Contact TCNL: Students
Inquiries from students are welcome after you have reviewed the information on the TCNL web site. Paid research and project assistantship positions are very limited and if available will be announced on our employment page. Please do not make unsolicited inquiries concerning paid assistantships.
Thesis research or independent study may be arranged on an individual basis with Kurt Kaczmarek and coordinated with your academic advisor. Past students working the lab have majored in electrical, biomedical, and industrial engineering, and neuroscience.
Suggested student projects will be posted as we think of them.
How it works: All current TCNL senior staff are academic staff, not faculty. We therefore may not serve as your academic advisor. We are happy, however, to work with your advisor to arrange a program of study so long as there is a "fit" between student and TCNL interests and resources, as determined on an individual basis. If an agreement is reached, TCNL staff will supervise your work in the lab and provide necessary resources. Your academic advisor (or another willing faculty member) must be willing to approve this arrangement and "sign off" on your course credit and assisgn a grade in consultation with TCNL staff. Students are responsible for initiating and coordinating this TCNL-faculty arrangment but we will assist in any way resonably possible. Course credit could include 790, 890, or 990 credit for research leading to an M.S. or Ph.D. thesis, or 699 or 999 credit for non-thesis independent study. Please check with your academic advisor and home (degree-granting) department for specific requirements. Questions from your advisor or home department may be directed to Kurt Kaczmarek.
About the environment: TCNL is a working research lab. Students studying in TCNL are expected to be self-motivated and able to help plan their own program of study in consultation with their advisor and TCNL staff. There is no formal curriculum, syllabus, or set of lectures. The work environment is informal and minimally structured, but depending on the project there may be regular project meetings with TCNL staff and other students. There is no lab manager; students are expected to share in lab management and upkeep.
Thesis or no thesis? Some academic departments do not require M.S. students to write a thesis. We believe, however, that students who do write a thesis or formal project report on their TCNL research have more clarity of purpose, more sharply focused programs of study, and greater personal ownership of the research, than those who pursue a coursework-only option. Writing a thesis or report also enhances the skills required publish your work in the scientific literature. Thesis and project options are therefore preferred arrangements for study in TCNL.