Transcript What It Means To Get A Ph.D.

What It Means To Get A Ph.D.
Daniel Ángel Jiménez
Department of Computer Science
The University of Texas at San Antonio
A Little About Me
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Grew up in San Antonio, Texas
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1992 – B.S., University of Texas at San Antonio
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1994 – M.S., UTSA
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1995 – Started Ph.D. program at UT Austin
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1996 – Left to take research position at UT Health Science Center, San Antonio
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1999 – Returned to UT Austin
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2002 – Ph.D., UT Austin
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2002 – First job – assistant prof., CS Dept. at Rutgers (from Texas to New Jersey!)
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2005 – Sabbatical leave in Barcelona, UPC (Kaeli is in this club, too.)
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2007 – On leave from Rutgers, joined faculty at UTSA as assoc. prof.
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2008 – Got tenure at Rutgers – thought about going back, but no good tacos in Jersey
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2009 – Resigned from Rutgers
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My Research
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Study computer architecture and compilers
Work on branch prediction
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Introduced perceptron predictor
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Lots of follow-up work on this – latest is analog circuits
Other microarchitectural predictors
Code placement techniques in compiler
Large window processors
Power and energy in the compiler
Also working on improving cache efficiency
Publish in ISCA, MICRO, HPCA, PLDI
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Moving Back to San Antonio
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Two kinds of people
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People who can move far from home to take a job (e.g. Cavazos)
People who would rather stay near home
I went to UT Austin because it was close to home. My grad
school buddies moved to Austin from all over because UT
Austin is a top school.
First job was at Rutgers
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Did a lot of good work
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But very homesick the whole time 
Still not sure which of the two I am, but pretty sure I’m not the
kind that can take harsh winters!
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What it means to get a Ph.D.
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Getting the Ph.D. itself actually doesn't mean all that much
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You have some intelligence and probably some skills
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You have perseverance – you didn’t quit
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You can put “Dr. Foo Bar, Ph.D.” on your business cards
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A Ph.D. doesn’t give you super-powers
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Many Ph.D.s are still maladjusted weirdos
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What it means to get a Ph.D.
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Research & publications you produced are more important
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Did you network while doing your Ph.D.?
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Show your potential for future research
Puts you into a category
The details often aren’t too important, but there must be details
Fellow grad students
Faculty members at your school
Bosses & colleagues from internships
Other contacts you met at conferences
Did you do some teaching while getting your Ph.D.?
Did you help write some grant proposals?
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What it means to get a Ph.D.
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You should be supported as a TA/RA with tuition
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You take some important classes the first year
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The rest of the journey is a lot like an apprenticeship
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You learn how to do research by doing it
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You are guided by your advisor(s) and senior grad students
Some take longer than others
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The ones who got out earlier might not be better off
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Learn all you can!
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What it means to get a Ph.D.
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Main benefits of a Ph.D.
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More likely to have a career you enjoy
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If you are passionate about computing research
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More likely to have freedom in your career
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You learn how to do research by doing it
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You will have the tools to satisfy your intellectual curiosity
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More benefits depend on advisor
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Presentation skills
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Paper writing skills
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Etc.
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What it does not mean to get a Ph.D.
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A Master's degree plus a little more
– Most of the work is the dissertation
More money than you would have made with a Master's
– Not necessarily true
Easier to get a job
– Not really – you're competing for a smaller pool of
jobs, so it's harder.
More respect from your colleagues
– Not so much. They will have Ph.D.s, too, if you're
doing it right
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What it does not mean to get a Ph.D.
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Your life can finally begin when you get the Ph.D.
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Nope. You are living your life right now – enjoy it!
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There will always be milestones – graduating, getting a
job, getting promotions/tenure, getting that next
grant/paper/project/better job
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You will be happier if you think of graduate school as
part of your life, not an obstacle to getting on with your
life
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Enjoy the opportunity to travel
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Grad school is hard but you will look back on it as one
of the best and most enjoyable times of your life!
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Final thought: What it means to me
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I don't really think of my Ph.D. as a great accomplishment
I don't think of it as a piece of paper I needed to get a job
It represents a time in my life when my eyes were opened
to a magnificent world of learning through research, and I
was invited to participate in that world. It's a great feeling!
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The End
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