Oddly enough, faculty are very popular people. This means we receive lots of email, calls etc, and since we’re always in meetings, we’re rarely in our offices. Here is a primer on how/when to contact me.

Recommendation Letters

I receive requests for recommendation letters all the time. People who request them typically want a good one. This requires having a statement of purpose/resume/reason for the letter and time. Time is the hardest thing to acquire because I need a block, typically I take about 4 hours to write the letter after having read the materials.

Media

Send me email if you can, it is always the fastest way to reach me.  Or send email to the Communications Department of the CoC or the Institute.

Dropping by My Office a.k.a. “do you have a few minutes”

I think the last time I had a few minutes was in 2004. I have a minutes deficit now. Please send me email. Also, please note that beginning a conversation about your research with “do you have a few minutes” is impossible (think about how hard it is to summarize your research in a 10 page conference paper, let alone in what counts as a few minutes).

“I’d like to meet with you today”

I receive quite a lot of emails that request a meeting on the same day that they are sent. Usually I laugh. Why? My calendar. I don’t make my calendar publicly available but here’s a great example of a typical faculty calendar. I promise I will give you the first available time I have, I guarantee it will not be the same day. In some cases it maybe at least a fortnight away. Please don’t wait until the last minute.

Admission to Programs

Be advised, individual faculty do not admit students into ANY programs.  Admissions is a separate process with its own committee.  Admissions happens once a year, and is an online process. This is true for ALL the programs in the College of Computing.

“I’d like a GRA with you”

I automatically delete emails that begin with Dear Sir. Sir is for men... you could use Dear Professor/Doctor if you would like a formal but correct alternative. I don’t mind the informal Hello or Hi either. I also get asked for GRAs to sponsor research on security, electrical and computer engineering, architectures... since I don’t do research in any of those areas (and many others) I delete those too. I also do not give GRAs to people I haven’t worked with (with one exception, new Ph.D. students admitted to the School).