Read this carefully before submitting anything.
I'm trying to streamline my student recruiting process. So, this form is for people who are serious about joining my research lab. It is a two step process. You will first fill out and submit the form below. Once you have submitted the form, you will receive a link you can use to download a few short programming exercises. You will have 1 week to submit them. I will use the submitted information to determine who to invite for further discussions.

The programming challenges are to be done in C in a Unix-style programming environment, using the terminal and standard *nix developement tools (gcc/clang, make, binutils, etc). Make sure you have curl installed, as it will be used to submit your work.

I have tested them on a version of both Linux and MacOS, but different machine configurations could potentially cause issues. Navigating these issues and getting things working is part of the exercise. More challenge-related instructions will be contained in the download. Make sure you are ready to begin before you submit.

These exercises are designed to be open-ended—almost like code essays. There are many different ways to solve them. There are simple solutions and more complicated solutions. I'm not looking for any one best answer. I want to see how you think, how you code, and how you solve problems. This is a chance to help me see you.

Since the goal is for me to see you, you should not share the code, post it online, collaborate with others, or use others' code or code written by an AI. You should also not submit multiple times to try to get more time. These behaviors are good strategies to not be considered further.

What if I need help? If this page seems to be broken, and you can't get the tasks, then email me. But, once you start on the exercises, you're on your own. I will not be giving hints, clarifications, or pointers. Do the best you can. That said, feel free to explain in your submission, any confusions you had and any assumptions you made.

Tell me a little bit about yourself.

First Name:

Last Name:

Email Address:

Why do you want a Ph.D.? (or whatever else you are hoping to get out of this):

Why do you want to work with me? (be specific—generic flattery isn't helpful):

Why should I want to work with you? (be specific—generic stuff about passion and mad skills is, well, not very helpful):

What sort of research would you like to do?

Submit a resume (PDF only):