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How To Survive As A CSD Graduate Student

How To Survive As A CSD Graduate Student. Se án Slattery. Current Survival Rates. Your Immediate Concerns. Finding an advisor Doing some research Classes & other requirements Writing/speaking/hacking TA’ing Staying sane. Finding An Advisor: Step 1.

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How To Survive As A CSD Graduate Student

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  1. How To Survive As A CSD Graduate Student Seán Slattery

  2. Current Survival Rates

  3. Your Immediate Concerns • Finding an advisor • Doing some research • Classes & other requirements • Writing/speaking/hacking • TA’ing • Staying sane

  4. Finding An Advisor: Step 1 • Find faculty you might be interested in • IC Talks • Web pages • Faculty Research Guide • Suggestions from students & other faculty

  5. Finding An Advisor: Step 2 Find out more about them • Ask them for a meeting • Talk to their students • Talk to their ex-students • Read some of their papers • Maybe attend a project meeting

  6. Finding An Advisor: Step 3 Come to an agreement • Tell them you’d like to put them down as your 1st (2nd, 3rd) choice • Verify that they’ll ask for you too • Fill out your marriage form accordingly

  7. Finding An Advisor: Questions Questions to ask: Availability – does s/he have room for you? Commitment – will s/he stand by you? Personalities – will you get along? Research style – can you do it that way? Research topics – are you interested? Resources – do you want travel and toys?

  8. Finding An Advisor: Pitfalls • Not getting the one you wanted • Not getting along with the one you got • Losing the one you got (they leave CMU) Reassurance: you can change advisors, but • Don’t do it too many times (more than twice) • Don’t burn your bridges

  9. Finding An Advisor: Variations Multiple advisors • More benefits, more pitfalls • Often one has the money, one has the time • Maybe you want a non-CSD advisor • Sometimes a tactful way to transition

  10. On Having an Advisor • Like having a temporary parent • Invested in you, responsible for you • Sometimes that makes them act weird • Communicate lots • Tell them what you’re doing • Tell them how you’re doing • Tell them what you think you need

  11. More on Having an Advisor Advisors are human and flawed • Often under lots of pressure • Don’t always have great social skills • Often forget to give any positive feedback • Can unintentionally seem rude or disapproving Coping advice • When you can, don’t take it personally • When you can’t, ask for reassurance

  12. Research: The Early Years What you’ll (hopefully) get out of it • Learn your own research style, and whether it meshes well enough with your advisor’s • A publication or two • Your hacking/writing/speaking requirements Doesn’t need to lead straight to thesis work.

  13. Research: How’s Your Ego? Undergraduate work • Get given a task, complete it well, get praise Graduate work • Find a problem you want to solve • Get grudging support for working on it • Have to justify why your work is worthwhile Do it because you want to

  14. Classes, Skills • Classes • May seem very hard or very easy • It’s not unusual to fail one, nor is it a big deal • Always take more time than they should • Speaking/writing/hacking requirements • Still being debugged

  15. More Stuff • TA’ing • Always takes way more time that it should • In general • Take your advisor’s advice on scheduling

  16. Black Friday - How it works • The faculty meet and discuss each student • Key question: Are you progressing and do the faculty believe you will finish eventually? • Your advisor writes a letter giving you feedback and setting goals for next semester • Jeanette signs the letter

  17. Black Friday – What to do • Make sure your advisor will be there, or has arranged for someone else to be • Talk to your advisor about what they’ll say • Give your advisor information to work with • Then, stop worrying • Go back to your work • Go to the Black Friday TG

  18. Staying Sane • Don’t get isolated • spend time with people • talk to people about your work • Remember • there’s life after CMU • there’s life outside CMU • you do this because you want to • Work on something you love

  19. Staying Sane: Maladies Imposter syndrome • You think you’ve been successfully faking being good enough to be here, but one day you’ll fail and everyone will scorn you • Is very, very common Best cure • Talk to other students, admit feeling that way

  20. Staying Sane: Maladies • Spiraling perfectionism • Your work is too trivial for anyone to care about and you freeze up • Best cure • Read papers, go to talks, go to conferences, recalibrate

  21. Staying Sane: Maladies • Trouble and panic • Failed exam or course • Research stalls or doesn’t pan out • Fight with advisor • Best Cure • Remember it happens to everyone sometime • Remember help is available

  22. Resources • Sharon (busy, but wise) • The Ombudsperson (Shawn Butler) • Your advisor • Other students • The CMU counseling center • The Zephyr anonymoose (see the FZQ)

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