OPENINGS IN THE PERK LAB
Check http://perk.cs.queensu.ca/positions...
Some standing openings are here:
Graduate Students in Computer Assisted
Intervention and Medical Robotics
Postdoctoral Fellow in
Ultrasound Image Computing
Before contacting me, please read the following carefully....
THANK YOU!
Thank you for taking the time
to look at my web pages and I truly appreciate your interest in the activities
of the Perk Lab. Due to increasing
internet connectivity and a large interest in our research area, I receive an
overwhelming number of e-mail messages from prospective students who wish to be
involved with the Perk Lab. Unfortunately, there are too many messages for me to
give a response to each one, in a timely manner. I regret that I cannot reply to messages that
are so important to the people who send them. Thus, the text below on this web
page is designed to provide you with some useful information about the process
and potential for joining the Perk Lab.
Yours,
--
Gabor Fichtinger
(Thanks to Prof. Allison Okamura for allowing
me to use her text on this subject.)
Postdoctoral candidates in
the Perk Lab are hired for specific positions. There are no postdoctoral
positions available in the Perk Lab unless there is a current posting on our
website. Unfortunately, postdoctoral candidates sometimes come across old
opportunities for my lab that have been posted on other websites; please check
my website first to determine if the posting is current.
In addition to any particular
technical expertise required for the specific project, I seek postdoctoral
fellows with the following general qualities: the desire to perform research
and publish at the highest level, independence, dependability, leadership
skills, a willingness to mentor graduate and undergraduate students, and good
communication skills. In turn, I hope to provide postdoctoral fellows with the
guidance to become better researchers, publishers, presenters, teachers, and
advisors (in short, excellent candidates for faculty positions). Sometimes, however, postdoc projects are
heavier in the aspects of prototype development and implementation than others.
In these cases, the ideal candidate has practical engineering skills and a
mindset on delivering a “working artifact”, let that
be software or mechatronic device. Generally, everything that we do in the Perk
Lab has direct clinical use or relevance. We
build useful “things” for clinical trials…
Advising philosophy
I
am very excited about the possibility of working with exceptional M.S./Ph.D. students. My aim as an advisor is to give strong
personal guidance that will maximize a student's chances of building a
rewarding and enjoyable career in research and development or academia. This is
accomplished through: (1) the identification of fundamental research problems
by developing a thorough understanding of current literature; (2) the
development of a strong technical background that enables the proposal of
independent and innovative solutions to challenging problems; (3) the
presentation and publication of research in the most prestigious conferences
and journals; (4) the development of personal communication and presentation
skills that are needed to maximize visibility in the research community, and
increase chances of future success. If you find this emphasis and my research area
appealing, I believe the Perk Lab could provide you with a vibrant and exciting
educational experience.
Joining the Perk Lab
I
am currently only accepting research students who have the Ph.D. as their
ultimate goal. (Students interested in obtaining the M.S. degree alone should
consider the course-only M.S. program, which does not involve joining a
research group.) Admissions to Queen’s University are based on merit, and
fellowships are sometimes awarded to admitted
students. Canadian citizens should definitely apply for outside fellowships.
This is one of the best ways to come to graduate school, since it allows you to
receive full funding while spending time trying to find the right research
group. In order to be a good mentor, I want to spend a significant amount of
time with each of my graduate students. Unfortunately, this means that I cannot
agree to advise every qualified student who wishes to join the Perk Lab. Since
students are always graduating, I am typically able to advise a handful of new graduate
student each term. The easiest path into the Perk Lab for an applying student
is to come highly recommended from a faculty member I know and trust in the
field of medical image computing or computer assisted intervention. GPA is
given much more consideration than other test scores. Research experience
(especially with publications) in medical image computing or computer assisted
intervention is highly valued and it is a must if you consider applying to PhD.
Good communication skills (speaking, writing) and a proactive attitude are
crucial. I definitely require writing samples from each applicant. Also, each
applicant goes through a personal and/or telephone interview process, sometimes
with the involvement of faculty collaborators.
Before contacting me about joining the Perk Lab, please read the
following responses to frequently asked questions (FAQs).
Frequency Asked Questions:
To see the types of research
activities currently active in the Perk Lab, please consult the Perk Lab’s web
pages (currently under construction.) Also, please see the related FAQ below.
Each M.S. and Ph.D. student in my group has his or her "own" thesis
project, which is developed in collaboration with me and other faculty at
Queen’s or elsewhere, so the current projects do not necessarily reflect
potential thesis topics.
Many prospective students
seem to send resume-style information in hopes that my research group has
"openings" to fill in the sense of a typical job. This is true for
some cases, when there is an active grant and research needs to be delivered. I
tend to accept postdocs for such projects. Generally, however, I look for top
students who I think will be successful, and do my best to bring them to the
Perk Lab. Still, I prefer that all entering students possess relevant domain
knowledge through courses or work experience in some aspect of computer
assisted interventions.
For research assistantships,
the answer is yes -- for the right person at the right time. I provide funded
research assistantships that pay for stipend and tuition to applying students
based on merit. I only admit students
with full financial support. This also means that I am extremely selective in
the admission requirements. Proven merit and excellence are absolutely
required. However, I do not necessarily
try to match specific "funded positions" on particular projects to
specific students (see FAQ on "openings" above). Rather, I aim to
take students who are the best overall match, and then projects are sorted out
as appropriate for student interest, skill, and various research grant deliverables
after the student arrives. The only way to know whether I have funding for you
is to apply to the graduate program. At our university, M.S.-only students also
receive funding commitments at the time of acceptance into the program.
Teaching assistantships pay only a couple thousand dollars per semester, so
that is not a comprehensive means of support.
Generally, you must consult the “prospective graduate student” pages of
the appropriate home department (CS, ME, EE/ECE) about financial support
information.
I cannot answer this question
based on information provided by email. (Besides, I am extremely hesitant to
open unrequested attachments. I only read PDF files and delete everything else
without sending notice or acknowledgement.) The only way to know if you will be
accepted is to submit a complete application to the appropriate home department
(CS, ME, EE/CE) which is evaluated by the Graduate Admissions Committee and
reviewed by faculty members interested in new research advisees. The
application materials and instructions are available online at the relevant
department. If you are interested in
working with me, you should apply to the best fitting Department and specify
your desired research area as Biomed & Computer Assisted Intervention. Please note on your application whether you
have applied for outside fellowships. Please note that just because I encourage
you to apply, it is by no means certain that you will be accepted to the
program or to the Perk Lab. Application
to the university and to the Perk Lab is a very competitive process and we can
only admit a fraction of the otherwise excellent applicants.
You need to apply to the home department
that the best suits your background and future interest:
Electrical
and Computer Engineering: http://www.ece.queensu.ca/grads.html
Computing:
http://www.cs.queensu.ca/students/graduate
Mechanical
Engineering: http://me.queensu.ca/graduate
You need to email the graduate admission coordinator of the department you are applying to. I will not know about the status of your application. Again, do not ask me, because I will not know the answer. I will only see your application when it is complete and available for review.
I prefer to meet or talk with
students who have already applied to the program. It is very helpful if you can
submit a complete application before trying to arrange a visit or phone
appointment with me. Students who will be admitted with a good chance of a
funded research assistantship or external fellowship for the fall semester may
be invited to visit, typically around February. Students are also regularly
accepted in the winter / spring semester, these I interview early fall.
Requirements are specified by
the appropriate home department (CS, ME, EE/CE) and are enforced by the
University. Do not even think of having the language test waived, that is not
going to happen. Sometimes, I request admission for applicants whose test score
in some subcategory is slightly below the set threshold. Regardless to test scores, I always ascertain
that you know enough English before I recommend your admission. I interview students in person or over the
phone, I require writing samples, and I may ask the applicant to write short
paper review and present the essay to me orally. Good writing skills are absolutely essential
for getting to the Perk Lab and there is no waiver from this requirement. Since practical standards of the Perk Lab
tend to be higher than those of the University, you will find this issue mootJ.
Undergraduate research is an
excellent opportunity to develop new skills while working closely with graduate
students and faculty. The university has several funding mechanisms for undergraduate
students, so please research those opportunities before you contact me.
The most important traits of
undergraduate researchers are: sincere interest in learning, good work ethic,
responsibility, communications skills, enthusiasm, and some technical skill.
Useful technical skills include building/machining/electronics, programming in
C/C++, using Matlab for simulation and plotting, and
statistical analysis – depending on your field of study.
Good grades are essential;
research should augment, not replace, excellent academic work. Students should
be committed to meeting goals and obtaining research results. Ideally, every
undergraduate researcher in my lab will have made a sufficient contribution to
have his or her name as a co-author on a published research paper. A handful of
undergraduate researchers from my lab have even been sent to conferences to
present their work.
I typically advise several
undergraduate researchers each year, usually from the CS, ME, or EE/ECE
departments. Typically, these students are assigned to a postdoc mentor who
provides day-to-day guidance in the context of our larger projects and
programs.
February or earlier is the
best time to contact me about a summer research position, to provide ample time
for acquisition of student support. Unfortunately, I get far more requests for
positions than I can host in the Perk Lab - so please don't consider it a
"rejection" if I am unable to offer you a position.
Each year, I get many
requests from high school students who wish to perform some kind of internship
in the Perk Lab. I usually agree to advise about one student in a given year.
Such internships are never paid. Typically, the student will be mentored by a
graduate student in my laboratory who has volunteered to do so. Experience in
computing, engineering or robotics is not required. The most important traits
of high school researchers are: sincere interest in learning, good work ethic,
responsibility, communications skills, and enthusiasm.
Interested students should
send me their resume and the desired length/daily time commitment of the
internship. If you don't receive a response within a few days, this means that
I have already accepted a student for the year and will not be able to consider
your application. I am more likely to take on a student who is from a group
that is currently underrepresented in the engineering field (e.g. women,
minorities).