This living document gives an idea of what it is like to be a part of SimLab along with some expectations for you, and what you can expect of Joyce as an advisor. Everyone is different and so is their academic experience. This document is meant to be a guide that is accompanied by ongoing conversations between Joyce and yourself/your peers about your progress and goals.
If something is not addressed below, or if you’re not sure about something, please ask!
First of all, we value the active participation of every member within our community and are committed to ensuring that everyone enjoys a gratifying and enriching experience, both in their professional and personal capacities. As such, we hold all members of the SimLab group accountable to display respect and courtesy towards others at all times. Our collective actions shape our culture, and our culture thrives on inclusivity.
Please note that this document represents our vision for our group’s vision, culture and objectives. It does not replace any relevant School- or College-level policies pertaining to your specific level of employment or study, but rather complements them.
The pursuit of enjoyable and high-quality research can only thrive in an environment where you feel safe, secure, and supported. To this end, all members of our group are unwaveringly committed to fostering an environment free of harassment, regardless of factors such as gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, age, and religion. We unequivocally prohibit all forms of harassment involving our group members and expect every community member to adhere to the following Code of Conduct:
There is a growing body of evidence indicating that various aspects of research can pose challenges to your mental well-being. These specific factors include:
It’s important to recognize that most researchers encounter some level of these issues (Joyce can tell you all about it). Everyone in the group is strongly encouraged to proactively prioritize their mental well-being. Joyce will do everything necessary to make sure you have the necessary time and resources for achieving success in your research. If anything is causing undue stress or hindering your potential, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Joyce or any of the postgraduate tutors in the department for assistance. Additionally, please familiarize yourself with the available resources on campus, which can be found at http://counseling.gatech.edu/. We are committed to helping you access the appropriate support networks to ensure your well-being. Do not hesitate to check in every once in awhile.
The time commitment to research tends to be one of the most important issues for graduate students and advisors. Set specific goals and timetables for yourself. Working hard is not the same as accomplishing something (work smarter not harder). Make sure you set a goal and adjust your strategy as necessary (e.g., with teaching load, coursework, life!) to meet it.
Planning for sufficient work time takes priority. When setting meetings, appointments, office hours, or section meeting times, avoid breaking up your primary working hours. You may be a night owl or you may be a morning person (like Joyce who is also a random night owl). You have the responsibility and privilege to arrange your schedule in such a way that best suits your working style.
Be proactive about eliminating bottlenecks to progress. Do you need to meet with someone who is generally unavailable? Shoot them an email ASAP. Meanwhile, work on other tasks at hand.
It can be difficult to know how to divide your time between reading and writing papers and your research. Most people underestimate how long writing and reading takes.
“Time is the only irreplaceable resource” (except for your life and health – work efficiently, but always be safe!)
A PhD from Georgia Tech takes ~5 years. Joyce will do her best to make sure that you graduate within this time frame. Everyone except 1st year graduate students should have something new/presentable (e.g. a paper, a conference presentation, exciting results) every semester. You will take comprehensive exam at the end of the second year or first semester of the third year. The department requires an informal annual evaluation outlining goals and progress. Meet with your committee members at least once per year post qualifying exam. You should plan on writing a manuscript-based thesis that amounts to at least 3 papers that will be submitted to journals. Joyce will work closely with you to plan/outline figures and content and then will review complete drafts once finished.
First years typically take 2-3 courses each semester.
There are no set course list but there is a set knowledge list that you will try to take classes to fulfil for your qualifying exam in your second year.
Aim for a well-rounded education of Earth Science and classes that will help with your research.
Joyce will be happy to discuss with you on what classes to take.
Here is the EAS graduate course list: https://catalog.gatech.edu/courses-grad/eas/
Here is the Mechanical engineering graduate course list: https://catalog.gatech.edu/courses-grad/me/
Recommended classes:
EAS 6130. Earth System Modeling - 86150 - A
EAS 6312. Geodynamics
EAS 6314. Seismology. The propagation of seismic waves, the description of earthquake motion, and evaluation of earthquake damage. Examples provide experience in the interpretation of seismic data.
EAS 6315. Geofluids. 3 Credit Hours. This course focuses on the fundamental concepts of fluid dynamics merged with geophysical applications.
EAS 6331. Physical Volcanology. 3 Credit Hours. This class examines the dynamics and thermodynamics of planetary volcanism. The course material covers the generation and transport of magma in the mantle and crust, and the fluid dynamics of eruptions and their impact on the landscape and atmosphere.
EAS 6370. Physics of the Planets
EAS 8826. Geophysics Field Methods
EAS 8001. Planetary Science and Astrobiology Seminar
EAS 8802. Special Topics - 93277 - COM (2 credits) - Practical Math coding course
EAS 8803. Intro Geophysics
EAS 8997. Teaching Assistantship. 1-9 Credit Hours. For at least the first two semesters, you will be doing this.
EAS 8998. Research Assistantship. 1-9 Credit Hours.
EAS 8999. Preparation for Doctoral Dissertation. 1-21 Credit Hours.
EAS 9000. Doctoral Thesis. 1-21 Credit Hours.
Required courses/seminar:
EAS 8001 Seminar - 91849 - GEO - Department seminar
EAS 8001 Geophysics Seminar - 85402
EAS 6000 Intro Research & Ethics - 91153 - A (1 credit)
Classes to consider:
EAS 4801. Mini Planetary Sound
EAS 8801. Career Development.
EAS 6053. Preparing Future Faculty.
EAS 6316. Earthquake Physics - 93439 - Fundamental physics of processes that control fault slips and earthquakes with a focus on the latest emerging research topics in the field.
EAS 8803 Modern Geodetic Methods.
ME 6601. Introduction to Fluid Mechanics - 94307 - B
ME 3340. Fluid Mechanics - A,B,C,D
ME 6602. Viscous Flow. (3 Credit Hours). The mechanics of Newtonian viscous fluids. The use of modern analytical techniques to obtain solutions for flows with small and large Reynolds numbers.
ME 6124. Finite-Element Method: Theory and Practice (3 Credit Hours). Line, plane, solid, plate, and shell elements-theory: practical aspects of modeling; applications in mechanical engineering; final project.
ME 6201. Principles of Continuum Mechanics (3 Credit Hours). Introductory treatment of the fundamental, unifying concepts of the mechanics of continua.
ME 7301. Transport Phenomena in Multiphase Flow (3 Credit Hours).
ME 7751. Computational Fluid Mechanics (3 Credit Hours). Numerical methods for solving the time-dependent Navier-Stokes equations in complex geometrics, including theory, implementation, and applications. Crosslisted with CEE 7751.
Required: Weekly Thursday Department seminar and Geophysics Friday seminar
Recommended: Explorigins
This is a work environment, where you are expected to be on task for the number of hours equivalent to a standard work day. In practical terms, however, you will find that the job of being a scientist does not always conform to standard hours.
You can regard graduate school as a full-time job (with room for both vacations and overtime) with a twist. You should work a 40 hour work week on average in a given semester. Do realise that you are working towards your degree in the end. You get what you put in so in that sense, it is different from a regular job. On the subject of ‘overtime’, there will probably be times when you will need to work on weekends if a deadline is near.
You will take vacations because you are being paid as a full-time graduate student. Joyce is happy to discuss longer-than-average vacations with students, depending on your particular situation. Joyce will be away in Malaysia almost annually. You are expected to work during academic ‘holidays’ such as reading break. However, you are not expected to work during official University holidays and recesses – look up the Georgia Tech Academic Calendar.
Teaching is an integral part of our education and an academic career. In semesters where you teach, you should adjust your expectations for research output. It can be helpful to organize your time to allow at least one free day per week to work on research. If you’re looking for ways to get involved in community and/or affinity organizations, don’t hesitate to ask.
We tend to attend the American Geophysical Union science meeting in December or the biannual Ada Lovelace workshop in Europe. Other conferences/workshops are the SEDI Gordon conference and European Geophysical Union (EGU).
Be familiar with recently published material relevant to your research project. Below are some academic journals that may be of interest:
Do sign up for ‘mail alerts’ from specific journals and more general publication ‘feeds’ (e.g. Google Scholar or Web of Science); by doing this, you can be kept informed of newly published literature related to your studies. If there is anything interesting, you can always bring it up for journal club!
Writing is an important part of academia. Writing is part of the thinking process. Joyce encourages you to set aside some time to write weekly. Even if you are just taking classes, you can write about what you have learned. Writing takes practice. Scientific writing is all about revising your writing and is not intuitive to most. When you are reading scientific journals, take note of what are the part that are good and try to use it in your own writing. If you need help with writing, please let Joyce know or talk to others in the group. Everyone has a different way of writing. Outlining and brainstorming etc helps to organize your writing. Get feedback from Joyce and others in the group and try not to be offended by criticism. We are here to help you grow to be a better science writer so do not take it personally. Joyce is not the best writer so we are all here to learn together.
Students often have these questions when it comes to writing:
1) What is the timeline for writing? There are usually no datelines for manuscript. Since writing is part of the thinking process, this can be up to you. If you think your progress is too slow, do consult with Joyce. She will be happy to help you along.
2) When should I write? This is up to you but do set aside time for writing. If you do not set aside time and wait for inspiration, that might not happen. Even if it is for a few minutes. If you need the writing to be broken down more, please reach out to Joyce, she will be happy to help.
3) Am I expected to know how to write scientifically? No, especially not for your first paper. Scientific writing is a whole different beast from regular writing essay. Typically for a class, you write an essay and the only feedback you get is your grade. In scientific writing, there will be many revisions as our thinking changes and we discover more of the results as we write. The writing will also be different depending on who your audience are. Writing a proposal will be different from writing for scientific publication.
4) Why is there so many edits in my first draft? Am I a bad writer? No, you are not a bad writer but might just not be a good scientific writer yet. If you are unsure about edits, do talk to Joyce or whoever gave you the edits to help you understand their thought process. Note that it usually take some time to go through just one paragraph. Do not be offended by edits or criticism. They are meant to help you grow as a scientific writer.
Take part in scientific writing workshops, take a course to write your fellowship proposal. The way to get better is to practise and get feedback. Joyce encourages you to have a conversation with her about writing. Everyone has different idea of what drafting means. Some people just writes everything onto paper before organising, others like to outline or brainstorm before organizing. If you want a group writing time, reach out to the group and organize it. Setting aside group writing time with the lab group or your peers can help you be accountable for the few hours you sit down to write.
Write. Write. Write.
We generally have alternating group meetings once every two weeks and group lunch once a month. Everyone can discuss their progress, problems, and goals during the group meetings and more informally during group lunch. Group meetings can become journal club etc as the group wishes. These typically last 1-1.5 hrs. When we have new people or guests, be prepared to give your 5-minute introduction on who you are and what project you are working on.
Each term, try to sit down together with Joyce and identify reasonable goals to be completed by the end of that term. Write these goals down and revisit them periodically. Expect weekly standing meetings that can increase or decrease in frequencies as needed.
Please respond to emails within a few days, unless otherwise stated. You are not expected to respond to emails outside of normal working hours (e.g., on weekends or official holidays). Joyce will try her best to do so as well but if you have something urgent, it is usually better to use slack or call.
Sometimes, students are unclear what they should be doing early in a project. This is normal. Talk with Joyce, talk with fellow group members. Joyce is here to develop overarching ideas and projects with you, and guide you when you run into barriers. Other members of the group are your primary resource if you need focused technical/coding help. In academia, it is important to be open to criticism. Criticism can be a difficult aspect of a PhD; many of the things you will work on become so important to you that it can be hard to maintain perspective. Feel free to talk out edits or critiques with other group members to create a plan of action if you feel overwhelmed. Work together to find a common agreement when conflict arises. If you ever need help with a workplace issue, talk to the labmates, but if you need further advocacy, you should reach out to the EAS admin or the ombudsperson.
You will be supported for a guaranteed 5 years while in EAS, Georgia Tech. Your support will likely come from a mixture of TA/RA and fellowship funds. Especially in your 1st year, you are expected to apply for external fellowships, for example, NASA, NSF GRFP, Hertz (though it can be harder to find options if you are an international student).
It is important to have strong integrity and honesty in your work – never skewing, biasing or misrepresenting results to fit a previous idea. Backing up your work at least once a week is also crucial. Consider backing up your organized files with a README when you’re done, so that future students can use the data. You could, for example, use Dropbox (free to Tech students) for the ease of storage and backups that allow access across multiple computers and users. You should also consider backing up your laptop/data to an external harddrive.
Tracking and recording work is important. Taking clear notes feels boring but pays off massively later when you are writing. Use whatever you are most comfortable with to take notes during meetings. You may want to keep a separate journal to take notes on the department seminars you attend. You should use a citation management software, like Zotero, Mandalay, EndNote, or BibTeX, to manage the papers you’ve read (or will read) for each project (e.g., a class, your qualifying exam, a research project). It is very helpful to write a short summary in the notes about the paper so you don’t have to read the entire paper again down the road.
You will be an author on a published paper if you have provided a substantial portion of the intellectual and physical work involved, and have completed your portion of the work satisfactorily. This involves participation both in the writing and the research work involved. You will be first-author if you contributed the majority of the intellectual effort and completed the project, including the writing. Academics often get attached to ‘this is my idea’ and people have imperfect memories so we encourage an open dialogue about who contributed to an idea being born, developed and brought to fruition.
An Individual Development Plan (IDP) is essentially a roadmap that helps you pinpoint your existing strengths and the ones you aspire to cultivate in the coming semester or years. When you collaborate with Joyce, you’ll complete an initial IDP, and then make periodic revisions as needed. This document serves as a valuable tool for reflection, allowing you to define your objectives and effectively communicate them to Joyce for ongoing support and follow-up. It encourages a structured and thoughtful approach to personal and professional growth.
As a graduate student, you will be treated as a junior colleague who is maturing into a professional scientist. This means that you can actively co-create opportunities to meet your goals. This framework also puts a large responsibility on your shoulders to live up to the expectations of performance that are required of a colleague. As a part of your PhD, you will ideally learn:
Adapted from Jerry Mitrovica’s group and Alex Robel’s group