Students working in my lab |
Prospective PhD students |
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Thank you for contacting me and expressing an interest joining my lab.
If you sent me a long message explaining your academic achievements
and skills I do not have time to read it.
Please do not send CVs and similar attachments.
Unfortunately, all professors,
especially those working on AI-related topics,
get too many messages like yours.
Professors cannot override admission requirements,
regardless of research area or academic credentials (please do not insist, no exceptions).
I apologize I do not have time to read CVs or talk to you via phone. Please avoid sending me a long message with long explanations about your skills and job experience: I do not have time to read it, all professors get too many messages from prospective students; we know you send the same message to multiple professors and universities, rewritten and amplified with AI chatbots like Claude, Gemini and Chatpgpt. Unfortunately, you cannot skip the admission process; no professor can evaluate your qualifications and accept you directly: your application must be evaluated by a PhD committee. Moreover, we do not have time to meet with you online or by phone because that would be unfair to other students who are applying, following the university rules. Instead, you are encouraged to apply to our PhD program or MS program: mention my name and specifically mention "AI and big data systems" in the UH application and your statement letter (where you explain why you want to pursue a PhD or MS with my group). Mentioning multiple professor names show you do not have a clear focus and you just want to be accepted. Your application will be given full consideration by a committee of 3 professors (not me) that will carefully evaluate your grades, reference letters and research goals. If you are admitted then I will be able to look at your full application and I would contact you by phone, if I am interested (please do not ask about specific dates as I do not have control on the committee). Notice the GRE is no longer required for PhD students. The decision letter comes from the department, not from me. Therefore, plese do not ask me if your application is approved/rejected. If you are approved by the committee, professors who you named will see your full application and some of them will interview you. If your application is rejected you will know such decision around end of May for Fall applicants and November for Spring. Most admitted PhD students at UH receive financial support (i.e. a TA/RA assistantship position). Therefore, do not worry about paying tuition and living expenses. Instead choose a professor/area which can challenge your intellectual skills; there are plenty of job opportunities. But there is flexibility to help you achieve your goals: you can change PhD advisor during your first year, or even the 2nd year, in case my research (or some other professor research area) is not a good fit for you (for instance, too much math, complex C++ programming, weak OS knowledge OR some other area looks more exciting). Therefore, think well about your research area, visit professors web pages, compare publications, look at previous students and apply with the professor whose research looks more interesting and with better job prospect. I do not have any postdoc, undergraduate TA, or visiting scientist positions. ACCEPTED: If you have already been conditionally accepted to our PhD program by our grad committee and you are looking for a PhD advisor please send me a short message explaining specific topics you like (look at my recent papers, identify how you could help, explain theory aspects). Even better, explain research ideas in your statement letter when you apply (OK to resubmit it if you change your mind!). |
Students looking for RA/TA positions, assistantships or financial aid |
| If you are an MS student, especially in the College of Engineering (Data Science, Electrical Engineering, etc), do not send requests for TA or RA positions. It is disrespectful to be bothered with these long messages exaggerating your knowledge, with a CV attached: they clog our mailboxes. Unfortunately, MS students cannot receive financial support (university policy, unless they transition and are admitted to the PhD program). RA/TA positions are reserved for accepted PhD students in Computer Science. Our CS department budget is limited and students from other departments are not well qualified. We have asked the College of Engineering to tell students not to send RA/TA messages. |
Letters and references |
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Previous students:
I feel honored to be contacted by previous students to be listed as a reference
or get reference letters to apply for jobs or to some other CS program.
Unfortunately, I get too many requests and letters take too much time to write.
Therefore, unless you have worked
with me for one semester on a research project (research paper, thesis, honors project)
or I know you well (exceptional grade and class participation, graduate course),
please do not ask.
Core courses: If you took a course with me, you got A- or A and you need a ``certification'' letter stating meet knowledge objectives contact the CS department and ask them to cc me for approval. Job reference letter: If you worked on a research project with me and you need a letter keep in mind I can only write a short letter (1-2 short paragraphs) emphasizing your knowledge (programming and theory) and character (diligent, team player, punctual, and so on). If I accept I will ask you to make an appointment and meet me in person in my office. That is, I will not write a letter and just send it by email. External references: I cannot write any letter or document for inmigration (H1 visa), permanent residence, labor certification or related legal purposes. |
Jobs of past PhD and MS students in my group |
The job prospect for students who have worked in my group is excellent,
because such student has achieved strong programming skills,
strong computer systems knowledge and understands the mathematical theory behind analytics.
My past students end up working on big data or data science software development.
PhD students
MS students
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