ResearchasaGraduateStudent beyond y asurvivalg guide

ShoudeLin AssistantProfessor,CSIE/GINM,NTU sdlin@csie.ntu.edu.tw

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Acknowledgement
Someofthematerialsandideasare g fromotherpeople, p p including: g originated
MariedesJardins KevinKnight EdHovy DianneO'Leary DuaneA.Bailey y RonaldT.Azuma Possiblyothershereandthere
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LordoftheRingstheGraduateVersion

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ThebeginningoftheJourney
Frodo d
Frodo Frodo T Frodo Gandalf Gandalf project Ri d ll Rivendell
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So IsthisResearch? So,
Frodo F d Project P j Postdoc Aragorn Gandalfadvisor project Frodo
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Warning!!FundingisComing!!
GandalfFrodo Elron Gandalf Legolas Sam Boromir Pippin Gandalf
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ThePersuasive
Gandalf Frodo 5000 15000 committee ... Frodo Iwilltakethering, althoughIdonotknowtheway. Gandalf
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ThePainStarts Starts
Frodo Gandalf funding Boromir Idea Aragorn Legolas Frodo
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Sam Frodo ResearchMethods,Prof.ShoudeLin,NTU 8

ThePainContinues
Frodo Gollum Frodo

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TowardtheEnd
Frodo Hesubmittedtheringto thefile, file andwaitedforthefinaljudgmentday day. Defensecommittee Gandalf d lf Saruman Frodo survive
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Why yFrodoSuffered
Becauseheisalwaysforcedtodothings,heisnot infor forhimself himself.
Youshouldbeinforyourself,notforyouradvisoror family. y Failorsucceed,itisYOUthatshouldberesponsibleforit. Youshouldthinkaboutpassingthetestwithflyingcolors, notjustsurvivingit.

BecausenobodyhasevercomebackfromMordor t passthe to th experience. i

ThegoalofthistalkistoletyouknowsomethingthatI wishIcouldhaveknownearlierwhenIstartedmy graduatelife.

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HowtoBecomeaSuccessful GraduateStudent GeneralTips p

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Graduateschoolisadifferentballgame (comparingwithUndergraduate)
Asuccessfulundergraduatestudent ? A successfulg graduatestudent
Thestudentswhodowellingraduateschoolare theoneswholearnthisearlierratherthanlater andmakethenecessaryadjustments.

Graduateschooltrainingisliketeaching swimmingbytossingstudentsintothedeep endofthepoolandseeingwhomakesitto theotherendaliveandwhodrowns(weare tookindtodothistotheundergraduates)

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Threemajorthingstotakecareofasa graduatestudent
Course Research Club Research More Love Research Research is NOT about programming, NOT about learning, g, it is about finding g and solving g problems that have not been solved.
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SuccessfulResearch(Knight)
C Coursework: k Teaching: no Dissertation:

no yes

You:Inmythesis,IshowedX. Them:Really?Icanusethatinmywork! Them:Really?Huh,myapproachisntnearlyasgood. Them:Really?ImdoingY.WeoughttoputXandY together. Them Th :Really? R ll ?N Noway.Really? R ll ? Them:Really?Areyoulookingforajob?

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WhyGetaPhD(Knight)?
PhDisalotofwork,requireshardthinking. Itsalotharderthanundergradandmaster. master Onlyofyouwillmakeitthrough. Whydoit?
PhDtrainsyoutobeaprofessionalresearcher Researchlifeisfun
Youcanworkonwhatyouwant Yourideaswillshapethefuture Youdonthavecommercialpressure Youcanbeaprofessor Yourcolleaguesaresmartandinteresting Youcandiscussresearchinexoticlocations

(Butwatchoutif:
Yourfamilyexpectsyoutodoit Youmainlywanttotakemoreclasses)

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Course
Asyouhaveheard1000timesinyourlife,Gradesarenot asimportant p thanaswhaty youhavelearnedintheclass. Well,thissayingFINALLYbecomestruenow. Youfinally yhavethefreedomtochoosethecourses(good (g orbad?corecourseorresearchrelatedcourse?) Taking gcoursesthatarerelevanttoy yourresearch, ,but differentfromyouradvisorsexpertisesoyoumight learnsomethingyouradvisordoesnt. Attendingcourses:instructorscanperformbetteroreven turnintoahumorist whentalkingaboutsomething relevanttohisorherresearch. Coursep project: j Achancetoenrichyour y resumeand publications.
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Gettingfeedbacks
Tobesuccessfulatresearch,itisessentialthatyoulearnto copewith ithcriticism, iti i and deventhat th tyouactively ti l seek kitout. t Writeupwhatyou'reworkingon(evenifyou'renotreadyto writeafullconferenceorj journalp paper) p )andshowitto people. Talkingtootherpeoplewillhelpyourealize
which hi haspects t of fyourresearch haretruly t l diff different tand di innovative ti howyourworkfitsintothecurrentstateofyourfieldandwhere it'sgoing whichaspectsofyourworkarehardertosell(and,therefore, whichaspectsyouneedtothinkmoreaboutjustifying).

Tellpeopleasmuchasthey're they rewillingtolistento.Youshould have30second,2minute,5minuteand10minute summariesofyourprojectreadyatamoment'snotice.

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ChooseResearchAreasand ResearchTopics p

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PotentialResearchAreasinCS
Multimedia:graphics, graphics vision, vision coding coding,imageprocessing processing Networking:wireless,VOIP,protocol Th Theory: algorithm, l ith math, th l learning i th theory AI:IR,datamining,agent,naturallanguageprocessing, neuralnetwork network,robotics robotics Hardware:embeddedsystem,architecture Software: S ft compiler, il software ft engineering, i i programming i language,automaticcontrol,digitalarchive Others: Others bioinformatics, bioinformati s human h mancomputer omp terinteraction, intera tion (younameit),security
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ResearchArea:RisingorFading
Checkwhetherpeopleworkingonthatarea ppy arehappy. Checkthetrendofthemajorconference attendanceinthatarea. area Checkwhatkindofjobthegraduatesfindin thatarea.

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Choosing gResearchTopics p
ThefirstmistakeFrodomadeisthathenever reallythinksaboutwhathewantstodo(and iscapableofdoing) doing). DontchoosearesearchtopicONLYbecause:
Itisfunded. Itisy youradvisorsfavorite( (believeornot, , peoplesfavoritecanchangeveryquickly). Itisahottopic(believeornot,marketvaluecan changeveryquickly). Your____likesthisprojectalot. lot
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WhatCountsasAGoodResearchTopic
S Something thi th that ti interests t t yourself, lf youradvisor, d i and d yourresearchcommunity. problem,notatoyproblem(orevenworse worse, Itisarealproblem notawelldefinedproblem). Ithastohavecertainconnectiontoexisting gresearch( (If not,youneedtomakesurepeoplethinkitis interestingandworthdoing.) Thereisachanceforyoutohavesolidtheoretical contributionorempiricalresults(preferablyboth). Significantyetmanageable, manageable withextensionsand additionsthataresuccessivelyriskierbutwillmakethe thesismoreexciting(Chapman)
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Checklistwhenchoosingaresearchproblem
Canitbe C b enthusiastically th i ti ll pursued dby b youin i the th long l run? ? Istheproblemsolvablebyyou? Isitworthdoing? Willitleadtootherpotentialresearchproblems? Isitmanageable g insize? Whatisthepotentialformakingoriginalcontributionsto thecorrespondingresearchsociety? Can C the th results/methods lt / th d be b evaluated l t d Canyoudemonstrateindependentskillstoothersby solvingit? Canthesocietybenefitfromsomebodysolvingthis problem?(e.g.whatstheapplication)
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HowDoIFindaGoodResearchTopic
Talktoyouradvisor. Takingrelevantcourses. Readsomepapers. Dontjustreadpapers,dosomething(joina group, g p,implement p asystem). y )

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Whattodonextafterchoosingatopic?
Writethefollowingsdown(clearlyand y)andshowittopeople p p forcomments concisely)
Whyitisimportant(Researchvalue?Commercial value?Ethicvalue?) Whyitinterestsme?(soyouaresureitisnota shorttermfever) Whyitischallenging(whyithastobeathesis rather th than th acourseproject) j t) Whyitisdoable?(soIcangraduateonthis)
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LiteratureReview

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Reading
Trygoingtothelibraryeveryweek,spendingsomehours readingrecentjournalsorbooks(i.e.,therearethingsthat cannotbedownloadedonline). Startwithatutorialpaperorclassicpaper,thenthe journals/booksofrecentyears. years SummarizeeveryarticleyoureadinEndNoteorother bibliographyformat(BibTeX).Itwillsaveyoualotoftimein thesis h i writing. ii TakeadvantageofACMGuidetoComputingLiterature andComputing ComputingReviews. Reviews . Scanthetitlefirst,thenabstract.Ifyouinterestisstillthere, readtheintroductionandconclusionfirst. YouwillNEVERbeabletofinishallthereading.Startdoing researchwhenyoufeelyouhavecertainbackground,but dontstop preading. g
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Askyourselfwhenreadingapaper(orattending somebodystalk) Problems

Istheproblemclearlydefined? Isitagoodresearchproblem? Istheproblemrelevanttoyourresearch/interests? Solutions Arethesolutionssoundandreasonable? Isthesolutioneasilyimplementable? Is sthere t e ea any ybetter bette so solutions ut o syouca cant thinko offor o t this sp problem? ob e Canweuse/modifytheirsolutionstosolveourproblems? DataandResources Arethedatasuitableforourproblem?Ifyes,aretheyavailabletous? Whatkindofresources(e.g.machines,infrastructure)dotheyuse?Dowehavesimilar ones? Applications pp Isthereanyapplicationstheyhaventthoughtof? Howmuchgapistherebetweentheexistingtheoryanditsfinalapplication?Isthereany researchvaluehiddeninsuchgap? FutureWork Isitworthdoing? 2008/1/6 ResearchMethods,Prof.ShoudeLin,NTU 29 Canwedoitusingabettermethod?

DoingResearch

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Theres There sNoRight RightWay Way

Every E thesis h i is i different diff (Allen (All Newell): N ll)

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Opensupnewarea Providesunifyingframework Resolveslongstandingquestion Thoroughlyexploresarea C Contradicts di existing i i knowledge k l d Experimentallyvalidatestheory Producesambitioussystem y Providesempiricaldata Derivessuperioralgorithms Developsnewmethodology Developsnewtool Producesnegativeresult
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The Evolution of Researchers (knight)

B i i Researchers Beginning R h E Expert tR Researchers h
Cant explain what he/she is doing & why he/she is doing it Unwittingly working on a previously solved problem Attends directly-related seminars Can write about finished work Work goes unnoticed Bi Brings pre-conceived i d solution l ti Blocks on non-research problems Works with same basic tools as everyone else Can write hoped-for paper abstract before even starting work Knows all related work Goes to seminars, tries to ask a G question Can write a proposal Causes other researchers to shift gears Li t Listens carefully f ll t to th the d data t at t hand h d Emails to others who must have faced this problem before before Has a secret weapon (data infrastructure unsupervised techniq e 64 technique 64-processor processor cl cluster) ster )
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Aims in a Methods,Prof.Picks good 2008/1/6too low, or too high (or Research ShoudeLin, NTU problems to work on strange direction)

BuildingtheFoundation
Algorithm:DynamicProgramming,Graphtheory,Clustering, automata,logic,cryptography Searchmethods:
Optimization (e.g. (e g heuristicsearch):adjustingparametersofa systemtooptimizeanexplicitorimplicitobjectionfunction(e.g. MaximumlikelihoodEstimation) Learning(classificationorregression):Givenasetof input/outputpairs,learningtellsyouhowtopredicttheoutput givensomeunseeninput.Proposedmethods:SVM,NN,ME,DT, GE EM GE, EM

Math:probabilityandstatistics,informationtheory,coding theory,queuingtheory,linearalgebra,discretemath ProgrammingSkills:C++,Java,designrelatedtools,Python, Perl,MPI,databasemanagement Backgroundknowledgeinotherareas:biology, biology music music

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FindingyourOwnHammers
Youneedtoidentifyyoursecretweapon. Forexample,thehammersinMSlab:

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EstimationMaximizationAlgorithm. Cl ifi (e.g. Classifiers ( ME, ME SVM, SVM DT DT,GA). GA) BayesianInferenceTools. ReinforcementLearningPackages Packages. RegressionTools. BayesianNetworksLearningTools. ClusteringTools(e.g.Kmeans,Hierarchical). HiddenMarkovModels. M k D Markov Decision i i Processes. P SocialNetworkAnalysisTools. ClusteringMachines. DealingwithGigaWords ofdata
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HowCanIFindNewandBetterIdeas(knight)
Listentodata(HerbSimon) Kickaroundideaswithseniorstudentsand advisor Rejectmediocreideas Rejectcomplexideas Getanimatedbyagiantgoal
Narrowimmediately whatsthefirst experiment? p

Learnpowerfultechniquesbyimplementing them Pickproblemsthatwillteachyousomething Obsessyourselfwiththeresearchproblem, and dwait itfor f the th ideas id t tocome.
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Writing

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Writingisessential
Keep K aresearch hjournal j l
Writedownwhatyoudidinresearchbeforegoingtobed Writedownyourunpolishedideas Writedownothersusefulideas

Dontstartwriting gap paper p only yuntilally your experimentsaredone.Startwritingtheintroduction sectionassoonasyouknowwhattodo,andthe methodologysectionassoonasyouknowhowtodoit. it

Writingdownyourmethodusuallycanrevealitspitfall. It'sdifficulttoformalizeanideawellenough g totestand proveituntilyou'vewrittenitup;

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ProposalWritingandPresentation
Circumscribetheproblemandargueconvincinglythatitneedstobe solved. Convincethecommitteeyouhaveamethodologyforsolvingit. Clearlystatehowyouplantoevaluateyoursystem. Identifyanddiscussrelatedwork:
hasthisproblembeenaddressedbefore? Whataretheshortcomingsofexistingworkinthearea,andhowwillyour approachdifferfromandbeanimprovementoverthesemethods?

Besurethatyourcommitteemembersareasfamiliaraspossiblewith yourworkbeforeyouroral. Duringtheexam,don'tpanicifyoudon'tknowtheanswer.Simplysay, ``I'mnotsure''andthendoyourbesttoanalyzethequestionandpresent possibleanswers. YouwanttoconvincethecommitteethatyouCANsolvetheproblem,not youHAVEsolved l dthe th problem. bl Giveapracticetalktootherstudentsandfacultymembers. Remember:youknowmoreaboutyourthesistopicthanyourcommittee.
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DissertationWriting
Organization: O i ti Abstract:aminiversionofthesis,writeitwhenyoufinishthe wholethesis Introduction:Themostimportantsectioninyourdissertation. Shouldcontaintheresearchstatement(goal),motivation (avoidinformationlesssentences), sentences) methodologyoutline outline. Relatedworks:toshowthatyouhavereadeverything relevant(canbemovedtolater). Methodology:howtosolvetheproblem. Experiment(orevaluation):showyourmethodisuseful. Discussion:deeperanalysisabouttheexperimentresults. results Conclusion:saysomethingthatbecomesclearafterreading alltheabove.
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TipsforDissertationWriting
Dontworryabouttheminordetails(e.g. g position p ofthefigure) g )untilyou y finish length, thewholearticle. C3 :clearness clearness,concise, concise andconsistent consistent. Usuallyitisnecessarytorewritethe introductionsectionafteralltheother chaptersaredone. FiguresandTablesshouldbeselfexplainable ( captions) (use ti )
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Theidea

Isthereaclaim?Istheclaimclear? Istheidealargeorsmall?Istheideaaslargeasitcanbe?Canyougeneralizeit,orapplyit elsewhere? l h ?

EdHovysSevenStepstoThesis

Motivation,Use,orApplication
Whyshouldwecare?Howcantheclaimbeused?Arethereotherapplications?

Details l of fthe h Idea d

Whatarethebasicitems/elements/representationunitsoftheidea? Whataretherulesortypesofinterrelationshipsbetweenthem? How H elaborated l b darethese h items i and drules/relationships? l / l i hi ?H Howmuch hof fthe h phenomena h d do theycover?

Data
Isthereenoughdatainthestudy?Isitrepresentative?trustworthy?applicable?

DiscoveryMethodology
Isthemethodofinvestigationclear?Isitappropriate?Doesitignorephenomenathatloo relevant? Isitwellreasoned?nobiasesormistakes?

History
Ispriorworkrecognized?used?

Proof
Isthereanevaluation?
Ifso, ,isitadequate? q Complete p enough? g
Doesitspeaktotheclaim?Doesitactuallyprovetheclaim?

Ifnot,whynot?
2008/1/6 Research Prof. Shou de Lin,NTU 41 Isthereadiscussionofhow oneMethods, mighttry totest or prove theclaim?Canonemakepredictionsand(easily) test them?

DefenseCommittee
DEFENSEsounds d like lik somewarthat th tyouh havet towin, i andunfortunately,sometimesitistrue.
Thereare5powerfulenemiesontheotherside,andon yousidethereis.onlyyou. Youprobablyhaveaallyontheirside(ifnot.goodluck!). Try T tostayhumble h bl b butconfident, fid sothe h restof fthe h enemieswillshowyousomesymphonyandrespect.

Choosesomebodythatisnotonlyknowledgeablebut alsosupportiveasacommitteemember. Choosesomebodythatcompensatesyouradvisors expertiseasacommitteemember. Callonthemforhelpifnecessary(itstheir responsibilitytomakesureyouhaveacompetitive dissertation). 2008/1/6 ResearchMethods,Prof.ShoudeLin,NTU 42

DefensePresentation
Try T t toattend tt dat tleast l tonebefore b f yourturn t comes. Controlthetalk,anddontletthetalkcontrolyou:
Controlyourtime(it (its sallyourfaultifyourunoutoftime) Dontbringupthingsyouarenotsure.

Don'tbedefensiveatyourdefense
Noneedtofightforeverything.SometimesyoucansayThanks foryourideas.Iwillbegivingitsomethinking

Revealthebigpicture,butignorethedetails(leaveyourself somematerialsforQ/A). Rehearsalatleastthreetimes. Remember b youradvisor d isyourally, ll notyourenemy. Discusswithhimaboutpossiblestrategy.

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ImprovingyourRQ(Research Q Quotient) )
Unfortunately,IQ +EQ RQ

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Mentality(1/2)
Initiative :ratheraggressivethanpassive
youradviserisNOTgoingtoholdyourhandsandtellyouwhattodoeverystep oftheway. Yourgoalistoproveyourselfandeverybodythatyoucandohighquality research,nottogetadegree.

Tenacity:"Let " metell llyouthe h secretthat h has h l led dmetomygoal. l Mystrength h liessolelyinmytenacity." LouisPasteur
Youdon'tneedtobeageniustoearnadegree,butveryfewfinishesa dissertationwithoutbeingtenacious. tenacious Noonecantellyouinadvanceexactlyhowlongthedissertationwilltake,soit's hardtoseewherethe"endoftheroad"lies. It'svery yeasy ytobecomedepressed p andunmotivatedaboutg going gon.

Discipline:doresearchEVERYDAY,insteadofwhenyouareinthemood. Flexibility:takingadvantageofopportunitiesandsynergies,workingaround problems,andbeing p gwilling gtochange g p plansasrequired q Awareness:

payingattentiontotherules,news,tipsthatcanbenefityou. Haveasenseorurgency.ItisYOURfuture.

Selective:Youhaveonlylimitedamountoftime.Sodontspendtoomuchof yourtimeonsubordinate thingsortasks. 2008/1/6 ResearchMethods,Prof.ShoudeLin,NTU 45

Mentality(2/2)
Ambitiousbutpractical: practical
Everythingispossible,unlessyouproveitimpossible. Dontgiveuptooearly. Dont Don tsettleformediocre mediocre. Berealistic(therearemoreresearchtobedoneaftergraduation).

Breadth:
CSisanapplicationscience. science Interdisciplinarytrainingsareusuallyappreciated appreciated. Dontconstraintyourselfononearea. Itwonthurttohavemoreknowledgeonmathandalgorithm

Getyourhandsdirty(mindthedetails):
Walkthetalk(Talkthetalk,walkthewalk). Smartnesscanbelearned(Experiencecounts). Knowing gwhatiscriticalandwhatisminor( (e.g. g thespeed p issometimesas importantasthequality) Thelast10%toperfectiontypicallyconsumes80%oftheeffort.Thedevilis alwaysinthedetails(Prof.TzickerChiueh)

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Interpersonalskills(Why)

Skills

Asfrustratingascomputerscanbe,theyatleastbehaveinalogicalmanner, whilehumanbeingsoftendonot. However, ,your y successingraduate g schoolandbeyond y depends p agreat g deal uponyourabilitytobuildandmaintaininterpersonalrelationshipswith
youradviser Committeemembers yourresearchandsupportstaffs yourfellowclassmates.

Interpersonalskills(how)
Respect p everybody, y y,nomatterthey yareprofessors p oronly yadministrators. Donotoffendpeopleyoudontlike,simplytryavoidingthem(buttry pretendingyouarenotdoingitintentionally)

Organizationalskills
Failingtoplanisplanningtofail.

Communicationsskills
"Whatiswrittenwithouteffortis,ingeneral,readwithoutpleasure." Samuel J h Johnson "Presenttoinform,nottoimpress;ifyouinform,youwillimpress. Fred Brooks Itcanbelearned(that (thats swhyyoutaketechnicalwritingcourse)

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TimeManagement(1/2)
SetupyourGoals:
Youshouldhavedaily,weekly,monthly,andyearlygoalssetup,andcheck consistentlywhetheryouachievethosegoals. Beruthlesswithtimebutgraciouswithpeople

Acceptthethingsyoucan'tchange(e.g.networkbroken).Controlthe controllables.Savethecursingtime,itisYOUthatshouldberesponsiblefor howyourtimearespent. Whenacrisisoccurs,don'tcomeunglued.

Useyourenergytofindsolutions. Takeyourtime(sometimestimeheals). Consideryouroptions(makealist). R t5minutes. Rest i t Don'tstartafireputtingoutafire. Turnacrisisintoanopportunity.

W ksmart Work tis i b better tt th thanwork kh hard d

Spendingmoretimeonmoreimportanttasks(e.g.writingpapersinsteadof preparingexams). Identifyyourroutine, routine andmaintainit it. Workhard,ifyoudontknowhowtoworksmart.

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TimeManagement(2/2)
Learning i how h tosay no. Maintainatodolist,andestablishyour prioritiesonthetasks. Knowwhattimesofday yarebest/worstfory you mentallyandphysically. Haveandmaintainasemestercalendarto indicatetheduedate. Simplifyyourlife life. Havethedeterminationtostartworkingona touchproblemASAP(DoitNOW!!)
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AttendingSeminars,Workshop, andConference
Att Attending di S Seminar i (F (Fridays id t talk) lk)whenever h th thet topic i interestsyou
Itdoesnotmatterifitisrelevanttoy yourresearchornot. Itisgoodtolearnhowtodeliveranice(orbad,occasionally) seminartalk. Itbroadsyourviewandknowledge. knowledge

WorkshopandConference
Trytomakethemostoutofit(sinceyouwillanywayattendit). Studythescheduleandmarkthetalksyouareinterestedin beforeyougo. Writedownashortsummary yaboutwhaty youlearnedeveryday. y y Makingconnectionsisasimportantasbuildingknowledge:
Trytotalktopeopleafterhistalkbyaskingrelevantquestions. Introduceyourselfinthebanquet(don (dont tjuststaywithyourfellowlab mates). Betteraggressive than shy. Prof.ShoudeLin,NTU Research Methods, 50

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ThereareOtherImportantThingsinLife
"G "Generally ll speaking, ki people l provide id b better tt maintenance i t f for theircarsthanfortheirownbodies." ScottAdams,The DilbertFuture Earningagraduatedegree(inparticularPh.D.)islikerunninga marathon.Youhavetolearntopaceyourselfandtakecareof yourbodyifyouwanttoreachthefinishline line. keepintouchwiththe"realworld,"toremindyourselfthatthe graduatestudentpopulationisnotrepresentativeofhumanity i general in land dt tok keepyourperspective. ti Graduateschoolisn'tworthriskingyourpersonalrelationships over;besurethatyousavetimeandenergytofocusonthe peoplewhomattertoyou. Taketimeforexercise,culturalactivities,relationships,and sleep otherwise sleep, otherwise,stresswillmountandyourqualityoflifewill plummet. 2008/1/6 ResearchMethods,Prof.ShoudeLin,NTU 51

BalanceforKeepingMotivated
Dontjustdoonething(oronetypesofthing), p forexample:
Doingresearchandtakingcoursesatthesame time. Workingontwodifferentresearchproblemsat thesametime(ifcapable) capable). Writingyourdissertationand..(maybethisisan exception) ti )

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FAQ

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Q:WhichAdvisorShouldIChoose?
Ans:pickone workingintheareayou'reinterestedin. in willbesomeoneyoucangetalongwith. activelybedoinghighqualityresearchandbeinvolvedinandrespected bytheresearchcommunity community. arewillingandcapableofpassingthewisdomtoyou. serveasamentoraswellasasourceoftechnicalassistance. provide d (or ( help h l youtofind) f d)the h resourcesyouneed d(financial, (f l equipment, andpsychologicalsupport). introduceyouandpromoteyourworktoimportantpeopleinyourfield. encourageyourowninterests, i rather h than h promoting i their h i own. beavailabletogiveyouadviceonthedirectionofyourthesisandyour career. help h l youtofind fi daj job bwhen h youfi finish. i h helpyoutosetandachievelongtermandshorttermgoals. enthusiasticabouttheresearchandteachingtheyaredoing
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Q:Whyeveryoneseemssotogetherexceptme? Ans: Well,believeornot,itisnottrue

Everybodyhaspapersgotrejected(someofmine arestillnotpublishedyet). Everybodyhasfailedideasandprojects(i (i.e. e the resultsarenotevengoodenoughtowriteapaper onit)

Well,peoplesometimeshidethemselveswhen suffering. Well,itreallydoesnt doesn thelptoomuchifyou keepcomparingyourselfwithothers.

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Q:What Whats ssoimportantaboutpublishing?

Ans: Youdbeamazedhowmanypeoplereadyourstuff! Youradvisorwillsendyoutoconferencestopresentyourwork (andenjoyacoupledays day ssightseeing) Presentingacoherent,writtenscientificargumentisalearned skill learnbydoing! Itsatest ifyoucantdoit Mygreatworkkeepsgettingrejected. ..Rare. Unlikely My Myworkistoogreattoevensubmitforpublication. publication ...Unlikely. CSisanapplicationscience.However,yourworkwillnotbe applicablewithoutfirstlettingpeopleknowwhatitis. is

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Q:Idon dont thaveanysecretweaponsyet

Ans: Well,atleastitisagoodstarttorealizethis. Attendingtheresearchorientedcourseoffered byafacultymemberhere. Asking A ki people l ( (senior i students, d junior j i students, d postdocs)whataretheirsecretweapons(believe me theyarenotTHATsecret). me, secret) Check(byreadingpapers)whatkindof skills/methodsotherfamouspeopleinyourarea usuallyuse.
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Q:WhatthehellamIdoingthis?
Ans: Well,everybodyaskshimself/herselfthesamequestionon thewaytothedegree(youarenotthefirst,andwontbe thelast). ) Wealllosemotivationoccasionally.Seekhelpfromyour advisororseniorstudents. Sometimes S i it i happens h when h youstuck k:
Trysomethingdifferent. Trysolvinganeasierproblem(simplifiedversionoftheoriginal problem)toregainyourconfidence.

Sometimesithappenswhenyouareburnedout

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Takeashortbreak(e.g. (e g atriptootherplaces). places) Findthesenseofhumoryou'veprobablylost.Learntolaughatyourselfand atthesituation. Mostofall, all getintouchwithyourself yourself,yourvaluesandwhatyouwantoutof life.Learntorecognizewhenyouaredrivingyourselftoohard.
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FinalChapter:TheParableofthe BlackBelt( (Adapted p fromR.T.Azuma) )

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Soclosetograduate. graduate
Ayoungmartialartistkneelingbeforethe ytoreceivea MasterSenseiinaceremony hardearnedblackbelt. Afteryearsofrelentlesstraining, training thestudent hasfinallyreachedapinnacleofachievement inthe h discipline. l "Before Beforegrantingthebelt,youmustpassone moretest,"saystheSensei.
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Onemoreyear y
"Iamready," y responds p thestudent,expecting p g perhapsonefinalroundofsparring. "You Youmustanswertheessentialquestion: Whatisthetruemeaningoftheblackbelt? "Theendofmyjourney,"saysthestudent."A yhardwork. welldeservedrewardforallmy TheSenseiwaitsformore.Clearly,heisnot satisfied. ti fi d Fi Finally, ll th theS Sensei ispeaks. k "Youarenotyetreadyfortheblackbelt. Returninoneyear."
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Timeflies, flies oneyearpassed passed

Th Thestudent t d tt trained i dh hard df forth thewhole h l f following ll i year,andthenkneelsagaininfrontoftheSensei. "Whatisthetruemeaningoftheblackbelt?" askstheSenseiagain. "A Asymbolofdistinctionandthehighest achievementinourart,"saysthestudent. TheSenseisaysnothingformanyminutes, minutes waiting.Clearly,heisnotsatisfied.Finally,he speaks. p "Youarestillnotreadyfortheblackbelt.Return inoneyear."
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Timeflies,again, g onemorey yearpassed p

Ayearpassedby,thestudentkneelsonceagain i f in front tof fthe th Sensei, S i with ithconfidence. fid Duringthepastyear,thestudentdidntspend anytimeontraining. training Instead, Instead hetriestofind peoplewhohaveearnedtheblackbeltbefore. AndagaintheSenseiasks:"What Whatisthetrue meaningoftheblackbelt? "The Theblackbeltrepresentsthebeginning the startofaneverendingjourneyofdiscipline,work, pursuitofaneverhigher g standard," , andthep memorizedthestudent. "Yes.Youarenowreadytoreceivetheblackbelt andbeginyourwork.,saystheSensei.
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Whatdoesthisstorytellsus?
Receivingthedegreeisjustabeginning,not anend.Peoplerarelydotheirbestjobintheir dissertations Sotrytogetoutsoonerthan dissertations. later. Ifyoubothertotalktoandlearnfrompeople ygone g through g thisprocess, p , whohavealready youmightgraduatetwoyearsearlier.

And this concludes the talk. Thanks!

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