Prospective Students

I do not have funded RA or TA positions. The opportunities below are for academic credit or volunteer research, not paid roles.

PhD Applicants

PhD admissions for the current cycle are closed. This page will be updated if future openings become available.

IIT Master’s Students (for credit)

I advise master’s thesis and independent study through for-credit research courses (e.g., ITMT 597). These provide hands-on research experience with close mentorship and are intended for sustained research rather than short-term exploration. They are not paid research assistant roles. Priority is generally given to students who have taken one of my courses and demonstrated strong performance and initiative. Students seeking a thesis or independent-study advisor should email a brief note describing their background and intended focus.

Short-Term and Remote Research (volunteer)

These positions are open to IIT students and to strong external or remote students. They are intended for sustained, publication-oriented research, not casual reading projects. Students should make consistent weekly progress, communicate clearly, and contribute to implementation, analysis, and writing.

A minimum commitment of 12 hours per week is expected. Students who hope to take a major role in a publication-oriented project should expect 20 hours per week or more. These positions are not suitable for students who can contribute only occasional or irregular hours.

What I Look For

I look for self-driven students who are comfortable coding and reliable in following through. I also welcome students from other fields, such as mathematics, statistics, social science, or physics, who can code and are serious about research. Specific project scope is discussed individually.

Contacting Me

Prospective students are encouraged to first read one recent manuscript from my group (see the Publications page), or to speak with a current student about the group’s work. A strong inquiry discusses that manuscript: its main finding, one limitation or future direction, and one concrete experiment you would like to help implement. Owing to limited time, I am unlikely to respond to generic emails that do not engage with a specific paper or project.

Please include in your email:

  • your CV;
  • transcript or GPA;
  • a GitHub or writing sample, if available;
  • your paragraph about the paper;
  • your expected weekly availability.

Contact: yhu89 [at] illinoistech [dot] edu  ·  subject: Research inquiry - YourName

For my research, publications, and teaching, please return to my main page.