Here is information for graduate students who are interested in having me as an advisor or committee member.
All Students
New and prospective graduate students who are interested in working on a thesis under my direction should review the information on this page. Undergraduates and graduate students interested in working on an independent study project with me should see the information on my courses and teaching page.
All graduate students who work with me (and especially those in CERIAS) should be aware of what I consider to be acceptable standards of conduct.
Here are some resources that I encourage all my graduate students to read. (Thanks to colleagues who made me aware of some of these, including A. Antón and D. Comer):
-
Understanding research ethics
The National Academies - The LANGURE Project's core on-line course on ethics.
- ACM Policy on Plagiarism
- An excellent description of how to appropriately cite references and avoid plagiarism.
The IU Writing Tutorial Service -
Excellent advice about graduate school life
Ronald T. Azuma, HRL Laboratories -
How to Be a Good Graduate Student
Marie desJardins -
Discussion on Ph.D. thesis proposals in computing science
Hugh C. Lauer -
What is a Ph.D. Dissertation?
Gene Spafford, Purdue University -
How to Write a Ph.D. Dissertation
author unknown, but sent to me by Doug Comer -
Advice on Writing Proposals to the National Science Foundation
Susan Finger, Carnegie Mellon University -
Address on Cargo Cult Science
Richard Feynman -
Putting Theory in Perspective
classic joke, as retold by Gene Spafford, Purdue University -
Powerpoint presentations are not necessarily a good thing. See what the Gettysburg Address would have been like if Lincoln had used Powerpoint.
Put together by Peter Norvig, VP at Google.
(Also, you might like to watch this video by Don McMillan.) - Data is not knowledge, and false information -- no matter how well presented -- is still false. The Library of Babel by Jorge Luis Borges is a short essay worth careful reading and consideration, as is Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius.
- Some good advice from Professor Mich Kabay: advice on writing, and a discussion of common mistakes in writing.
- Good advice on writing technical papers, honed over the years at NASA. See Clarity in Technical Reporting by S. Katzoff.
- A lot of great advice by a leading expert (and pioneer) in computing, Richard Hamming: You and Your Research.
- Professional codes of conduct and ethics from ACM and from IEEE.
I also recommend the following two books. These can be a great help in developing proper style in writing technical papers. You can find both of these at any good bookstore, or online from a store such as Amazon or Barnes & Noble.
- Bugs in Writing (latest edition); by Lyn Dupre; Addison Wesley.
- The Elements of Style (latest edition); by William Strunk, Jr. and E. B. White; Pearson Allyn & Bacon.
Of course, my students probably want to read (and identify with) characters in the comic strip Piled Higher and Deeper.
And if my students (or others) are trying to find a good thesis topic and title, here are some suggestions.
For Prospective Students
I am currently supervising 2 graduate students in addition to directing CERIAS and serving on many professional and government boards. I am willing to take on another few students, although I may not have funding for them during the 2007-2008 academic year.
Students interested in working with me at Purdue must be admitted through the regular admissions process. I am not involved with admissions of students. Instead, students need to apply for admission through the individual department in which they wish to work. Information on the infosec-related programs is available on this page.
Once you are admitted to a department at Purdue and you enroll, you are welcome to make an appointment to see me to talk about your research interests. In general, I only accept as students those who meet the following requirements:
- must have a strong command of spoken and written English;
- must have passed at least one qualifier exam, and completed one full semester of courses in good standing;
- must have taken CS 555 or CS 526 (or equivalent) and passed with an A grade, or currently taking one of these courses and doing well;
- must know how to program well in at least two useful programming languages, have some familiarity with a Unix or Linux variant, and know at least the basics of how to use network applications;
- must be willing to work independently, without constant prompting and monitoring;
Note that I seldom have financial aid to offer to new students. I generally reserve support for students who have already completed a class or project with me. New students are welcome to work on a project in my lab in an unpaid position for the first few semesters, as a way of demonstrating their abilities and to see if we have a research topic they'd like to pursue. If the students fit in well with our group and do well in their classes here, then I will usually try to find a way to get them into a paid RA position after they have passed their first few qual exams.
You Want Me to Serve on Your Committee?
You want me to serve on your thesis committee? I am willing to consider such service when the topic area is one where I believe I can provide useful feedback. Note that I take such service seriously, and I tend to be picky about what is written and claimed in both the dissertation and defense. I have refused to sign at least one Ph.D. defense form because I did not find the work to be appropiate as a work of scholarship -- so be warned -- my signature is not a given!
I suggest you look at some of the items I have linked to this page. They may prove to be useful as you progress through your research.
If you still want me to be on your thesis committee, then please observe the following:
- First, discuss with your advisor whether I would be a good addition to your committee. If your advisor objects, then I should not be on the committee.
- Provide me with a written statement describing your thesis (not the document -- the hypothesis), your approach, and a statement of why your work will be important. This should not require more than 4 pages of text.
- After I have had a few days to read your summary statement, make an appointment to talk to me to answer any questions I might have.
Once I agree to be on your committee, I expect the following to occur, in roughly this order:
- You will eventually provide me with a document describing your thesis research in more detail. This will include a comprehensive bibliography of related work, a statement of goals and assumptions, an outline of how you will proceed to prove your thesis, an approximate schedule of completion, and a statement of the consequences of your work. Your advisor must have approved this document. This same document will likely be used for your thesis proposal/prelim exam.
- At least once a semester you will send me some email detaiing your progress. You are welcome to stop in to see me to discuss your work or seek input, but that is not required unless you need it. However, I do want to be kept apprised of your progress.
- At least 1 month before you expect to begin a job search, you will make an appointment to meet with me. You will provide a copy of your updated C.V., copies of any publications, and copies of any statements you have prepared (e.g., statement of research or statement on teaching). We will discuss your goals and expectations, and go over the list of places where you intend to apply.
- You will check with me before scheduling your thesis defense to ensure that I am in town. I will not agree to a defense date that is within 5 days of the submission deadline in any semester except in very rare circumstances. Nearly every dissertation requires some editing and rework before submission, and sufficient time should be allowed for this.
- No later than two weeks before the scheduled defense you will provide me with a final paper copy of your thesis. This is a version that your advisor is happy with, and that you expect to defend. My decision of whether or not to sign the thesis approval form will be based, in part, on this version of the dissertation. I will not accept a new version provided less than two weeks before the defense -- and especially not at the defense itself! Schedule accordingly.
- Your defense should be structured as your advisor recommends. However, in general, assume your audience is familiar with the general context of your work. Assume your committee has read your dissertation. Address the important and subtle points to make your case. Be precise in your writing and speaking. Try to keep your presentation to under 45 minutes without questions.
- After you deposit the final version of your dissertation, it is normally the case that you present members of the committee with bound copies. I keep my copies as reminders of the hard work and creativity of the students, and I will be honored to receive a copy of your finished work.
You Want Me to be Your Advisor?
(I will add to this as time goes on. This is currently incomplete.)
