Ask a person who recently got into a top 10 CS Ph.D. program anything
>>53618319
which one?
>>53618319
What job are you hoping to get? What are your aspirations? What breakthrough are you looking to do/what do you think you'll do for your dissertation?
Thinking about getting my math degree from a top 30 school with a CD minor and then doing grad for CS and possibly PhD to make some advancements in le cyber security.
>>53618338
>But muh anonymity
It's also a top 10 engineering school
>>53618319
Are you curious what making money for the upper class with your own ideas and knowledge will feel like?
>>53618358
I'm hoping to work as a researcher at a national lab. Probably LLNL or ORNL.
My aspirations are just to support the rest of science by advancing super computers.
I do work in performance modeling. An exciting field right now is variability. With how complex processors are now a days, it is getting harder and harder to predict program performance. Especially when you have millions of them working together. So I'm hoping to start working there.
I don't know anything about the current state of cyber security research, although that's what I thought I wanted to do before I started studying performance monitoring/modeling. I'm still interested in the subject.
>>53618319
Stanford is full of sociopaths and trust-fund babies
Don't go there
>>53618413
I don't think I'm fit to run a business. And since <.01% of startups make it, I think the best use of my current CS degree is the continue into CS research.
I mean, most tech companies don't contribute shit to society.
>>53618435
Visited their campus this summer and it's fucking beautiful.
But I'm pretty sure they drank too much of the startup koolaid. Not surprising considering the location.
Can you write fizz buzz
What are your research interests? Is there any professor in particular you're hoping to work with?
>>53618490
People are really nervous now, because a lot of the easy money for research projects and early-out-of-school funding is drying up (t. undergrad). Their unnatural advantage in these things is disappearing, and heads are rolling.
>>53618459
>most tech companies don't contribute shit to society
>OP will probably end up in ad monetization research
>>53618583
actually, I've avoided learning much about data science so far. I know how to use a neural net on the MNIST dataset, but that's about it. I've never even taken a stats class. Similarly, I've also avoided learning any webdev. I understand HTML and that's about it.
>>53618574
That's interesting, I haven't heard anything about research funding drying up. All I know is that the professors I'm interested in working with have never had a problem finding funding. The nice thing about HPC is that the government is very interested in it, so I don't think this will be a problem for me.
>>53618563
Power-aware computing and variability are what I'm planning on working with. These are two of the big problems in HPC, although variability is relatively new to the scene. Extrapolate professors from that :P
>>53618558
Yes. I'm not great at programming but I know most of C and a decent amount of Fortran.
Also HPC general
>>53618319
>grad school
>2016
didn't anyone warn you like 10 years ago ago already about how shit grad school is now?
Or is computer science and engineering still the exceptions? But seriously good luck. Hope you picked a professor who can actually connect you to a 100K starting job.
>>53618745
>HPC
actually this is probably a great time to be getting into that, what with kludges borne out of Moore's Law being finally replaced now that Moore's Law is over. Im sure you know that tho :3
>>53618424
>I'm hoping to work as a researcher at a national lab. Probably LLNL or ORNL.
lmao
we'll see if those are still your aspirations when it's time to graduate.
>>53618772
The prof told me his students get faculty positions at national labs (not post-doc positions) so I'm not worried about money. Should be $90k+, depending on the lab.
>>53618745
What kind of research do you do, when you say you aren't great at programming? I'm just starting at one of the leading European centers and C, Fortran, the better part of C++ and a decent understanding of Assembly is basically expected. We do have some theory and automated sys-admin people though, they play in Hasklel and Python mostly.
Currently wrapping up my undergrad in top 10 CE school (just missed this list). I'm currently signed for an offer in Bay Area for 115k.
What convinced you to go to research instead of being an engineer at a company? I see it as I'm trying to hop into the stupid high SV salaries before the bubble pops.
I really enjoy webdev (backend) but at the same time could see myself eventually burning out on SE eventually. At that point I'll either move to management or go back to school for a Phd. Have you considered every doing R&D at a company instead of in academia?
>>53618424
post github or your projects
>>53618772
engineering grad school is shit, at least on phd level. at best you'll get paid 30k/year for 5 years (unless you're a woman in which case everyone in your lab will do your work for you so you can finish in 3-4 years) then on average you'll get offers for ~90k. you can reach that by spending those 5 years in industry right after your bachelors and you'll have 5 years of experience to boot, not to mention pay significantly higher than 30k/year during those five years.
not a day goes by that i don't regret going to grad school.
>>53618319
I found an iPhone, can you help me unlock it?
>people feeding into this autistic nerd's ego
>>53618886
>Currently wrapping up my undergrad in top 10 CE school (just missed this list). I'm currently signed for an offer in Bay Area for 115k.
dude you're so cool, people totally asked you about your salary
>>53618909
It was relevant because why the fuck would someone not go into industry when salaries are stupid high right now
>>53618927
>Bay Area for 115k.
>115k
>Bay Area
that's why. also enjoy your dot com bubble 2.0.
>>53618909
If you've never met this type of autist - congratulations - you clearly don't work in tech/with tech people
>>53618852
I mean, that's how it works. People chance in 5 years. But I've already been indoctrinated into the culture.
>>53618787
Yeah, I've seen pic related in multiple presentations now. There is a lot of super cool research going on in automatically adapting code to GPU's, since the next generation of supercomputers will have them. Check out Wu Feng's lab at Virginia Tech.
>>53618772
Thanks. I think $90k+ is guaranteed, if I land a faculty position (not uncommon). More depending on the lab.
>>53618459
The number is low, but it isn't that low. Something like 10% make it.
>>53618942
Do you think thats poor in the bay area? At tech companies that pay for all your food, reimburse expenses, etc?
>>53618772
sorry for replying twice (3 times now) i've been drinking.
>>53618879
When I say I'm not great at programming, I mean that I'm not great at what typical tech companies would want. I would say I'm above average at systems level stuff though. I'm all C, x86 ASM and python.
>>53618896
They are not too exciting.
>>53618902
You're absolutely right. Nobody has ever said to get a Ph.D. for the money. You will never make back the money you lose by missing out on 5 years of experience.
>>53618886
I got hooked on research last summer at LLNL. I probably got pretentious because good companies don't recruit at my school (~top 100 CS). So I decided most tech companies weren't worth my time.
But Google started coming recently, and I've considered working there. I'd need to do considerable prep for the interview though. And Intel is another option, since I like working at the architecture level. I'm planning on interning at at least one during the Ph.D. so I'll see how it goes.
>>53618902
>>53619075
>people on /g/ literally avoid doing things they like just for the money, literally everything is about the money
man you guys lead sad lives
>>53618927
>>53619126
LLNL won't be happening until after Phd, by which time an industry employee will have 5 years of experience and be making more than that.
Not to say there isn't merit to research; I wonder whether or not I'd actually enjoy it more. 20k/year doesn't mean that much when you could be enjoying your life more and already make a very fine salary
Thanks for making this my most successful thread ever!
I'll probably check back in an hour or so if the thread is still here.
>>53619075
Well if you are going to one of these unis, I know they all get recruited from quite heavily. You certainly won't have issues getting hired should you choose to eventually go down the industry path (assuming Ph.D goes well of course).
>>53618319
How do I screenshot a relatively long twitter exchange?
Using "fullpage" screenshots (eg. via firefox console) don't work because twitter prunes any part of the conversation that is not currently on the screen.
>>53619219
Yeah, but 130K is nothing to sneeze at.
Researchers don't live a life of poverty, they just don't make quite as much.
As it stands, I'm going to make ~$35k (before taxes) a year as a phd student, if you factor in the 10-12k I'll make at an internship over the summer. With a government fellowship, that could go to almost $50k.
Not great but not awful.
>>53619226
Gotta drop off your wife's son to the Kendrick Lamar concert?
>>53619270
what kind of shit phd program allows you to fuck off and do internships over the summer?
How did you get in? What was your application like, and which schools did you attend?
>>53619306
Ph.D interns are quite popular at the big tech companies
MS, Google, FB, etc
>>53619271
kek
>>53619306
If the research at the internship will be towards a thesis, then it is encouraged. They want to you be employable afterwards. That makes the program look good.
>>53619319
-3.97 GPA from a top 100 CS school,
-95% Quantitative, 90% Reading, Shit writing on the GRE
-awesome letters from an associate dept. head, a gov't researcher, and someone who knows my TA abilities
-1 summer of research at LLNL, roughly 2 semesters of undergrad research
It's about who you know. More importantly, it's about who you know, knows. If you do research with a professor, or do good work in a prof's class, ask them who they know that could get you an internship. Then ask your mentor at the internship who they know. These are the schools you apply to. Simple as that.
