation at http://main.abet.org/aps/AccreditedProgramsDetails.aspx?OrganizationID=192
-Mo
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Tags: phd
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thread-15184 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15184 | Can I cite a manuscript in term paper | 2013-12-29T10:58:35.353 | # Question
Title: Can I cite a manuscript in term paper
I am doing a term paper on the subject of minimum spanning trees algorithms, I need to cite "Shortest connection networks and some generalization" paper for the prim's algorithm made by Prim, after searching I found a manuscript of the paper. My question is, can I cite the paper? is this allowed in the citing formats?
# Answer
Of course you can cite unpublished manuscripts; this is regularly done in academia. However, the important issue is that you must appropriately indicate that it is an unpublished manuscript, and cite (if possible) where the manuscript was found. This will allow for due consideration of the work in context.
> 2 votes
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Tags: publications, citations
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thread-15185 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15185 | How can I show which data I'm using in my paper? | 2013-12-29T14:53:03.507 | # Question
Title: How can I show which data I'm using in my paper?
I've just started reading papers about speech recognition and algorithms on medium sized graphs (~800,000 nodes and 4,400,000 edges with some connected text data). I think a problem of these papers is quite often, that it is difficult to check the experimental results. It is difficult to check them because of two reasons:
1. The source code that was used to generate the results is not (publicly) available
2. The data is either not at all available or it is not clear which version of the data was used
When I start writing papers, I would like to make it easier to check the results.
The first problem is easy to solve: I can simply provide the source code (e.g. on GitHub or my personal web space).
The second problem seems to be much harder to solve. The data is often quite big (speech recognition: several GB; graphs: about 2GB). This is too much to upload it on my personal webspace / GitHub.
How can I show which data I'm using in my paper? (Currently I give a link to the data source and note the data when I've downloaded it. Additionally, I note the date/version of the source if possible.)
Are there projects that try to solve this issue? (e.g. by providing space for important / interesting projects like dblp, a version history and good download speeds)
# Answer
Recently (at least) two platforms have appeared which offer web space for sharing scientific data. They provide Digital Object Identifiers (DOI) for uploaded datasets which can be used to refer to the data easily.
* Figshare seems to be the more prominent option. All data is shared under CC0 license. There is a 1 GB limit for private data and no limit for public data.
* Zenodo is part of a European research project. You can specify any license you prefer for your dataset. Currently they have a 2 GB limit per file but you can upload as many files as necessary. For larger files, you need to contact the administrators.
> 3 votes
# Answer
Both the problems you state are significant, and (I think) very problematic to the further progression of computer science as an actual science. I work in services / software engineering, and quite honestly, reproducibility of results is very, very bad in my work as well as in the work of others.
I will comment on both of your issues, starting with the second one:
> The data is either not at all available or it is not clear which version of the data was used
In many cases, this is actually the easier-to-solve issue. I would assume your department has IT resources (e.g., a department web space) that you can use for such purposes. Additionally, there are other, more field-specific, repositories that you can upload data to (for instance, there is the UCI machine learning data set repository or the Grid workload traces archive). Making data available to the public is really only an issue if you are not allowed to do so because of commercial interests of your data provider. For instance, I have access to real traces of executions of business processes of a big german logistics provider, which I am not allowed to give out. This clearly limits the usefulness of these traces to me.
The second problem
> The source code that was used to generate the results is not (publicly) available
is sort of tricky in practice. Clearly, throwing your code to Github is easy, but this hardly solves the issue of reproducibility. You will still need to include pretty detailed usage instructions and documentation to make this code of any use to another researcher. This may seem trivial for a naive 1000 Lines-of-Code implementation of an algorithm, but, for instance, my current research prototype approaches 25.000 lines of Java code plus a bit of XML and Groovy. Just putting this up on a repository is not enough, if we consider that **a paper can only be considered reproducible if it is possible to do so in reasonable time**. An additional problem in my field is that often prototypes are built for a specific execution environment. For instance, my department has a small OpenStack based private cloud, and many demonstrators that our students build realistically only run in this environment without drastic modifications.
I am currently in the transition between a postdoc and a more independent research position, and one of my personal goals is to make all work that I and my students publish easier to reproduce. However, so far we are only making baby steps, but at least we are trying :D
> 2 votes
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Tags: online-resource, data, citations
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thread-9557 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/9557 | What should be included in a departmental email policy? | 2013-04-22T14:56:18.453 | # Question
Title: What should be included in a departmental email policy?
I receive about 10k emails per year and send about 2-3k. In my department (the sphere I can influence) there are those who almost never respond and those who respond as soon as I have hit the send button. There are also those who send mails on weekends, in the middle of the night, seemingly expecting answers fairly immediately. The record was probably the mail that was send shortly after midnight on a Sunday night about stuff that needed to be sorted out by Monday morning. In short, different person have different views on how and for what email should be used. I should add that in my system, the university email is strictly not to be used for private emailing.
*I am therefore interested in hearing about if and if so how one can establish an email policy which provides guidelines for reasonable emailing practices within a department.*
I have heard about guidelines against sending mails from off duty hours, about avoiding disputes over email, and about reasonable (expected) response times, etc. but have so far failed to locate any good sources for such practices and guidelines.
# Answer
After searching and collating ideas from numerous internet sources (a simple search provides plenty of sources of variable quality and usefulness) I have come up with the list below. In my own case there are over-arching rules about usage of university e-mail, which for example makes it clear that the university mail should not be used for private purposes and that all e-mails are public documents. Since each organization probably have such central rules, I have omitted such points and concentrated on good practises in the professional email correspondence.
* **Be courteous**. Beware that written communication is more likely to be misunderstood than personal communication. Include courteous greetings and closings to prevent your e-mail seem demanding or terse. Don't hesitate to say *thank you*, *how are you*, or *appreciate your help!* Sign your name and include contact details in the footer of the mail.
* **Be concise and clear**. Keep e-mails brief and to the point. Make sure your point(s) is (are) clear from the beginning. Be sure to fill out the *Subject:* field and that it accurately reflects the content of your email. It is sometimes better to write several mails than to fill one mail full of questions on different topics, alternatively number them. Save long conversations for a telephone/Skype/personal meeting.
* **Proofread**. Read your email out loud to ensure the tone is that which you desire. Avoid spelling and grammatical errors. Try to avoid relying on formatting for emphasis; rather choose the words that reflect your meaning instead. A few additions of the words "please" and "thank you" go a long way!
* **Avoid emotions**. Do not attempt to solve emotional problems or issues over e-mail. Instead, suggest a personal meeting. Always wait at least a day before attempting to send or answering emotional e-mails. Keep copies of all such correspondence and seek advice from colleagues to prevent issues to build.
* **Received e-mails**. Always try to answer an e-mail within a workday or two. Always acknowledge the receipt of a mail as soon as you can if you are not able to provide a comprehensive reply within a day or two.
* **Sending E-mails**. Never use an old email to hit reply and start typing about an entirely new topic. Do not send e-mails during weekends or off hours since this may give off the wrong signals or excuse yourself if you do. Do not expect immediate answers to your e-mails. A couple of days is a reasonable delay. Use a phone or visit the colleague if something is urgent.
* **Using *Cc:*, *Bcc:* and *Return Receipts*.** Include addresses in the *To:* field for those who you would like a response from. Include addresses in the *Cc:* field for those who you are just informing. Remove the addresses of those who your reply does not apply to when replying to an email with multiple recipients noted in the *To:* or *Cc:* fields. Use *Return Receipt* sparingly since it can be viewed as intrusive and annoying; save it for when you really need to know.
These points can be summarized by: **Mail others as you would have them mail you!**
> -2 votes
# Answer
Do issues like this really need a policy to govern them? If someone in a department has a problem responding to emails in a timely manner, it seems to me that it would be better to counsel them directly. Creating a policy for it may come across as passive-aggressive.
Corporations may have formal policies about how to answer email, and how to organize your desk, and how to change the toilet paper in the restroom. But academics are used to a considerable degree of autonomy, and dislike being micromanaged.
My humble opinion.
> 28 votes
# Answer
I've heard of a few trainings that help new employees get integrated inside a large organization. In my case, it was an offshore division of a large, IT company who was training its employees on how to communicate effectively.
That said, the goals of your organization, a University, would be very different from a multinational.
Nonetheless, here's some of the notes from that training:
* When you write email, write email about one topic only. If you need to discuss another topic, that should be in a separate email.
* Ensure that the contents written in the body of the email are about the subject.
* Write very clear, descriptive subject lines. ("ex: Problems with implementing FooBar" vs. "Got a problem"). Often it is helpful to include square brackets that describe the project of your email as well. Ex: "\[Budget 2013\] Need review of the FY03 proposals by Friday."
* If someone asks you for help and you know who to contact, instead of just telling them to contact John Doe or Jane Doe, reply to the original sender and CC John and Jane as part of your reply.
I don't know if these are helpful at all - this is mostly a list of examples rather than an actual straight-up policy.
> 2 votes
# Answer
Being highly responsive (and attentive) to email may be in direct conflict with productivity; only some messages have truly high priority (and senders often don't have full perspective on this).
For some faculty, the measure of productivity is funding and publication, which are unlikely to correlate strongly with email responsiveness in general.
Other faculty may have a role that requires responsiveness.
Faculty should have clear overall goals, and expectations for mundane tasks (like email) should be set with those goals in mind. For some, email might best be relegated to short bursts once a day (with selected emails assigned high priority, of course).
> 0 votes
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Tags: etiquette, email
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thread-15192 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15192 | Criteria to evaluate consulting opportunity | 2013-12-29T23:02:21.117 | # Question
Title: Criteria to evaluate consulting opportunity
You're an academic researcher who has done some work in a particular topic. You receive an email from a stranger, working at a small company, interested in your work and wanting to discuss possible consulting. Sounds interesting, but you have research to perform, grant proposals to write, classes to teach...
What criteria should you use to evaluate whether or not this is worthwhile? What are things you look for in possible consulting work? And what are turn-offs and things you want to avoid?
# Answer
> 5 votes
Balance is always tricky but basically the guidelines that I follow are:
1. If the consulting will help me learning something new, +1
2. If the consulting will pay me a lot of money, +1
3. If the consulting will improve my reputation, +1
4. If the consulting will allow me access to something I want (new data), +1
On the other hand,
1. If it takes a lot time, -1
2. If it offers little or no pay, -1
3. If it could damage my reputation, -5
4. If it would be a bit boring, -1
In the end, I just do the math.
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Tags: research-process, job, industry, consulting
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thread-15203 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15203 | What would you call the temporary advisor assigned after enrolment? | 2013-12-30T05:33:27.843 | # Question
Title: What would you call the temporary advisor assigned after enrolment?
What would you call the temporary advisor assigned to a PhD student upon enrolment, who is in charge of the student until the student finds his/her research advisor? "temporary advisor", or "course advisor", or ...? Thanks!
# Answer
> 5 votes
In the program where I currently work, we call such advisors "academic advisors," which makes the distinction with the "research advisor" or "thesis advisor" fairly obvious.
# Answer
> 2 votes
I'd imagine the particular terminology varies from one department to another. I've heard that called a "provisional" advisor. In my department you start with a "provisional committee" of two people. The provisional advisor is assigned based on the student's research interests, so often they wind up being the "real" advisor too, later on.
# Answer
> 2 votes
The term when I was a first-year PhD student was a "temporary advisor". There isn't a huge difference on how you call this person; people on the admission committee have been through graduate school too, and they'll get it. Don't worry on the details too much, and spend more time on the SOP.
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Tags: advisor
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thread-15201 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15201 | How to describe the relation between a course instructor to his teaching assistant? | 2013-12-30T03:37:47.950 | # Question
Title: How to describe the relation between a course instructor to his teaching assistant?
How do you describe the relation between a course instructor to his teaching assistant? Is he the "teaching supervisor" to his TA? This is encountered during PhD application. Thanks!
# Answer
It sounds like the question is that you need to fill in the "In what context have you known the applicant" box on a PhD recommendation letter.
If this is the case, then, for this particular point, I would not list "research supervisor," since this is clearly a teaching situation. However, "student" also doesn't make any sense. So, if there's no specific option which clearly satisfies this, I would check off the "other" box, fill in "teaching supervisor," and then explain the relationship clearly in the text of the recommendation letter itself.
> 2 votes
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Tags: application, teaching-assistant
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thread-15216 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15216 | Where should a question mark be placed in a short citation? | 2013-12-30T11:09:17.510 | # Question
Title: Where should a question mark be placed in a short citation?
According to Modern Language Association (MLA) norms we should use punctuation marks after the page number, within parentheses, that follows the closing quotation mark. For example:
> According to Foulkes's study, dreams may express "profound aspects of personality" (184).
But what if a question mark is inherent to the quotation? Example:
> “\[t\]o what extent do translation theorists engage with the experience of translators and how are their theories shaped by what happens in practice?” (16)
How should this be cited? Possibilities I can see:
> “\[t\]o what extent do translation theorists engage with the experience of translators and how are their theories shaped by what happens in practice” (16)?
Or
> “\[t\]o what extent do translation theorists engage with the experience of translators and how are their theories shaped by what happens in practice?” (16).
Which one is correct?
# Answer
As Peter indicates, the question mark should remain with the original quotation, since it's in the original source material. Therefore, your second example is clearly incorrect. In addition, you *still* need the period following the citation, to indicate that you are ending the sentence in question. Therefore, you should use the last example.
However, I would also note that, as written, it looks like your example would also require the name of the author along with the parenthetical reference, so it would be more like:
> “\[t\]o what extent do translation theorists engage ith the experience of translators and how are their theories shaped by what happens in practice?” (Smith 16).
> 4 votes
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Tags: citations, grammar
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thread-15211 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15211 | Are there any resumé revision services available for PhD applicants? | 2013-12-30T09:30:33.810 | # Question
Title: Are there any resumé revision services available for PhD applicants?
I am preparing a resumé for a PhD application. I'd like to know if there any good, and not necessarily free, services that evaluate and comment on a resumé.
# Answer
> 1 votes
Yes, literally hundreds. Have you googled something like "professional resume for phd application" or "professional resume writing services"? You are bound to find something near where you live, including quite possibly your undergrad university.
The big question, I think, is whether for a PhD application you should be supplying a ***resume*** or a ***curriculum vitae***? CV's are usually more common for academic and research positions. If you are unsure about the differences, here are a couple of useful links.
Good luck with the application.
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Tags: phd, graduate-admissions, cv
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thread-15212 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15212 | When Applying for Postdocs Should GPA be on your CV? | 2013-12-30T09:32:40.340 | # Question
Title: When Applying for Postdocs Should GPA be on your CV?
Lets assume your GPA is very high, say 3.95 or higher, at both your undergrad and graduate school institutions. I have always included it while applying to summer research programs and internships while still in my PhD program. But this is probably inappropriate on the postdoc market right?
<sub>Perhaps this question is somewhat subjective, but, after checking out some other questions on this exchange, I didn't think it was overly subjective.</sub>
# Answer
Mark Meckes's answer only considers *academic* postdoctoral positions. In such cases, he is correct: undergraduate and graduate GPA's do not matter.
If you are applying for **non-academic** postdocs, however, the situation is very different. At large research centers—particularly those managed by corporations, such as essentially the entire US Department of Energy laboratory system—hiring is done by corporate employees, and must be approved by several layers of management. Several of the national laboratories even have strict GPA cutoffs for their employees, regardless of the length of time they've been working post-graduation!
Consequently, if you're applying for positions only in academia, then there's no need to include GPA. However, for anything outside of an academic setting, it can actually help to do so.
> 7 votes
# Answer
No (to the question in the title), and yes (to the question in the post). For postdocs no one cares about your grades. They're only interested in the quality of your research.
> 5 votes
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Tags: job-search, postdocs, cv
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thread-15226 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15226 | Is it appropriate to request letters of recommendation from professors a second time? | 2013-12-30T17:22:29.657 | # Question
Title: Is it appropriate to request letters of recommendation from professors a second time?
I received three letters of recommendation for applications to this spring semester, but I chose to decline admission for personal/financial reasons. I am now applying for fall admission, and I would like to ask the same professors for letters of recommendation again.
Is it appropriate to request additional letters of recommendations from professors to new universities for the second time? With no other prospects, I need their recommendations in order to be accepted. Should that desperation be included or excluded in the request?
# Answer
## Yes.
Writing recommendation letters is part of our job as professors. It is perfectly ethical to request that we do our job.
Conveying desperation in your request is neither necessary nor productive. You have nothing to be ashamed of or to apologize for.
On the other hand, anyone can (and should!) turn down your request in good conscience if they feel that they cannot write you a strong recommendation letter. If someone says that they can't write you a strong letter, *believe them* and ask someone else. You *really* don't want a weak letter in your file.
> 28 votes
# Answer
Writing a letter of recommendation is very time consuming. Submitting or sending a small number of recommendation letters is not very time consuming. If your letter writers still have your letter on file and if minimal changes would need to be made to the letters, then asking them to submit letters on your behalf a second time is a very reasonable request. You should explain to them why you are asking them for another letter, but you do not need to convey desperation. Most recommendation writers are happy to help people in your situation.
> 17 votes
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Tags: recommendation-letter
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thread-15229 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15229 | What to do: PI lied to me and is keeping my grant! | 2013-12-30T18:28:44.823 | # Question
Title: What to do: PI lied to me and is keeping my grant!
I've written 14 grants for my principal investigator (PI), from conception to writing the entire thing, which has resulted in over $10 million in funding for my PI.
I refused to write any more grants for him; however, he threatend to fire me if I didn't. I was fine with that, at which point my boss told me that if I wrote the 14th grant and we got it, I could take it with me.
Well, I did and we did get it. Now he's refusing to give it to me, threatened to fire a technician/friend of mine, and has insisted that we got the grant because of his name (not the idea/grant itself). He knew his name was there from the beginning — how can he argue that at this time? This grant would have been submitted as a K99 for myself, but instead I had written another, independent grant thinking I'd have two shots to get a grant. I didn't get the K99, but the other grant should be mine.
This is/was my key to obtaining a faculty position. I also have previously filed an initial patent form indicating that the idea was conceived and developed by me. I'm on the grant as co-investigator (my boss said I cannot be listed as a Co-PI since I work in his lab) but no budget has been given in my name.
What should I do?
# Answer
> 37 votes
I believe that you need to obtain qualified and competent legal advice, not just anonymous advice from a Stack Exchange site.
However, there are some obvious things you can do:
* Make sure you have meticulous records of everything you claimed, including the previous grant proposals, showing that you were the one responsible for their execution.
* You really need to have some form of hard evidence that the PI promised you could keep the grant you earned.
* Make sure everything you do from here on is also documented.
But this is a tough situation, and I'm not sure what your options outside of the legal system will be. You might also want to contact the grant sponsor to see what your options are.
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Tags: ethics, funding, postdocs
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thread-15210 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15210 | Do hiring committees strategize? | 2013-12-30T08:53:18.253 | # Question
Title: Do hiring committees strategize?
This question is for those of you who have been on the hiring committee.
I am wondering if the following scenario could happen.
Applicant X applies to University Y; University Y looks at applicant X's profile, and says "applicant X has very strong records. There is no way University Y is the best applicant X can do; hence we will not offer Applicant X a position (postdoctoral, or TT)"
This seems worrying, because:
* perhaps applicant X is just so mediocre, that he falls through the crack; University Y turns him down, but universities slightly better than University Y might think that applicant X is not up to their standards.
* what if applicant X actually really wanted to go to University Y for personal reasons? Of course, maybe applicant X was hoping for something slightly better than University Y, so maybe he did not contact the department (in case he decides not to go to University Y).
* even from the university's perspective, this is fairly complicated: University Y could take a chance and hope that applicant X will accept their offer, but perhaps it is more advantageous to extend the offer to the applicant next on the list instead of applicant X. There is no way of knowing which is the better choice, though.
In particular, if such scenario happens, and if I want to prevent the first point, what do I need to do? I am wary of contacting the departments, because should the department be excited about me, and should someone push for my being hired in the hiring committee meeting, then I would feel obligated (to some degree) to accept that offer (even if a better offer comes along), since that someone has advocated on my behalf, on my request.
# Answer
This happens all the time and everywhere. Strategic decisions about who to interview or make offers to are based not just on perceived quality or market value, but also broader considerations of fit. It's an unavoidable part of the job market, and I'm not convinced it's even a bad thing overall, since it makes the job market work much more smoothly and efficiently.
This is a tough issue to resolve as an applicant. There are several reasons why it can be ineffective just to tell the department that you really want to go there:
1. They may not believe you. They may suspect you of deliberately exaggerating your likelihood of accepting just in order to get an offer, perhaps so you can use it to help negotiate a better offer elsewhere. (The academic job market is exactly the sort of high stress, high stakes environment that brings out some people's worst sides.) Even if they're convinced you're completely honest, they may feel you'll change your mind once you learn more about your other options, or that if you come you'll end up feeling like you made a mistake and they'll have a bitter, resentful colleague who wants to leave. An applicant who suffers from imposter syndrome may say "Wow, I'd be thrilled to get an offer from University X, which is the best job I can imagine getting" but might not remain as thrilled after getting offers from A, B, and C as well.
2. Many reasons you could give may be viewed as kind of insulting. If you explain that you really like the city or want to live near relatives, then it can come across like you are saying "Sure, your department would otherwise be beneath me, but I'm willing to put up with you for non-academic reasons." The department might be willing to hire you even if they think you feel superior, but they won't be happy about it. In order for this to work, you have to be very careful about tone. Two-body problems are widely accepted as an understandable reason, and of course academic reasons can be highly effective, but anything else has the potential for giving a bad impression if you aren't careful.
So announcing your preferences may not always work. Still, it's really your only option, so it's not worth worrying too much about how it might fail. To put things more positively:
1. Try to emphasize aspects of the department that excite you, and not just side benefits such as location.
2. It's often more effective if you or a mentor convey this information through personal contacts, rather than just talking with the search committee chair. In particular, hearing from someone senior can add credibility: there have been a number of times I've reassured a department that a student genuinely wanted to work there (and wasn't just confused or suffering from imposter syndrome).
3. If you already have an ostensibly more impressive offer and can say "I would very likely turn down my offer from University A in favor of a compelling offer from you," it carries a lot of weight. At the very least, it eliminates the fear that you don't understand your options. (But say this only if you are quite sure! If there's even a small chance you would choose A after all, then you should make it clear that you have not made a final decision and might change your mind. It's unethical to try to manipulate anyone.)
> 16 votes
# Answer
> In particular, if such scenario happens, and if I want to prevent the first point, what do I need to do?
Don't be mediocre.
> I am wary of contacting the departments, because should the department be excited about me, and should someone push for my being hired in the hiring committee meeting, then I would feel obligated (to some degree) to accept that offer (even if a better offer comes along), since that someone has advocated on my behalf, on my request.
Good! You *should* feel obligated.
The most important thing to maintain in this situation is honesty. It's perfectly fine to keep your precise preferences confidential, but **DO. NOT. LIE.** Do not approach faculty to say that you are interested in their department unless you are *genuinely* interested in their department. Do not ask them to believe you would accept their offer over an offer from MIT or Harvard unless you would *actually* accept their offer over an offer from MIT or Harvard. Do not tell thirty different departments that you would consider their offer first. Expect that the faculty you contact will also contact your advisor and/or other references and ask for a frank assessment of your priorities. Expect faculty to be distrustful, because they have been burned many times in the past.
Job applications are supposedly confidential, but stories of dishonest behavior do get around, and they follow their perpetrators for *years*.
On the other hand, being interested in a job is not the same as committing to accepting an offer. If you are genuinely interested, then it is definitely a good idea to communicate your interest to your colleagues in the target department. (Note: not "contact the *department*", but "contact your *colleagues*".) Corner your colleagues at conferences and ask intelligent questions about their department, just as you would in an interview. If you can do so on your own (or your advisor's) dime, offer to visit and give a talk at a research seminar. Don't just *say* you're interested; *act* interested.
But do not lie.
> 8 votes
# Answer
I think the scenario, as you described it, is unlikely to occur.
If a hiring committee felt a candidate could get a job at a more prestigious institution, then I think the candidate would simply be asked up front: "It seems like you could get hired at a more prestigious institution – why are you applying here?" Then, the candidate would have a chance to provide an explanation.
If the explanation seemed satisfactory (such as, "I've always wanted to live in this city," or, "My brother and my nephews live in a nearby town, and I was tired of getting on an airplane every time I wanted to visit," for example) then the committee would probably be glad for a chance to hire someone with strong qualifications.
The one time where this may count against the candidate, though, is if the committee suspects this job is being used as a mere "stepping stone," and the committee is hoping to hire someone who will stay for more than a few years. So, if the answer to the question is, "I eventually want to apply to an Ivy League school, but I felt like a few years here might bolster my chances," then I could imagine a committee choosing another qualified candidate with plans to remain on faculty for a longer time.
So, I'd be careful of what you said, and how you worded it, but I'd also advise you to be honest and up front about your motives and intentions.
> 5 votes
# Answer
Hiring committees often try and make an offer to a candidates they think will not only accept the job, but stay long term. You also need to remember that for tenure track academic positions, the undergraduate ranking of a university really has little to do with the desirability of the position. It has some affect on the quality of students, but desirability is really about the start up package, teaching load, and benefits (both financial and personal). Ideally your teaching and research statements and cover letter would explain what it is about the department that makes you interested in them.
> 3 votes
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Tags: job, postdocs, tenure-track
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thread-15249 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15249 | Is there any major problem in applying to PhD program in US after getting BSc and MS in UK? | 2013-12-31T14:52:23.657 | # Question
Title: Is there any major problem in applying to PhD program in US after getting BSc and MS in UK?
I'm considering getting my BSc and MS in UK instead in US, since I prefer specialization rather than diversity in education. However, I'm not sure whether or not this choice will affect my chance to attend a competitive PhD program at an American university, since people who get MS tend to stay in UK to get PhD. This route may have the following problems:
* I will have to take some extra courses in my grad school in US to make up for classes not taken.
* I may be disadvantaged in admission because of differences in the educational systems in the US and the UK.
Considering these problems, should I rather stay in US to get BSc and MS? Or are they negligible? For me, it's the best if the time spent to get BSc and MS will be as short as possible. This may seem strange to people in US, but I want to consider the merits of education in both nations, so I can find the course of education which is the most suitable for me.
(I want to study molecular biology.)
# Answer
> 4 votes
Let me clear up an important distinction between graduate school in the US and the UK:
* In Europe, the master's degree is generally a **pre-requisite** for admission to a PhD program.
* In the US, the master's degree is **not** required for admission to a PhD program, and you normally apply to the PhD program with only a bachelor's degree. You can obtain a master's degree as part of the PhD program, but this is by no means a universal requirement. It varies between universities and even departments within a university.
* In the UK, options are somewhat ambiguous. You can apply for a master's and PhD program at the same time, while others may require the PhD in advance.
Therefore, if you are admitted to an American PhD program, you will take courses in graduate school, because that is the equivalent of the master's phase in the UK.
Other than that, there's no inherent advantage of applying or attending bachelor's or master's programs in the US or the UK.
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Tags: phd, united-states, international-students, united-kingdom
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thread-15255 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15255 | What information to put in Bibliography for a Online Course | 2014-01-01T01:29:12.463 | # Question
Title: What information to put in Bibliography for a Online Course
In preparation for my honours thesis, I recently completed a (free) Online Course on the broader field, presented by a world class expert.
I would like to (am ethically required to?) put this in my bibliography, though I will not cite it directly, instead citing papers that it referred to.
### What information should I put in my bibliography?
I'm not interested in the exact formatting, I'm using software to generate that. I'm interested in what information I should put.
* **What category of material is it?** It isn't a lecture as it contained 16 lectures and a bunch of assignments etc. Is it a Internet Document? A Unpublished Work?
* **Should the teaching assistants be listed as Co-authors?** They wrote the assignments.
* **Should I not be putting it in the bibliography at all, but instead acknowledging it more informally?**
# Answer
> 4 votes
It should be appropriate to acknowledge the "head-start" you got from that course in the *acknowledgements* section of the thesis. It would be unusual to list a course in the bibliography unless there really was no more authoritative source available for some information or a method that you directly used.
The purpose of a bibliography is to cite the primary source of any information directly used in your work. If you use something from the online course worth citing, then you should cite it. However, it's unlikely the information in the course is new, so you should try to track down and cite the original source in a peer-reviewed article or textbook.
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Tags: citations, coursework, online-resource, online-learning
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thread-15262 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15262 | Publishing a research paper | 2014-01-01T10:17:42.910 | # Question
Title: Publishing a research paper
I have some new ideas regarding a concept in computer science and have done considerable independent reasearch work.None of the faculty members in my university seem to be interested in helping an independent undergrad thesis in computer science.I have some time to complete it formally, though.
Could anyone please tell me the steps to get my paper published ? What should I ensure about my paper before sending it for publication ?
I am confused as to what to do , there are so many things- transations, journals , proceedings, conferences ..etc , How are these different and where it is the best to send a research paper ?
# Answer
> 3 votes
Generally for computer science the accepted methodology is to publish your initial idea or concept with some preliminary results in a conference. Then afterwards if there is still more to discuss you can continue publishing conference papers or target a journal for an in depth publication.
To get started you need to find a conference that suits your area of research. For example if you are working in computer vision you might target CVPR. There are a number of databases full of conferences, which should help you find an appropriate venue. Then read the submission requirements. Usually conferences have a LateX template you can use for your paper.
You should ensure your paper conforms to all conference regulations, has been spell checked and proof read by yourself and someone else.
# Answer
> 3 votes
First ask yourself: are your results groundbreaking?
If so, then it is going to be very difficult to get it published as an independent researcher, because no one will believe that you are capable of obtaining such results. Mathematicians get journal submissions and emails proving the Riemann hypothesis all the time; unless the person has a track record of having a valid publication, your submission will not get taken seriously. It is a sad fact that academics judge you based on whether you are associated to an institution or not, but because of so many "cranks" who contact us, the attitude of mistrust has developed over many years.
However, if you honestly believe it to be a valid piece of research work, then you should look at how the previous work that you base your results on were handled (if your research is completely independent of ALL previous literature in your field, then it is another sign that your work may be invalid, or that it will take a tremendous amount of effort to convince the academics that it is valid). Try to write your paper in the similar manner to the previous works (in particular, use LaTeX), and as a rule of thumb, submit your paper in the same conference/journal (or slightly worse) as those.
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Tags: research-process, career-path, computer-science, undergraduate
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thread-8586 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/8586 | Is physics taught using phrases that are too easily misinterpreted, and can this be improved? | 2013-03-13T12:53:15.917 | # Question
Title: Is physics taught using phrases that are too easily misinterpreted, and can this be improved?
To explain, let me pick a particular statement: "the electrostatic force is mediated by the exchange of photons".
When a physicist (or a lecturer) says this, they mean one thing: the process described in detail by QED. When a student (or an amateur) hears this, they think of two electrons, and they imagine photons flying between them. You can imagine what follows: questions like "how do they know where to fly", or "what is the frequency of these photons", or "where does the energy to create those photons come from" etc.
When I was growing up, I had no access to anyone who really understood physics. All I had were books filled to the brim with phrases like the above. It is nearly impossible *not* to misunderstand something when such loose statements are used, as popular literature tends to omit the extremely important "but"s.
For example, in the statement above, the "but"s omitted are "but we don't actually mean photons, in fact we don't mean any particle at all; what we mean is a mathematical tool we use to calculate how the interaction works, which is reminiscent of actual photons in so many ways that we can often treat the calculations as if they involved actual photons".
What is the most effective way to educate students about such phenomena, where our language we use to describe them risks obscuring the reality, and/or misleading the students? Is there evidence in the pedagogic literature on this?
# Answer
Yes, this is a real issue and yes, we are obligated as a community to address it because we ourselves are the source of so many of the misconceptions and errors we so often complain about. The higher the level, the greater the accountability should be, but frequently isn't.
There are nearly innumerable examples of faulty language all throughout the physics literature and physics textbook at all levels. I will list some here. Before doing so, I also want to point out that science, ALL science, is based on progressively sophisticated models. Each new level of sophistication brings deeper understanding, and the process never ends. It's okay to use simplistic models and accompanying simplistic language as long as we warn the listener that in simplifying things, we're introducing errors that will be addressed in the more sophisticated models. We frequently neglect this warning.
> "Vectors are quantities that have magnitude and direction."
It is not the case that every quantity that has a magnitude and direction is a vector (e.g. finite rotations). There are also different kinds of vectors, and unfortunately this is rarely mentioned in introductory courses.
> "Vector components are scalars."
Well, not always. Components can be vectors as well. In fact, what we call scalar components are really pseudoscalars because of their behavior under coordinate inversion.
> "Energy is the capacity to do work."
This is a model of meaningless circularity if ever there were one.
> "The potential energy of the ball..."
A single entity cannot have potential energy assigned to it. Potential energy is a property of a system.
> "Energy or momentum flows..."
Neither is a concrete physical substance so they can't flow. What we really should say is that we treat them mathematically as though they flow.
> "Charging a capacitor..."
Charge is a fundamental property of matter, and yet we routinely use it as both a noun and a verb, which is a huge potential source of confusion. When we use it as a verb, we really mean and should say "accumulating" because that's the physical process we're trying to describe. "Charging a capacitor" simply means "accumulating charge on the capacitor". Actually, upon deeper thought, it amounts to a "redistribution of charge creating the appearance of accumulation of charge on the capacitor." Sometimes more words enhance the meaning.
> "Electricity is..."
I can think of the following words used by students to complete this thought: charge, current, potential difference, electric force, power. Electricity is really a meaningless word used as a substitute for lack of understanding of the concepts behind all those other words. If you mean power, then use the word power. If you mean current, then use the word current.
> "Newton's third law says two objects exert equal and opposite forces on each other."
This directly contradicts the definition of force as a vector because two vectors cannot be equal if they have different directions. The term "equal and opposite" is inherently self-contradictory.
> "Dot products and cross products are two ways of multiplying vectors."
These are very different from students' conceptions of multiplication. Dot products require both multiplication and addition (and sometimes subtraction). Cross products also require more than trivial multiplication. We shouldn't use the simplistic "multiplying" UNLESS we warn students that we're redefining what "multiplying" means.
> "Moving clocks run slow. Moving rods contract."
These are very misleading. Time dilation and length contraction are nothing more than consequences of measurement from different frames.
> "Time..."
* This problem took too much time. (time as a quantifiable concept)
* Distance is the product of speed and time. (time as a duration)
* What time is it? (time as a clock reading)
* Six times three is eighteen. (times as repeated addition)
* Please time the oscillations of this pendulum. (time as a verb)
* That was a very timely remark. (time as an adverb)
* Here is a time-dependent function. (time as an adjective)
These are a few from introductory and intermediate physics. Perhaps we should create a community wiki of more examples from advanced physics.
> 19 votes
# Answer
I've been thinking of this exact topic from a pedagogic standpoint for years. I taught high school physics where I had classes that ranged from 9th grade Conceptual Physics, to APB (non-calculus) physics, to APC (calculus-based) physics, to a 12th grade second physics class for students who wanted more physics but didn't want the rigor of the AP classes. I'm about to begin teaching a college-level Physical Science class where I'm faced with the same problem:
> How do I teach the students "physics" (quotation marks in bold) without (a) saying something misleading, and (b) so they get a clear understanding that won't hinder them in future classes.
I believe the answer to that question relies most importantly on the level the students are at (teach to their level so they understand), and also with the explicit caveat that *the teacher must tell the students that there are subtleties that will become apparent in future classes.* Indeed, some of those subtleties are more than that -- saying that
> Energy is the capacity to do work
may be circular and meaningless (as JoeH replied), but to a first approximation and definition it works for the time being, and can be improved upon in later classes. When I give that definition to my students, I always caveat it by saying, "Guess what? This definition isn't perfect, and in future classes you'll learn a more refined definition that involves other concepts that aren't within the scope of this class." (I say that a lot in introductory classes!) To the students that want more information immediately, I point them in the direction of other resources, or move the conversation to office hours.
The hardest part about proceeding with this method is to make sure that you don't lead the students into an incorrect conceptual understanding that is hard to break in future classes. Joe's example of "the potential energy of the ball" being incorrect without the idea of a system is a good one -- there are many times when simplifying too much leads to a fundamental misunderstanding, and as teachers we have to avoid that as much as possible. Learning what does and doesn't lead to misunderstanding takes time, but being able to formulate precise assessments (whether test-based, or clicker-based, or on homework, etc.) goes a long way towards determining whether or not a student has a proper understanding that doesn't involve misconceptions. If those misconceptions arise during the assessment, it is the teacher's duty to go back and clarify, or re-teach if necessary.
JoeH listed a number of physics concepts that take a concentrated effort to teach properly, but I think all disciplines have those problems:
> Chemistry: electrons do not orbit in "shells," despite what millions of students learn every year in elementary school.
>
> Computer Science: in some cases, bubblesort does beat quicksort.
>
> Mathematics: the internal angles of a triangle do not always add up to 180º. Five times five does not always equal twenty-five.
>
> English: passive voice is not always wrong.
>
> History: a historian does not always have to be unbiased
(apologies for examples that aren't perfectly clear -- I'd be happy to amend my answer with better examples!)
> 7 votes
# Answer
A very good question. I usually deal with this like: "Vectors usually have magnitude and direction. Their components are usually scalars. There are more difficult cases, do you really want to deal with them now? \[People sigh or say "noooo"\] So, here is an example... Now we can continue.".
Of course, strict definitions give some comfort, but may also result in misunderstanding. It's good to confess that every detail is very difficult and even You, The Teacher, can not answer everything.
By default, you must know very well what you talk about. Then you can give some simple example, then a difficult one and ask them if they want to analyse it now. They usually say "nooo" and you proceed.
There are usually enthusiasts and passive people in a single classroom. It's a good practise to let enthusiasts give one or two questions above the course during the break, so that everyone gets what he's interested in. An interaction with your audience gives better feeling of what they actually need explained.
> 5 votes
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Tags: teaching, physics
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thread-15256 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15256 | Plagiarizing problem sets and homework | 2014-01-01T01:32:57.557 | # Question
Title: Plagiarizing problem sets and homework
I am a young student checking pupils homeworks. I've got a case - 2 pupils definetely cooperated when doing homework. Do you have tips to determine who actually solved it and who copied? Got some ideas myself (like maybe one who copied had a better handwriting) but it is better to ask.
# Answer
> 3 votes
Here is my anecdotal experience for dealing with copiers and plagiarizers. At the end of the day, everyone should be penalized. It's just a matter of sorting out who did what, and making sure they're aware that further offending can carry severe consequences.
If discussing problems in groups is okay and encouraged (it should be!), don't forget to reinforce this. Just stress that the solutions themselves must be individual work.
* The weaker piece of homework (i.e. less complete explanations and working, or missing parts) is likely to be written by the student who had no contribution (or a lesser contribution) to the solution.
* It's usually rather obvious that some copying has gone on, especially if they all make the same mistakes and lay out their working the same. Consider rounding up all the students and talking to them together to find out the full story. They've already been caught red-handed, so it's in their best interests to be honest with you!
* It's important to find out exactly what happened, because there are cases where someone has copied work without the other's knowledge. In this case, it's not fair to punish both parties.
* If the student doing the copying has accidentally written their friend's name or student number on the sheet rather than their own, that tends to be a dead give-away that it's a downright facsimile of other work (that has actually happened).
# Answer
> 10 votes
Although I do not teach physics I do have a solution that generally works quite well.
The main answer is: **It does not matter who copied from whom - fail both.**
If one student allows another to copy, then both fail. I enforce this quite strictly and there are some students (who do not pay attention to the warnings I give at the start of the semester) who do it, but they never make the same mistake twice.
As Moriarty said, it is possible that Student B copied from Student A without Student A knowing about it. I solve this problem but calling them both in front of me (private from everyone else) and tell them they have a choice:
Choice A: Both admit that the copying took place with consent of both, and both fail that homework/assignment/test/whatever is being assessed.
Choice B: Student A says that Student B stole Student A's work, and Student A gets off with a warning to be more careful (but no punishment) and Student B fails the module immediately without the opportunity to recover (Student B must re-take the module from the beginning).
I have dealt with many cases this way and only three cases where the students ended up in Choice B. In this case, the offending students admitted that they stole work.
You should never support the student who allows another student to copy from them. That behavior is simply unacceptable and that needs to be made quite clear to everyone.
# Answer
> 7 votes
I am surprised that no one mentioned this solution yet, but it shouldn't be too difficult to find out by interrogating them: question them both on how they solved the exercises. "So, tell me, which formula are you applying in this line? Why are the hypotheses satisfied? Show me the missing steps."
# Answer
> 1 votes
I have also got in that situation with a couple of students that I was lecturing. I decided to fail both and sent an email, to both of them, saying that they were going to be penalized even with the disciplinary committee of the University to expelled them both. In a couple of hours the person that was guilty confesses his participation in this situation. I only decided to fail that person from the exam and leave the other only with a disciplinary warning.
Long story short: Here you have only two ways, either you fail both of them which is simpler; or just look for the guilty person (which I usually do and I always discover the sinner")
Good luck!
# Answer
> 1 votes
First of all, you should remember that you are a teacher, and that you are responsible for your students' intellectual growth.
If you decide to randomly accuse one of the two students of "copying", and if you are wrong, then think about the effects that this accusation could have. Aside from the hurt feelings, that student could lose confidence, since your accusation shows that you think that this student is worse than the student who copied. There is no predicting how your actions could change the students' lives. Honestly, from your posts, it seems like you are almost trying to make this a bigger deal than it actually is.
The standard way to deal with this situation is to have a meeting with both students, and to put both students through the same disciplinary action, unless one student confesses that he copied from the other student, in which case the punishment level could be adjusted.
But the thing that shocked me the most from this post is the fact that you apparently seem comfortable with randomly accusing your own students. You should remember that you have HUGE effects on their lives, and make sure that you do not abuse it. Showing mistrust is one thing that you should never, never do to your students.
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Tags: education, plagiarism, homework
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thread-15242 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15242 | Citing full names of authors | 2013-12-31T06:41:46.583 | # Question
Title: Citing full names of authors
Different journals have different standards regarding author names - some mention only the first name (i.e. "William Webb"), some mention also an initial of the middle name ("William A. Webb"), some mention only initials ("W. A. Webb"), etc.
So, when I copy BibTeX records of papers to my bibliography manager, the names are copied in different styles, and also appear in different styles in my bibliographic listing.
My question is: is this a problem? Should I go over all my bibliography, each time I write a paper, and make sure all names have the same format?
# Answer
> 6 votes
Let me cite Donald Knuth (from this webpage):
> **Do you know any of these people?**
>
> \[...\] I try to make the indexes to my books as complete as possible, or at least to give the illusion of completeness. Therefore I have adopted a policy of listing full names of everyone who is cited. For example, the index to Volume 1 of The Art of Computer Programming says "Hoare, Charles Antony Richard" and "Jordan, Marie Ennemond Camille" instead of just "Hoare, C. A. R." and "Jordan, Camille."
I also think that a database with complete names is the way to go. The more complete the names are, the less ambiguous (consider all the different "A. Smith's", "X. Zhang's" or "H. Kim's"…).
# Answer
> 11 votes
**No**, you shouldn't change your bibtex database every time. Bibtex converts automatically from its native format "Surname, Firstname I. and Other, Author" to whatever the journal style is (for instance: F Surname, A Other), as long as you have full names in the database. Name formatting is something that people often get wrong at first when they have little experience with bibtex.
So you should aim for having full names in the database, at least for those papers that you need to cite with an unabbreviated first name. Everything would be easier if all journals used initials, but it's a tough world.
I suggest initials for theses, preprints and submissions, and only switch to full names after the article is accepted in a journal that demands them (and after being asked by a copy-editor that demands them). This is the solution that minimizes the workload on the author.
# Answer
> 6 votes
If you're using BibTeX, then this should automatically be taken care of through choice of the `bibliographystyle`.
If you are not using BibTeX or a similar package, then you should go over your references to make sure they're consistent with the papers you've cited. However, you're under no obligation to find the full names of authors if they've published the papers with their initials instead.
# Answer
> 2 votes
The issue here is surely more that journals' bibtex export styles are highly inconsistent. Many output the names in a similar format to what they would print. So if you want full names and have only got initials, you're in for a few hours of tedious hunting and retyping. In other words you'd have to *really* want full names. If you have control over the format, pick a style with initials only, I suggest. The journals I have published in use initials (and don't even print the paper titles or give clickable links) in the references, so having a mixture of formats isn't an issue
# Answer
> 2 votes
I would personally just leave the formats as is, because
1. Some people feel strongly about having their names displayed in a certain way.
2. It would be a huge hassle to find full names of all the authors that you cite.
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Tags: publications, citations
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thread-15238 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15238 | Use of Jargons in my Statement of Purpose | 2013-12-31T03:51:50.387 | # Question
Title: Use of Jargons in my Statement of Purpose
It is generally advisable the use of jargon's and abbreviations be avoided in your statement of purpose. So if I would like to mention a few MOOC's(which stands for Massive Online Open Class offered at portals like Udacity,Coursera,etc) and the flow of my SOP necessitates the use of the word "MOOC", what do I do? Is the term "MOOC" known widely (which I believe is true) or do I have to mention "Massive Online Open Class" (atleast for the first time). This usage could be decisive in situations where there is a strict limitation on the word count.
# Answer
> 4 votes
One of the most important rules of writing is **know your audience.**
When you're writing a statement of purpose, you are addressing an audience of experts in your general field. So, everyone in your field will know the basic terminology and jargon that is common to people throughout your field.
Therefore, if you are using a specific term that is not in standard usage throughout your community, you should not assume that everyone will know what it means. Therefore, for the first occurrence, you should write out the term in full. After that you can certainly list an abbreviation.
On the other hand, if the term is *normally* or *better* known as its abbreviated name, then you don't necessarily need to expand it. In my field, for instance, there is something called the Bogoliubov-Born-Green-Kirkwood-Yvon hierarchy of equations. However, because it's such a mouthful, it's pretty much universally called the "BBGKY" hierarchy. In such a case, providing the full name isn't going to make much of a difference; if your audience doesn't know the abbreviation, giving the full name won't hurt. But this is such a narrow case of exceptions that in general it's a good idea to provide the full name at least once.
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Tags: graduate-school, graduate-admissions, statement-of-purpose
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thread-15291 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15291 | Preparing a curriculum vitae for an undergraduate internship | 2014-01-02T13:23:02.470 | # Question
Title: Preparing a curriculum vitae for an undergraduate internship
I am currently a scholarship student in my sophomore year in a double major programme in theoretical physics and pure mathematics. I wish to apply for an internship, for which they have asked me for my CV. I checked traditional CVs and I couldn't find anything that is relevant to my current situation. What should I put in my CV and what must I ignore? The following is the skill set that I have in my arsenal. The internship is for a ***physics research topic*** so what must I include?
---
Skills (academic) :
* Physics (The courses that I have taken with my grades on them)
* Math (The courses that I have taken with my grades on them)
* Random courses in the branches of languages and arts
* Currently involved in a theoretical research project in physics, but haven't really achieved anything in it as yet as I was headed tangentially in the topic
* High school results (top 1% of the cohort)
Skills (miscellaneous):
* hyperpolyglot
* artist (professional impressionist and surrealist)
* writer and poet (free verse)
* active quizzer and debater
* football striker (out of context, but you never know ;) )
* swimmer
* sculptor
Interests:
* Philosophy
* Psychology
* Theology
* Occult Sciences
* Art and art history
* Reading (I would read anything with words on it)
* Literature
* Languages
---
And a couple of other things here and there. Also, is there any particular formatting that I should adhere to?
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I mailed the professor I wished to work with and he replied as follows: *Send me a CV and information on your coursework and results*
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So what must I put in and what must I deduct? Thanks in advance :)
# Answer
> 2 votes
It looks like your list here is pretty comprehensive. I would focus less on the "interests" and more on the relevant skills and experience. interests are nice as a snapshot on your personality, but I wouldn't sweat it if the section is a bit barren or void of "in depth" content here.
From my understanding, a CV is nothing more than an expanded resume. If you have an existing resume, take a few moments to expand a bit on your roles and accomplishments beyond simple bullet points.
# Answer
> 1 votes
First of all, what is the focus of the internship and is your resume focused on that?
If they asked you for transcripts with your application, they will know what courses you took; there is no need to reproduce them on your resume.
Nobody cares about your hobbies or non-relevant skills. If anything, to call yourself a sculptor, artist and polyglot makes you sound like an entitled pompous ahole who exaggerates. "Occult sciences" alone should get your resume thrown in the trash bin when you're applying for a *science* research job, not to be a Ghostbusters crew member.
Your resume should answer the question, "what makes me qualified for the job?" What *relevant* courses have you taken? What *relevant* knowledge do you have? What *relevant* skills do you have that could be applied to the job?
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Tags: cv, undergraduate, internship
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thread-15290 | https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/15290 | Statement of research interest for summer schools | 2014-01-02T11:51:17.343 | # Question
Title: Statement of research interest for summer schools
I'm doing a PHD in physics (not in US), and I'm applying for a summer school in US (an example). I'm required to upload a statement of research interest.
I have searched for webpages on how to write statement of research interest for a while but found that most of them are for applying for graduate schools. So my question is, what is the difference between statement of research interest for graduate schools admission and that for summer school?
# Answer
> So my question is, what is the difference between statement of research interest for graduate schools admission and that for summer school?
The way you phrase the question suggests that you see this statement of research interest as a form to fill in some details. But it's not like there's a "*P27.B: Statement Of Research Interest for Summer Schools*" form that's slightly different from the usual "*P27.A: Statement Of Research Interest for Graduate Schools*" form in Annex B. These things don't exist.
I think you're approaching the question all wrong.
A research statement is a letter you write to a person with a specific purpose. So a better question would be "what is the purpose of writing a research letter for a summer school?".
The answer is pretty much the same, but instead of trying to demonstrate why you and your background are a good fit for a grad school, now you're trying to demonstrate why you and your background are a good fit for a summer school and that *you* will benefit greatly from *that* school.
There's lots of tips on the Web on how to write a good research statement. Maybe some personal pointers ...
---
First and foremost you need to appreciate that it will be read by a human being, not a machine. So don't make it boring or clichéd, esp. if that human being will have to read hundreds of statements like yours. Keep it concise and interesting. Many students are too concerned with filling "the requirements" than communicating; the key part of such a letter is communication, not topic lists.
Second you need to figure out what that human being is looking for from you. Such statements are not just paperwork; they have a purpose. Why are they asking you for the document? Why will they spend valuable time to read it? What is important to them?
Third you need to frame your personal context into what they are looking for.
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1. If you can, try to figure out specifically who is going to read it ... what kind of technical expertise they have, what are their research interests, etc. That person will probably be a postdoc or junior professor in the area.
2. In the research statement, they'll want to see how the student will benefit from the school ... why that student is worth the chair space. They will simply be looking for enthusiastic students with a convincing story as to why they will benefit from the summer school. *If* the school is very narrow and technical, there may also be a check to make sure that the student has sufficient background knowledge to follow the topics. If you sound too expert in a topic, that's not good either; they'll want you to learn!
3. In the text, discuss your research interests and goals. Relate your goals to the types of topics covered by the school. Add details; perhaps a specific lecture or lecturer or topic you are especially interested in and why. Be enthusiastic but *not fake*. Don't get stuck in technical details. Try to make the letter sound personal, almost conversational, like a person wrote it ... versus someone taking a template and filling in topics. Edit and remove irrelevant statements. Get feedback from peers or an advisor.
> 6 votes
# Answer
I have attended several summer schools as a graduate student. In my experience, the primary purpose of having a research statement for summer schools is to weed out the random applications. For example, a person not actually in academia (often called "cranks", because most of them don't have the necessary background nor the ability to carry out real research) applies to these things; it is a waste of resources to admit this person, and having them distracts the other qualified students in the summer school.
So you definitely don't need to put in as much effort into these research statements as the ones in graduate school, as the primary purpose of these statements is to show them that you are not a crank.
From here, you need to judge for yourself how much effort is needed. If you attend Harvard or Princeton, or if the organizers already know you, then one or two paragraphs describing your research and naming your advisor might be enough. However, if you attend a mediocre school outside of the US (where you expect no one to have heard of the school), you had better write about your research in some detail, so that no one dismisses your application.
> 0 votes
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Tags: statement-of-purpose, summer-school
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