text:
Open book exam tomorrow but the file with the questions are open to everyone already
I was going through the files on canvas of my course, then I saw a file called like Examination_(coursename)_2021 and was like "it's probably the practice". I opened it and it seemed like the actual exam, so I sent a message to course group like is this the actual exam? It seems like it is and they asked me to share it with them, which I did. Then I started thinking I should tell my professor that I have access to the questions. I also checked if other people in my class could find the file which they did. So now I'm kind of lost, obviously, I want to do well on the exam but also I don't feel good about it. Although the exam is tomorrow and it is an open book exam, I feel like I should tell my professor just because now my mind isn't focused on the exam at all, I feel I am morally obligated to tell them. Though I would have to tell everyone in my group that I told the professor which I don't think they would be happy about because I asked them if I should tell the professor and they already said no. Another reason I'm worried is that the professor might be able to see when I first viewed the questions, which was a day before, I'm just so lost about what I should do.
Edit:
I think I will tell my professor. However, now I don't know if I should tell the people in my class or just keep it anonymous. I'm worried that if I don't tell my class, some people will only have prepared for the questions and not for the actual course. I definitely regret sharing the exam with the people in my class now, it would've been much easier to have told my professor, if I hadn't shared the questions with the people in my class.
Edit 2:
So I did send an email yesterday and apparently, it was just a past exam from another year. So it's all good. I just completed the actual exam today and feel quite good about it. Thank you to everyone who helped give advice!!

If your username here is your real name, be a bit cautious about asking questions that might cause issues if seen by others.

@Buffy Yeah, I made a fake name, no worries.

@TomineBerkly if you're worried about your classmates only preparing for the questions, maybe you could request your professor to make an announcement to the class that he will be removing the paper? This way the class will know that the prof is aware about his mistake, and it could preserve your anonymity as well.

Even without considering the ethical part (which should be the important one anyway) going through with a rule violation where 50 people know that you are guilty, there is written proof, and where the violation itself is easy to discover is usually not a smart move.

Next time, if there is a next time and I hope not, don't share the paper with your peers. Tell them where you found it, and to take it if they want.

Tell your professor.  I don't know whether Canvas keeps logs such as you describe, but it doesn't make any difference.  Your feeling of moral obligation is correct. You are obligated to tell your professor.
Here is some general advice.  Author John D. MacDonald has one of his characters say, approximately, "In the case of any ethical decision, the thing you least want to do is probably the right choice."  (Quoted from memory, which is why it's approximate.  I think Benedict De Spinoza wrote something similar.)

Canvas does indeed keep a file access log for each student that is readily visible for the instructor!

Excellent quote, so true.

+1 for the quote. Another one that comes to mind is “Integrity is doing the right thing even when no one is watching” (due to C.S. Lewis apparently)

@DanRomik Also a good one. Another principle to check is whether you would like your actions to be reported on the front page of the Times (or whatever newspaper is the largest/most respected in your place). I couldn't find the quote for this, but this is a very useful guiding principle if nothing else is.

We can't guess whether the prof made a mistake, or whether he/she is just clueless about how the system works. (Maybe he/she doesn't even know if there is a way to embargo a file from access before a specified date). Either way, the log file is worthless unless somebody with the authority to act on the information it contains actually looks at it in the relevant time frame.

@user2705196 can you provide details on the Canvas access log?  This exact same thing happened to me as the instructor (accidentally uploaded wrong file) and I was completely unable to figure out which students had access the file and as a result had to make up an entirely new exam.

@CaptainEmacs: that sort of principle would prevent you from making highly ethical, but commonly frowned upon or illegal choices. Public opinion is not a very good ethical guideline, IMO. The quote in the answer I would also add a couple of asterisks for, but this one I strongly disagree with.

I don't know if it's a well known aphorism, but "if it feels like cheating, it probably is".

@tomasz That's why I talked about a highly respected paper. I agree that there may be border cases where this would not work, and that's why I said "another principle" rather than "a principle to use instead". Equally, one could easily attack the original principle via "Being ethically right is often uncomfortable, but being uncomfortable does not make one ethically right". The reality is multifarious. All these are indicators that are triggered by ethical, but difficult choices. But if there were a simple principle, you wouldn't have 2000+ years of philosophy of ethics.

@DanielK It should be under a student's access log https://community.canvaslms.com/t5/Instructor-Guide/How-do-I-view-the-course-access-report-for-an-individual-user/ta-p/754 But note, that no matter how many students viewed the exam you have to pull it and give a new exam because obviously the file can (and will) be shared outside Canvas as the OP's problem illustrates...

Canvas has access logs, but are they accurate? That's another question: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/09/technology/dartmouth-geisel-medical-cheating.html

It is your unequivocal ethical duty to let the professor know about discovering the exam file. If you knowingly take an exam whose contents you know in advance even though you are not supposed to know them, then you are guilty of cheating, plain and simple. There isn’t any way to make such an action appear morally justified.
Second, your professor also has an ethical duty to act in a way that minimizes the damage from this incident. They must rewrite the exam. And they must announce to the class that the exam has been rewritten so as not to leave students with the false idea that they know the contents of the exam, leading them to not prepare well for a genuine exam. (Some might argue that that would be their problem if they chose not to prepare; however, deliberately leaving them with such an idea is a form of entrapment in my opinion, and itself unethical). So in your email to the professor it might be reasonable to express your concern about the classmates not being told, and suggest that the professor make such an announcement. It should be the professor who announces it, not you, to avoid jeopardizing your relationships with your classmates.

Frankly, I do not think it'd be entrapment, not even in a figurative sense. If the cheaters get entangled in their own cheating and false self-confidence, and fall foul of the exam, they brought it upon themselves; it's not like things have been specifically set up to bait and catch them - it's their own trap that catches them. However, I still agree the professor needs to inform the students about the newly set exam, if only to reassure the honest students that the cards are now freshly shuffled.

@CaptainEmacs well, it was the professor’s negligence in allowing the students public access to the exam file a day early. So it is at least an accidental form of the entrapment. Moreover, if the professor becomes aware of it and then wilfully neglects to inform the students that the file they saw will not be given as the exam, the professor is at the very least allowing the attempted “crime” to proceed when they could be trying to prevent it. I don’t know whether it should be called entrapment or not, but it’s behavior that is unbecoming of a professor, and IMO unethical.

Note: OP has mentioned that they used a fake name as their username

@NiharKarve thanks, edited that out.

As an open book exam, it would not agree there is an obligation to rewrite the exam. An open book exam is already not that different from a "seen exam." And, as long as everyone knows about the test, everyone is on an equal playing field. Heck, even if it were a closed book exam, the teacher could just make it a seen exam. There will always be room to test them on their knowledge later.

@trlkly I don’t really understand your argument. An open book exam is in general very different than a seen exam, and an exam that was originally planned as an open book exam and inadvertently got turned into a seen exam because the file leaked is different yet, and almost certainly useless as an assessment tool.

@DanRomik I don't really see much difference. Both let you offload most of the knowledge elsewhere, and are more about knowing how to find the right answer than knowing the answer. The main difference is just the amount of time allotted, which does change things, but not enough that you get nothing of value out of the test, or else seen exams wouldn't be a thing. It seems a shame to waste all the work, so why not get something out of it, and then add something else to test the material further? Why completely destroy the exam entirely?

@trlkly I agree it’s a shame. That’s why it’s important to not inadvertently let students view the exam file ahead of time. But that milk has been spilled already. Your “it seems a shame” argument is basically a sunk cost fallacy, mixed in with a lack of understanding of how professors approach assessing their students’ knowledge and various practical issues that need to be considered in connection with that. I don’t have room here to discuss this in detail, but feel free to post a separate question on the difference between a seen exam and an open book exam. Anyway, thanks for your thoughts.

Two things to add to the excellent answer of Bob:
Not only should you tell the prof, but you are in the right to request anonymity.
Your fellow students will likely not be happy and, be aware, that, despite you doing the right thing, there is a high likelihood that will feel that you cheated them. Unfortunately, that's not the desired thing, but that's what typically happens.
You may need to ensure that your post is anonymous if you do not trust faculty to keep your identity as whistleblower confidential.
And, of course, do request that the paper is invalidated, so that students that were not informed about it do not end with a disadvantage.

The teacher won't be happy either, having to prepare a new exam again at the last moment. Better learn how to properly hide exams next time!

@GiuseppeNegro I agree, but these systems are not safe. They can be easily outwitted and also, they have some counterintuitive settings which can get the wrong files being visible at the wrong times.

Right. This is the high-tech version of the old fashioned "teacher forgot the exam sheets in a common room and student took one".

@GiuseppeNegro More like, the teacher put the exam in a drawer, thought they had locked it, and the room was inaccessible and didn't realize the students could get to the room and open the drawer because the lock was broken.

The mainstream opinion here does not generalize well. I agree that it's ethical to tell the professor, and it seems from your words you are not afraid of repercussions.
But for the people in different situations, remember that often no good deed goes unpunished. You can derail your academic career or even get in legal trouble just for discovering security issues.
Do not ever, in any circumstances, access files you shouldn't have access to, even if you just want to help. They can blame you and accuse you of hacking.
It is very risky to help people. If you can report something anonymously, you will avoid lots of potential trouble - but take care that you actually left no identifying trace.

The fact that the OP has looked at the exam is already logged.

The flip side of this is that if you are in difficulties, it would be hypocrisy to expect anyone to help you.

@DikranMarsupial They didn't say not to help, but to help anonymously. It's more comparable to these passersbys in the US who save someone's life and then disappear so that they cannot be easily found and later sued for damages by the victim. They are happy to help, but do not want to later pay for saving someone's life, which is kind of understandable.

@CaptainEmacs fair point. +1 Studentix  One would hope academia would be a bit more rational about these things than society in general though. The golden rule applies in both directions.  If you are a prof (or disciplinary committee) you would want students to own up to their mistakes (so that you can minimize the consequences), so pillorying a student that does so would be counterproductive and not the way you would want to be treated if the positions were reversed.

@CaptainEmacs do you have a reference documenting this alleged US phenomenon? There are many absurd and disturbing things about US society, but this one of good Samaritans disappearing out of an express desire to avoid getting sued is news to me.

@DanRomik The suing is something I have heard for decades from friends from the US, and believe also to have read about, but I have not recorded the sources. I would have to google these. Given that legal costs for malpractice in the US are not capped as in Europe, it sounds at least plausible which I would expect to drive up also the medical costs in the US. The vanishing strategy is something I only read recently - but I didn't take note of the source.  So, if you like, you can file it under hearsay until I can find this.

@CaptainEmacs Every jurisdiction in the US has some legislation protecting bystanders who help. The details of that protection vary widely (what's covered, when it's covered, if you're actually required to help, if you're required to stay at the scene, etc.). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Samaritan_law#United_States Realistically, people probably vanish not because they're specifically afraid of a law suit, but more because they're afraid of being tangled up in some kind of tedious bureaucratic procedures (or possibly unwanted media attention).

@user3067860 Interesting. Note that it says New York provides immunity to a Good Samaritan - which implies that other places don't. Maybe a court will typically rule in favour of a Good Samaritan, but given the litigousness in the US, I wouldn't put  it past a victim with an avid pro bono lawyer to at least try to sue a wealthy Samaritan. Given the strange verdicts on - e.g. - burglars and homeowners, I wouldn't be surprised if people'd rather stay away from anything that might look like a courtroom.

@user3067860 See https://www.lhsfna.org/index.cfm/lifelines/january-2019/good-samaritan-laws-what-exactly-do-they-protect/: "a bystander in California who witnessed a car accident and pulled the victim from the vehicle out of concern that it would catch fire was later sued by the victim, who was left permanently paralyzed. The bystander won the lawsuit but the decision was later reversed by an appeals court that ruled she didn’t provide medical assistance. California has since changed its Good Samaritan law" - note that the bystander was successfully sued under the original law.

@CaptainEmacs  Yes, I'm not saying it never happens. Just that it is about like "OMG, I could slip on a banana peel and break my neck and be paralyzed for life"... I'm sure it HAS happened. But the reason I look where I'm going isn't banana peels, it's nails, corners of doorways, etc., etc. The reason people vanish after helping isn't OMG I'm going to be sued, it's OMG I don't want to deal with paper work and being late(r) to wherever I was going and...all the things that are much more likely (even certain) to happen (even if much less worse to actually have happen).

Many academic ethics problems are reasonably well addressed by the "Golden rule", i.e. treat other people the way you would like to be treated if roles were reversed (sadly, this is sometimes exactly what the maxim in Bob's answer suggests).
If you were the prof. you would probably want to be informed immediately.  They would probably not want you to share it with all of your friends as that may well invalidate the whole assessment for every student (meaning you may all have to sit a second exam).
You may want to check whether this violates your universities plagiarism and collusion regulations.  Giving material to other students that is likely to improve their performance is likely to be regarded as collusion.
I would recommend letting the prof know exactly what happened immediately so they can do what they can to salvage the situation.  Whether you do this anonymously or not is up to you, but next time I would think about the ethics of the situation before acting.


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Citing a country's constitution in the OSCOLA style
How do you cite a country's constitution in the OSCOLA style?

Could the downvoter please explain?

While the OSCOLA style guide does not give specific guidance for a constitution, the MLA guide suggests citing constitutions using the same form as laws.
As such, I would conclude that appropriate citation for a constitution would follow the OSCOLA style guide for legislation, e.g.,

U.S. Constitution, Article I, Section 2

This. I always cite constitutions like they are laws, as, well, they are!

source: Stack Exchange

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sort: votes


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Dedicating a paper
May I dedicate a paper to two persons in different ages on the occasion of their birthdays? For instance, "dedicated to John on his 70th birthday, and to Steve on his 60th birthday." I appreciate it if you could help me with finding a proper sentence.

May I dedicate a paper to two persons in different ages on the occasion of their birthdays?

Yes

Maybe something like
"Dedicated to John and Steve who celebrate their 60th and 70th birthday."
?

You should check the feasibility with the journal. Most of them don't like it unless the people to whom you would dedicate the work are well reputed at least in the area covered by the journal or unless the entire issue is dedicated.
Edit: the comments below the answer weren't visible to me at the time I wrote this. Otherwise I wouldn't have answered but just up voted them. Indeed, normally dedications are "to the memory". Dedications to very prominent researchers when they retire or get indeed old are even more rare.

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Submitting two articles to the same journal at the same time
I was wondering about the acceptability of submitting two papers to the same journal at the same time. (I see some similar questions here, but they don't quite address my particular situation.) My area of interest is Media Studies. The two papers would be related but stand-alone, and I would be the sole author of each.
Rather than explain further, I'll give an example. One paper might be something like "Race Relations in Star Trek: Discovery." And the other might be something like "Does Star Trek: Discovery perpetuate some social stereotypes?"
The two papers would be on a somewhat similar theme and would share some references but would, I submit, be different enough to warrant separate treatment in two separate papers. So I would hope they would not be seen as salami slicing or duplicate publication.
Does that sound right? And would it be acceptable to submit them to the same journal at the same time (e.g. to a journal similar to Television Quarterly, which, lamentably, ceased publication a few years back)?

One of those similar questions would be Submitting multiple distinct papers to the same journal, and has a couple of answers from the editor's perspective.

Thanks. I read that one before posting. It was close, but not quite aligned with my situation. Still, some helpful information.

It is absolutely unremarkable to submit two related papers to a journal in parallel.
In fact, it is often better to have them submitted to the same journal than to separate journals, so that they can be handled as a "package" of related work by the editors.
My one key suggestion is to make sure that you explicitly call out that you are doing this in the cover letters for the papers, and to have the papers refer to one another in their related work sections. This will give you a chance to make your case to the editor and reader that the papers are indeed each able to stand alone.  Moreover, if you are up front about this and the editor disagrees, then they are likely to ask that you merge the papers rather than rejecting them or getting upset about "salami slicing".

Thank you so much. That is so helpful, especially the suggestion to inform the journal of what I am doing and why. I really appreciate it!

It is acceptable in general, but an editor might question the similarity of the two papers and wonder whether you are just trying to pump up a CV. It would be up to them to decide whether to send either or both out to review.
But if you do it, I suspect that the doubts of an editor would be reflected back to you with advice and questions.
The further apart the papers are the less questions might be asked. It is a judgement call for the editor, but your downside isn't very deep.

Thank you very much. I will definitely go back through the papers and review how far apart they are.


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On the originality of a master thesis: how far does it need to go?
I am in the process of writing a master thesis and I need advice.
I was reading this topic Can master's thesis be simply a description of an original algorithm? and this one On the originality of a master's thesis topic and I kind of facing the same issues. I need the opinion of people who already finished their master thesis and have some knowledge about it to help me.
The context:
I am working on a specific problem in Machine Learning. Whatever the problem is, my idea in the beginning was to develop a neural network, call it NN-A, and apply it to a dataset - simulated or not. I have as a reference a paper that implement this neural network but using a different framework, let's call it NN-B. The neural network is exactly the same but written in a different language and applied to simulated data, one with dimension 5.
I have access to real world data from a real lab. This data is of dimension 20, a bigger problem and more difficult to deal with. I gained access to this data recently and I decided to use it in my NN-A.
The problem: NN-B is publicly available on the internet. The code is all there. That is the main reason why I decided to use a different language to build the NN. The idea is the same, just written in a different language (if you know what I'm talking about, NN-B is written using tensorflow and I will rewrite from scratch using pytorch, but the architecture of the network will be exactly the same). Is it plagiarism? I mean, off course everything will be referenced and the credits will be given to the authors of the original network. But using their code in a master thesis applying to a different dataset adapting their code to this new data structure is ok?
Using exactly the same code they published but applying to this higher dimensional problem and working on the specific adaptations is my plan B. My plan A is to rewrite the entire code using this other framework (pytorch) and apply it to this higher dimensional problem.
The problem with plan A is that this framework is very new to me and maybe I won't have time to finish it. Is plan B enough for a master thesis? If so, is it a master thesis at all? I am afraid if this is plagiarism even tough the code is public and I will give the credits. Understanding the architecture of their neural network and the specific problem I am applying it to is a very complex problem in itself and writing about them seems to me to be a very good subject for a dissertation, but I am not sure if it is enough or if it is a good master thesis. And in the case it is how good or bad can be to 'just' adapt an existing code?

What does your thesis advisor think? This seems too specific to your particular case for a general answer here. "Not plagiarized" is not typically a sufficient criterion for a masters thesis; certainly if it is plagiarized that's a problem, but it's not sufficient.

A quick one. When you refer to your dataset, what do you mean by dimension of 20. Kindly let us know what the shape() is.

I tried not to enter in specific details because this is not a specific forum for machine learning and math. Dimension 20 means I have a hilbert space of dimension 2^20 and dimension 5 means 2^5. It will translate to a 32x32 matrix/1048576x1048576 matrix.

@BryanKrause it will not be plagiarized. I talked to my advisor actually and she thinks this is a good project and applying this network to this real bigger dataset is more than a good review but an application to a more difficult problem to deal with. I used the word "plagiarism" because sometimes it gives me chills all of those codes public available

Even tough I need a lot of time to understand the code, the architecture of the network, the specific problem I am trying to solve with machine learning etc "just using" an adapted version of an existing code sometimes it feels that I am not producing anything and just "copying".

For a Masters, originality i.t.o. novelty/contribution to knowledge is not essential or critical. That is not to say that there are not many masters thesis with novelty and contributions to knowledge.
The requirements vary from school to school and from region to region.
Your scenario is kind of too 'specific'.
If you tweak a model and you apply to a different dataset in a different domain and  attempt insight into a problem, you'll most likely satisfy the requirements of a master.
So, think of these for plan A and B

what's the aim
what's the objective
if possible, what's the research question
what's the problem (attempting to 'solve')
what's the solution being proffered
is there a methodological approach and methods to achieve the aim/objectives
In essence, what's the research you are doing.
PS: your advisor will play a key role in these.

Inbtw, redeveloping or modifying publicly available libraries would not count as plagiarism. If it is on platforms like GitHub, you do a fork and documents your code.
It appears you're getting fixated on coding more than on research. Most of us did at masters level. Carry your advisor along and get into the stream of researching.
In some countries, masters is practically all research with no course works.

This is very good to hear. Indeed, my advisor said the same thing about getting tooooo fixated on coding more than on research. Actually, working on the understanding of the existing code, the problem I am trying to apply the code to and the theory behind the neural network needed a lot of working hours for months and I have a big collection of papers that I used as references to get there. But not finishing an original code gives me the feeling that "oh no! I am not contributing to an original work/something that no one ever done before".

Maybe this is just the insecurity that we all have in academia

The requirements for a masters thesis are locally determined. What is required is what the university will accept. Usually this means what the advisor will accept.
But, it isn't normally required that a masters thesis be original publishable research. That is because the thesis is normally time constrained and research leading to publishable results is difficult to time constrain.
Some theses are just surveys of a small field's current literature with an appropriate writeup that shows comprehension and some insight. If it is more than that, all the better. But a good lit review is a first step on the road to more serious research.
Talk to your advisor. Find out what they expect. But if the only difference is a change of language and a new implementation of what has been done, then it might not be enough and your advisor might reasonably ask for more. Adaptation to a new problem may well be enough.


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Disclaimer in an academic paper
I have a question about a paper of mine, which is highly likely to be published. Do you think I could put the following disclaimer: "This paper gives the views of the author, and not necessarily the position of the...(name of university)"?
If yes, where is the right place to put it?
Thank you in advance!

This is very common, especially for people who work at government research bodies or think tanks.  But you should ask your department.

Why do you think you need such a disclaimer? Does your university require it?

I don't think the university requires it, I have not encountered such a requirement anywhere. Maybe I should ask just to make sure...

I would recommend against including a disclaimer unless it is required (or maybe if you feel your paper will be unusually controversial).  Once you start including optional disclaimers, then consistency becomes an issue: if you ever leave out a disclaimer, are you implicitly asserting that this time you do represent the university?  Do you need to include a disclaimer in nearly every document or presentation for the rest of your life?  Instead, unless your university has special rules for this, I think you can take it for granted that you are speaking for yourself unless otherwise noted.

This is likely to be fine. You should look a the most recent 1-2 volumes of the journal you most want to publish the paper in and copy the disclaimer wording and placement that is used there.

Thank you for your answer. I am sorry, I did not mention it is going to be a peer-reviewed electronic book, therefore I do not have previous editions as a reference.

I have seen it required in Theses, but not in peer-reviewed publications.
If the journal requires it, it would be mentioned in the guide for authors.
But if anyone cares, it would be the institution.
Check a couple publications from your institution or ask a senior author if they have done it before.

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When do I need permission from website owners before data mining their pages for research?
I want to use data mining to analyze some websites to understand the impact of the internet on health awareness and health concerns of people in my country. I hope to publish the results in a journal.
When do I need consent from websites owners? I may end up analyzing hundreds of websites.

I'd think reading their server's "robot.txt" file would be a starting point...

See How to be a good citizen when crawling web sites?

When do I need consent from websites owners?

Under U.S.-like laws - you need this every time. In layman's terms, by default, you can look at public site areas and only look, no duplicating or storing, etc. Despite that even your browser does it freely, laws are convoluted here. If in a special agreement published on a site or in some other explicit form is not stated a permission for this usage, you should not do it. There also may be an explicit mark about public domain or a standard open-source license. But, even this public agreement isn't enough for your purposes.
Few of the potential problems:

Use protected by legal rights data isn't legal. (may be covered by a public
agreement or a written permission)
If you interfering with sites' availability via additional load, this may be a hostile act as well. (not only an admin's ban, this is a potential legal issue)
Even if the site owner allow it, you can break some    federal laws -
about personal data collection or something else, this is a question for a licensed lawyer. Also, more information needed for answer from this point of view.

So, yes, the written permission is the only legal way to dig somewhere and even this could be insufficient. People do sometimes their own similar projects without any permissions, maybe, because they think, this is too boring and slow to write some letters and do a legality research. However, you want to publish the results about work with thousands of thousands web pages. So, "cover your back" isn't a meaningless paranoidal phrase in your case. And this is only a few obvious legal concerns, also there're more ethical and technical problems with using web resources in not allowed by their owners ways.
If you just lightly ping every few seconds for checking availability of some serious sites, some of them just ban your bot after a while. Others log your activity and use the log if this will becomes a problem. I'd personally banned many harmful crawlers and filled a bunch of complains about unclear automatic requests which was loading resources dedicated for clients.

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How to compile "Comprehensive summary of teaching evaluations," given long teaching record
A job posting for an assistant professor job at a liberal arts college in the United States requires that I include a "Comprehensive summary of teaching evaluations" with my application.
What exactly is this (or does this mean)?
Do I include summaries from each of my previous 15 semesters of teaching individually? Do I split evaluations up by course? Do I just include the most recent year(s)?
Do I create a new summary combining all evaluations I have ever received?
Some previous courses are just 25 copies of individual responses (sometimes short answer sometimes scale-ratings) and other times they include a summary of that given semester's course. Do I just use the school-generated summaries or do I compile my own?
Do I include just evaluations for courses relevant to the job posting or any course evaluations?
Is this a general type of request, or something that only this school will "define"?
This question is more specific than one that I asked previously here, which hasn't gotten significant response anyway.

You had 8 years of teaching experience that generated evaluations before you applied for your first faculty job?  How did you manage to do this?

@cryptic0 Teaching assistantships in graduate school in which I functionally acted as actual instructor

Your summary needs to present a full picture of your teaching in a relatively understandable format. The exact format will depend on the type of evaluation information you have and the number of students in the class (which will influence the number of open-ended responses you can reasonably provide).
In my case, I created a summary sheet which included a table of courses taught, semester, and numeric averages. Then, for each course, I included an additional sheet with all of the students' open-ended responses and individual scores. Each student provided 3 numeric scores and one open-ended comment/evaluation, and there were 20 students per class. So this information typically fit on 1-2 pages.
If your standard evaluations are easy to understand quickly, then you might just include them as originally produced. But that usually isn't the case. For me, I reformatted everything and also included a hyperlink to the originals (which I hosted on my academic website). You can also include a statement that originals are available upon request.
In your case, because you have old/irrelevant courses, you might elect not to include full versions of those IF the file is getting unmanagable. But be prepared to explain your exclusion criteria.
If you plan on applying to many jobs where teaching is important, it is worth spending a bit of time to get this in order, as this is a request that many schools of this type will make.

Full disclosure, this is what I understand from my own job search. I have not served on a LAC search committee.


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Postdoc health insurance for dependents in US?
I am looking towards a postdoc position at a US institution. Do university employers typically contribute to/pay for health insurance coverage for dependents of the employed (i.e. my wife and child)? As a PhD student, my health insurance was covered, but we had to pay $2000 up front each year for my wife's health insurance...

This is best asked directly to the HR folks at a particular university.

Whether health insurance is offered to postdocs and their dependents and how much it will cost if it is offered can vary dramatically from one institution to another.

@BrianBorchers: Can you give some examples of institutions where it is not offered?

@NateEldredge I think it's more a question of what the contributions are, particularly for dependent coverage. $2000/year additional for adding spouse+dependent coverage is higher than at my institution but sounds fairly reasonable.

To clarify: do you want to know about what coverage is typically offered? Or do you want to know if the coverage is typically paid for (in whole or in part)? Your language is "provide...options" which is unclear to me.

@Dawn, I'm wanting to know if it is typically paid for (in whole or in part). Sorry for the abiguity.

I realize this will vary and I don't have a particular institution to talk to yet, just trying to get a general idea for what most people have encountered.

Yes, US universities generally offer health insurance to spouses and children of full-time employees, especially academic employees.  You'll likely have to pay for it (part or all of the policy's cost), but normally the premiums would be deducted from each paycheck, not paid in advance.
Most universities have public websites for their human resources office, where you can read about employee benefits.


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Am I wasting time?
I have a Master degree in Physics. I like Physics and I feel good in Academia. I like to work in research and I want to continue doing that. But I have had some problems in the past and it seems that it doesn't matter how much I can evolve and get better, my past is craved in stone.
I explain myself:
I have a bad Academic records. I mean, not bad at all, but I'm not a genius with grades 9 and 10 in every discipline and classes. Actually, I have a lot of 6, 5.5 and other "bad" grades. I even have 3 failures in classes that I had to take again.
But during the Master I got better. All my grades were A (10/10). But during my Master I made a stupid decision: during the covid I had a lot of issues and decided to pause my Master, I went back and finished it in a new project (I started a project A with my supervisor and we moved to project B, completely different project when things got better and we could work again) with the merit of doing it fast, with good results etc the problem is that in my Master's records, now, it points that I took 4 years to finish the Master. Pausing it instead of quitting and starting over was the bad decision. Because when I apply for a PhD I always have to explain everythng again and again.....
Anyway, I moved from my homecountry to a new country in Europe (I came from South America, another "problem") and oe year applying to PhD programs and I have never got any interview until last month when I got two but have not been accepted in any of them. Both in France. In Germany applications things is complicated because they sometimes even request my high school records................ I don't know why for a PhD they want to see my high school records, but anyway...
I'm feeling like giving up. But the other possible path is working with Data Science, which I have worked before, have some experience, and totally hate it........
For my fellows in Academia: should I give up? I mean, this is the end? there is no more possibilities in trying this PhD?
I'm getting 'old' - close to my 30s, not a genius, not the best bachelor records, a complicated story in my Master...
I am even considering starting over and doing a new Master degree.
Am I wasting my time? don't be afraid to answer, be raw.

"it points that I took 4 years to finish the Master. Pausing it instead of quitting and starting over was the bad decision. Because when I apply for a PhD I always have to explain everythng again and again" I think you may have it backwards. In academia, people do not really care that you took 4 years to finish your Master's (especially during covid!). If you are spending a lot of space in your applications explaining something no-one cares about (namely why you took 4 years) at the expense of what people do care about (your research potential), you are probably shooting yourself in the foot.

@AdamPřenosil , maybe it wasn't clear in the post, but I do not spend space explaining this, only when people ask. And the problem is that they always do ask. "Why you took 4 years in the Master? why there is a gap in your curriculum" and there I am telling them the whole story again...

Ok, I see. In any case, I don't see any reason to regret that you took 4 years to finish your Master's as opposed to quitting it starting over again. Surely quitting and starting over a new Master's in the same field is also something that you would have to explain? If anything, I would say that raises more eyebrows and requires more explanation.

It doesn't have any logic. You finished and have Master degree from EU? I don't see what is wrong. Where do you look for PhD degree?

@AdamPřenosil, quitting and starting over would record as 1.5 years; not having quitted marked in my records as a 4 years studying time. I'm not saying there is a logic, but it is a question that people often ask about. "Can you tell me why you took 4 years to finish a Master?" is a question I always hear...

@looktook, I'm Brazilian and my Master is Brazilian. Now I'm legally living in France and trying a PhD in EU. Usually France or Germany. Germany is usually more complicated because they are really interested in my Math grades from when I was 10 years old ahahah

Why do you think "can you tell me why you quit your first Master's and started over" is not a question that you would hear equally often if you had quit and started over?

@AdamPřenosil, I don't think so because it won't be recorded. I mean, my records now shows "start date 2020, end date 2024", but it could just show "start date 2023, end date 2024".
But this is not the core of the question anyway. Its just one minor issue that I'm facing while humilliating myself to try to enter a PhD

Sure, but I think it's worth straightening out because it seems like you are beating yourself up over something which did not in fact damage your chances. When you apply for a PhD, you are universally or nearly universally asked for your CV which should include your full educational history. You are obsessing about the dates on the formal records relating to your latest Master's degree, but in fact you would have to disclose your unfinished study too. Certainly you could lie and pretend it never happened, but if the university found out that you lied, it would be at least a major red flag.

@AdamPřenosil, I appreciate the comment, but I think you are more obsessed than me with this fact. It is just one among a lot of things I wrote in the post, and I just pointed it out because I am always questioned about this. But thanks for your time

We can’t really say what you should do. We know only a one-sided summary, we have no idea about your actual chances or possibilities, your resources or resolve, …. Maybe you are one step away from landing the perfect PhD position. Maybe not.

I think the low grades cause possible interviewers more reason to worry than a long master, though together they do not help. What you need to ask yourself and present to your future place is: what demonstrates your promise? Why should they take you and not someone else? What do you have to offer that others do not? Is there evidence for you to have done something extraordinary, unusual, out-of-the-box? This can compensate for a less-than-optimal traditional vita. Is there anything like that in your history?

@Dimitri I can't say for Europe, but if you quit and restarted a masters and are applying in the US, you are still expected to report that in your application. There will be a gap between your previous degree and next and you will be asked about that gap, too, and "I didn't disclose all my education" would not be a good answer.

Some of the negatives you list are easily explained. Grades from long past are often, as you know, irrelevant, as people grow. More recent grades are more suggestive of success than early ones. You can't prevent people learning of such things, but you can explain them in a sentence or two: I grew up.
Likewise difficulty in academia in the COVID era is easily explained as many people experienced it and many were disrupted by it.
I don't think you are wasting your time, but you may not be using it effectively. There are two things you can do.
The first is to take an inventory of your options, partly, at least, based on your deep desires. I had some difficulty in the middle of grad study, but was so driven to be a mathematician that nothing else would do. I did need to explore non academic math work for a bit, but had support from faculty members that got me back on track.
The second is to cast a broad net for a position in a doctoral program. Europe is a big place with lots of options. France and Germany alone may not be enough. In particular, you speak Portuguese (with a Brazilian flair, of course), and probably understand Spanish. Your English seems pretty good. The broad net should include a variety of institutions. Not all good things happen at only "top" universities in some ranking.
It might also be worth talking to a counsellor so that you avoid depression, and maybe a different kind of counsellor (academic) who can give you an indication of how your skills can be used generally.


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Will it be acceptable to talk to advisor about my apprehensions about my career?
Can I talk to my advisor about the difficulties I am facing with getting a job? Should I also discuss with him that I am probably mediocre at my work and I am in a wrong field of study. This has affected my mental health for the past 1.5 years.
Overall, my advisor and I have a friendly relationship. How much should I let him know about my personal career related problems?

You should get help from a mental health professional.  This site is not a good way to get help with your feelings.

Search "impostor syndrome" on this site and elsewhere.

Yes, it is acceptable. Recommended actually. They probably have a lot of insight into the issue, though the poor job market may be foreign to them.
You can, in fact, change fields, but it probably has to wait until you have a more secure position from which to do it. It takes a while and a lot of effort.
It doesn't sound like you are a poor scholar, however. Your mood/depression would be better discussed with a mental health professional.
The job market, especially in academia, is chaotic at the moment. It will take time to sort out and return to something more "normal". You may need to "get by" for a bit. But it would help if you maintain relationships during such a time so that you are well positioned to move when things open up. You certainly aren't alone in any of this, including the mental issues. Times are objectively hard at the moment.

Thank you for your advice and support. I have a contract with my advisor till the end of this year. He has offered to extend it to another year if I am interested. My fear is, if I do tell him about my apprehensions, he might think little of me and might rethink his decision to keep me hired.

Frame your discussion with him in terms of the externals, not your feelings. "What can I do now to maximize my potential?" No guarantees, but another year may make a difference.

@JoseCarr. Take the extension. Then later, check in with your advisor and then consider bringing up your concerns.


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Is it possible to apply for a PhD in experimental Physics if your master's thesis was in the theoretical aspect?
I have been involved with the Quantum Optics group in my institution. I have a lot of interest in Circuit-QED and thus is (broadly) the topic for my Master's thesis. Now, I have always been inclined towards experiments, and would like my PhD to be in experimental physics as well.
Now, the reason I joined the theoretical group is that there isn't any full fledged research in fabricating 1-D transmon resonators or working with a cavity like there is in a few other universities, and the experimental faculty who do fabricate them do so for completely different purposes.
To make the long story short, is it possible for me to shift to Experimental Physics if my master's thesis is in theoretical physics?

Yep, have at it and best of luck! Should be fun.

I did something similar successfully so it's possible :) good luck!

You actually asked two different questions here:

Is it possible to apply?

Yes, of course. Anyone can apply, even if your background is not remotely related to experimental physics.

Is it possible to be admitted?

My advice (and this applies to most PhD applicants) is to try contacting professors who you'd like to study with. You can ask them over email whether they would accept someone with a theoretical physics background.

I am just answering because I myself did exactly that.
I did a Master's degree & thesis on theoretical high-energy physics (some B meson decay at CERN...) and then a purely experimental PhD building a lab for a cold atom trapping machine.
So yes. It's possible.
First year PhD students are generally not supposed to have any "work" experience in that specific field. There are some countries, e.g. Germany, where a PhD student has usually already done many internships (some of them along side their studies during term time) within the group that eventually hosts their PhD. Also in Germany, your courses become fully elective and specialised so that you can essentially only study the subject that you'll end up doing your PhD in. In the UK (my case) on the other hand, this is not quite the case. You can do 2 month summer internships and maybe a final year project, but nothing "long term" where you already start working alongside more senior Lab members helping them in the day-to-day operations that may not immediately help your thesis/report.
Just accept that you will have a somewhat steeper learning curve than, say, other PhD candidates that have already undergone coursework, experiences, and trainings in that specific field. As @Elodin said, check with the PI of the Lab if they would even accept someone with your background, because maybe student supply is so high that they would only consider people that can hit the ground running.  This will depend on the size of the group and on the amount of immediate work that needs to be done, and potentially on how many PhD/Postdocs there are that are "free" to train you (i.e. not busy writing PhD theses or applying for jobs). Hence why you should ask the PI in question.
Just make it clear that you are motivated and determined to learn. And that your background will, eventually, make you even more valuable than a pure experimentalist (speaking from experience).  Back in my day, I went on a two week internship in my PI's old group in Germany to get some work experience in the field, e.g. how to use a laser for the first time. This was not part of my degree, so I didn't have any pressure to "produce" results, and I was a sponge trying to absorb jargon, techniques, principles, that I could go on and read about later on. I had food & accommodation paid for, so I only really "volunteered" my time. If you wish, you could try and volunteer for a similar opportunity to see if that would bolster your chances.

I can't follow the claim that in Germany people have done many internships in the same group before. That's certainly not what I have experienced. What is true is that in Germany people do a relatively long master's thesis which gives them more reserach experience than someone who does a super-short master project and, if done in the same field, gives them a bit of a faster start.


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Including funding calls in my research plan
I'm currently a postdoctoral fellow applying for an assistant professor job in Europe. The application requires me to include funding options in my research plan. The job is for five years and tenure depends on how well I perform.
I believe my research plan is good, but I'm having trouble finding the right funding. I've looked into both European and national funding opportunities, but unfortunately, I don't qualify for any of the open calls. The big European programs like ERC are mainly for experienced researchers, and national options often need collaborations with researchers from other countries, which I don't have yet. I'm not sure if I need them to apply for funding.
I know I can mention past closed funding calls in my proposal, but this doesn't really help me learn how experienced researchers find grants.
I've tried using my university's internal system and checked papers from local researchers in my field, but no luck so far. I'm worried that if I do get a job in academia, I won't know how to find the right funding opportunities for my research.
I'd really appreciate any simple tips or general advice on where to find grants. Thank you so much for your help!

Your last paragraph threatens to make this a "shopping question" which would be off topic here. I suggest you ask for more general advice.

I'll also note that your competition for an assistant professorship is also inexperienced so has the same issues with things like ERC.

Thank you, I edited the last paragraph. Why do you think that my competition is inexperienced?

Since it is for an assistant professor position.


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Definitions of IEEE RAS review "dimensions"
When reviewing for the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society, you are asked to rate the submission on the following qualities:

Originality of concepts
Theoretical contribution
Technological contribution
Technical soundness
Thoroughness of results
Importance of results
Relevance of applications
Clarity of presentation
Relevance to field

I can't find any guide defining these terms. Some of them are obvious, others less so.
What is the difference between "Relevance to field" and "Relevance of applications"?
What is the difference between "Technical soundness" and "Thoroughness of  results"? It's hard to imagine one without the other.
I feel that the IEEE should define what they mean by these terms.

These terms all appear to be rather standard fare for aspects of interest in a technical peer review, so I think following any general peer review criteria (such as in this guide) would be a good start to your review.
Regarding the specific distinctions you've mentioned, you might consider trying to define the terms yourself and then reaching out to the editor for clarification (providing your inferred definitions as a starting point). Based on my own experience, I interpret the terms as follows:

Relevance to field: is the topic of the paper relevant to other researchers in this field? i.e. is the problem addressed by the authors of interest to the readers of this journal (or members of this society, whatever)?
Relevance of applications: are the applications of the presented work of interest to current practitioners in this field? Consider where the contribution(s) of the paper might be useful in practice, and if those applications are relevant given the state of the field.
Technical soundness: are the methods and analyses employed in this work appropriate for the problem, mathematically and logically valid, and properly executed?
Thoroughness or results: have the authors explored or addressed all of the relevant facets of the problem, or has something important been overlooked?


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How do you defend against TA proctor false accusation of "seeing you look at others computer screen" to cheat on final
Proctor accuses me of cheating on final exam "By looking at others computer screens" on multiple choice exam with randomized answers. Cheating complaint states "matched 10 of 20 questions on the exam".  I had 4 incorrect answers.  Average for exam was 5 incorrect answers. I was one of the first 10 students to complete and turn in exam in an examination room of 200 students.  Professor asked me to write down name after exam stating "you are not in any trouble or anything".  One student (who I didn't know) 2 seats away from mine was moved during the exam (I was 3/4 done with exam at this time). The first I heard of cheating accusation was 5 months after exam when Academic Integrity office notified me of charge. Neither professor or proctor made any attempt to contact me prior to formal charges. Professor states in charge he "did not witness me cheating only TA proctor did" although both were present in the room. Two other students are mentioned and accused of cheating. I have no knowledge of and have never met either student -but assume one is the student mentioned above because Professor states "they moved one student suspected of cheating during the exam.  He was two seats away from me, with another student I barely know (and not named in complaint) between us.
I was the second student to arrive prior to the exam. I chose an end-of-row seat (on the aisle).  Professor asked me to move to the center of the row to make it easier for other students to access seats and I complied with his request.I ended up in the center of the row--therefore no predetermined seating could have been set up for me to cheat. I only needed a 30% on exam to maintain my grade in course.  GPA was 4.0.  I did not and would never cheat (especially off people I am unaware of their knowledge in a course). How do I defend my word against the proctor before an Integrity panel?

Could the downvoters please explain?

Your country, please?

Thank you for your comments. They will be quite helpful. I am in USA.

“By looking at others computer screens” That is extremely vague. It sounds like they moved some other students but didn’t pay any attention to how you responded to this.

“The first I heard of cheating accusation was 5 months after exam” That’s not OK, except perhaps if extraordinary evidence was only revealed months after you took the exam (which didn’t happen here).

I think the evidence is weak unless you were extremely obvious about looking at other screens. Matching answers is almost never evidence of wrongdoing. In fact, matching incorrect answers can be evidence of poor question statements. And matching correct answers is just evidence of knowledge gained.
I would state what you have here. I didn't cheat. I had no need to cheat. I finished early. The proctor was simply mistaken.
Part of the problem in such situations is that no matter what we are doing or thinking, unless we have closed our eyes, they point somewhere. It is easy to misinterpret a look.
And a five month delay before being informed seems to be disqualifying to me. Presumably the proctor didn't have enough "evidence" to call you on it during the exam.
Sadly, no one can guarantee fair treatment in such cases.

“Part of the problem in such situations is that no matter what we are doing or thinking, unless we have closed our eyes, they point somewhere. It is easy to misinterpret a look.” Exactly. This comes up in discussions of harassment as well.

@BrianDrake, I was once attacked physically on the NYC subway because I was daydreaming through my ride and my eyes were pointed at a person who took offense.


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What are the differences between teaching in the quarter and semester system?
I am currently working as a junior faculty member at a university where we teach a 2:2 (2 fall, 2 spring) on the semester system. I would like to know the differences between this and teaching a 2:2:2 (2 fall, 2 winter, 2 spring) on the quarter system. What is the workload difference? How is class preparation different? Intensity of each week? Grading timeline and expectations? Other considerations?
Edit: @Buffy is correct. The current courses are each 3 credits. The 2:2:2 courses are each 4 credits. The three-credit courses meet once per week for 3 hours (or are online) and the four-credit courses meet once per week for 3.75 hours (or are online).

Roughly speaking, you cover the same amount of material over the course of a year. If you do a midterm and a final each quarter, you have more of those to deal with, but perhaps a bit less homework to grade.

I expect is it 2 courses per term, not 2 hours per week.  If each course meets 3 times per week for 1 hour, then that 2 would 6 hours per week (class time, of course more for things you do outside class).

@TommiBrander Added US tag! good plan. Actually in both cases I am teaching to master's level students and the convention is once per week for 3 hrs. vs once per week for approx 4 hours I guess!

@Guest I attended a quarter school in the US. It's all over the place. I think the "normal" at my school would have been 2x2.5 hours, but there were also three-day, 2-hour classes; lab classes (of course); five-day, 1 hour classes; and one-day, three hour courses (often upper division).

Please define what the numbers mean in your question. This reads like gibberish to me.

There is another variable at play, actually. Some places 2:2 will mean two courses each semester where the courses meet 3 times (hours) per week, where 2:2:2 means two courses each "quarter", but where the course meet 4 or even 5 hours per week for fewer weeks. The students also, typically, then take fewer, but more intense, courses in a term.
But that means that you may be able to handle about the same amount of material in a course under each system as you meet for more hours and the students are (hopefully) more engaged in your course.
Another possible variable, is the quality of the students (and faculty). Dartmouth has traditionally been on the quarter system, and the students are very (very) good. And in CS, at least, they work very (very) hard. You may have a challenge keeping up with them. This is likely true for other similar institutions as well.

I'll note for completeness that some institutions, including Dartmouth, use the quarter system so that they can run four terms of equal length per year (hence "quarter" system). Faculty normally get to choose three of those four terms, but may not, in general, be permitted to avoid summer quarter always. Students likewise, my be required to have schedules that include some summer quarters and some "time away" quarters (for travel in Europe, duh). This makes better use of other facilities and funds.
Under such a system, it is also (theoretically) possible, if not encouraged, to have a year's "sabbatical" "every" four years if you teach for six consecutive quarters, then take off for a year and then teach six consecutive quarters. Twelve quarters over four years is a full load, if you are required to teach (on average) three per year. This requires the dean's ok, of course, which is granted only occasionally and for good reason.

Good point about student quality. I expect the students to be moderately, but not dramatically, more prepared.

Expect "dramatically" and you may not be disappointed. Better to be prepared yourself for the worst(best) case.


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What reference from current insitution is required/advisable for pre-tenure move?
I am interviewing for a tenure-track position in the United States. I am currently a tenure-track faculty member at another US university. In my cover letter, I stated that I wished to keep my search confidential, at least until the flyout stage. Now that I am at the interview/flyout stage, I am trying to figure out a strategy for providing a contact/reference from my current department without damaging my relationships if I stay in my current position. I already have three official letters of reference from faculty at other institutions.
What sort of communication between a prospective department and a current department is typical/expected at this stage? Could it be limited to calling a junior faculty member for a discussion? What sort of contacts should I prepared to offer or what sort of statements should I be prepared to make? (I realize one option is just to ask the prospective department, but that is a conversation I would like to be prepared for before opening.)
Some relevant details:

My current department is small. There are just a few tenured faculty, most of whom are quite close to the chair. (or who I don't know well because they have been on sabbatical/other reasons.) If I ask a tenured faculty member to give me a reference, the chair would likely know.
I have been told that my chair "holds a grudge." I could see this being true.
I do have a junior faculty member in my department who I have revealed my search to (they are also quietly searching). I think this person would speak well on my behalf. This person is not in my direct specialty.
I believe I have a good reputation in my current department.
My other major mentors at the university are in the administration for my department. I don't think these people hold grudges, but I am not convinced they have an incentive to keep my search confidential.
I applied because the new department is in a city where my family lives, it is also higher-ranking than my current department. I am early pre-tenure but I could not afford to pass up this opportunity.

This question is related: Should I request a letter of recommendation from current employers that don't want me to leave?
However, my situation is different as I have a current position and more of an incentive to keep the search private. I also have some indication that my current chair may not be pleased by this.

I don't think any contact with your current department is expected.  Generally you are only expected to provide references who will write letters on your behalf, and it's not required that any of them be from your current department.
Academic circles are small, and somebody in your department may find out anyway.  Hopefully their reaction will be to incentivize you to stay.

@DavidKetcheson: Without a letter from someone in the current department, the hiring department might wonder if the candidate is being fired, forced out, or is leaving because of some serious problem with their performance.  A letter from within could reassure them that the candidate is doing fine in the current department, and is leaving of their own volition.

@NateEldredge This is what I am concerned about.

@DavidKetcheson So if you were on the hiring committee, would you encourage me to just say I prefer no contact with my current department? Or would you say to offer up a phone conversation with my colleague who is also an Asst Prof?

When I have been on hiring committees, we never sought a contact within the current department.  If you are shortlisted, then the committee thinks you're pretty amazing, so why would they suspect you are being forced out?  My experience is with heavily research-focused departments, so YMMV.

@DavidKetcheson if you make this an answer I will award the bounty. I didn’t get any follow-up or pushback on this.

I don't think any contact with your current department is expected. Generally you are only expected to provide references who will write letters on your behalf, and it's not required that any of them be from your current department. Academic circles are small, and somebody in your department may find out anyway. Hopefully their reaction will be to incentivize you to stay.
When I have been on hiring committees, we never sought a contact within the current department. If you are shortlisted, then the committee thinks you're pretty amazing, so why would they suspect you are being forced out? My experience is with heavily research-focused departments; this might be different, say, at a small liberal arts school.


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LetterHead for LOR
I am applying for Graduate school in US. I have 2 years working experience and i have 3 people ready from my company to provide me the letter of recommendation but as a whole the company will provide 1 universal letter with a letter head and the person individually cannot use it as it against companies policy. Should i go ahead with LOR of these person(with their official mail) and not without the letter?. Will it affect my application??

No one really cares if a LoR is on letter head. In fact a lot of letters simply get uploaded directly into a webform. I would, however, be concerned about the company policies. Many companies do not want their employees writing letters of recommendation since it opens the company up to potential law suits. My guess is the universal letter that the company will provide has been reviewed by the legal department. It will likely state your job title and your dates of employment and not much else and be completely useless for grad school admissions.
If your letter writers at the company follow this path, the letters will be awful. You need to make sure that they know how to write a good letter and are willing to.

Official letterhead is preferred, of course, but I think it would be a minor matter and easily explained. The content of the letter and what it says about you is far more important. Their email and physical address will connect them with the company.
But seek the people who can give you the strongest recommendation.


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Biophysics for longevity research? Does the undergraduate background matter for US graduate programs?
I am currently studying undergraduate physics (condensed matter) (outside the US).
Starting from the beginning of the 3rd year of studies, there'll be an opportunity to publish undergraduate research publications
Seriously considering changing my current major to biophysics, because I want to pursue masters/PhD in the field that focuses on epigenetics and longevity, anyway.
But, I am not sure. There are a couple of ideas in condensed matter, that I'd like to try out
So, the options are:

Finish the current physics bachelor major -> Apply to Biophysics PhD in the US

Undergraduate research will not be related to longevity, or biology for that matter. But more to materials science. Recommendation letters would mostly be from condensed matter researchers

Switch to biophysics bachelors and graduate -> Apply to Biophysics PhD in the US

There's an option of longevity and epigenetics for undergraduate research. And that research would be more relevant to the desired PhD. I'd be able to get recommendations and connections in field

Finish undergraduate physics -> masters Biophysics -> Biophysics PhD in the US

Basically get to try out the ideas in condensed matter, and if none of them kick in then go to masters, get all the benefits of the 2nd option. But It'll take 2 years longer. Also if your application in the 4th year of your bachelors, is not strong enough for your desired graduate programs, then you could try to create even stronger application while studying for your masters.
The reason I am not sure, is that If one goes with the 1st option, with background of condensed matter, that applicant may stand out from the overall applicant pool (an advantage). However, the person will not have research experience, relevant to the PhD (a disadvantage? The same but reverse, with the 2nd option
How does the undergraduate major and undergraduate research, affect the admission to US graduate programs in life sciences?

Your interest in epigenetics suggests more than passing acquaintance with molecular biology, genetics, and maybe statistical genetics. Good luck!

@Aruralreader Thanks!

Have you considered finish physics undergrad and find a seminar series on your topic of interest to attend while doing this? Physicists have skills and ways of thinking that biologists lack. I've had one or two friends who did biophysics and ended up feeling they didn't get to learn the biology or the physics in great detail and doing a degree in one of them would have been better (unless you can find a way to double major so you have expertise in both).

@NAMcMahon Will consider this option, but because the curriculum schedules and courses for my major are hard set and not really flexible, it'd be difficult to do so. But I'll try

I'm not talking about a seminar series course, but talking about finding a research group working on something related and see if they have a colloquium/weekly meeting (one where someone always presents their work, not a general group meeting) that you could attend if it doesn't line up with a course you are taking. That would allow you to both network and learn the terms and what people think are important in that field.

@NAMcMahon I actually attended a meeting like this and connected to 2 people in the field. 1 is the head of a bioinformatics lab (protein folding), the 2nd studies copper metabolism and its connection to Wilson's disease. But they said that it'd be more preferable to just switch major, because of the courses and because the physics department would have a hard time accepting my biology related undergraduate thesis

My close friend is a professor and the head of a lab at a very good university in the Boston area. He has a triple appointment, being simultaneously affiliated with the departments of mechanical engineering, physics, and biomedical engineering.
His field may be broadly defined as biomedical physics. On more than one occasion, my friend told me that when considering application from potential PhD students, he first of all makes sure that a candidate has taken all the intermediate courses in physics -- that is a key parameter.  Although my friend considers applications from students with various backgrounds, he prefers to take people majoring in physics.  And it should not necessarily be biophysics.  E.g. a couple of years ago, he took a young man who had a Masters in condensed matter physics.  That young man knew next to nothing about biology, but is now doing extremely well and will receive his PhD in a year.  As my friend said, it is much easier for a physicist to learn biology than for a biologist to learn physics.
You are welcome to write to me if you wish, and I shall refer you to my friend's webpage. Perhaps, you will want then to talk to him directly. My e-mail address is available at my website.

"Biophysics PhD" is still quite a broad description. This could be anything, really.
Since you mention epigenetics and longevity, it seems you have a very clear niche in mind. What type of research would you like to do in that context? Are you also thinking bench work or only computational?
Ultimately it depends on how fast and how much you want to redirect towards yourself towards answering biological questions. This doesn't even have to be during your PhD, it could also still mean a switch after.
Planning these things solely based on what looks good/best on paper is not necessarily the best life choice, so also consider what you like and find interesting.
Maybe option 2 allows you to test the waters in the areas you now think you want to get a PhD in. Maybe you will like it, maybe you won't. Better to know before the start of a PhD, so internships are great for that.
Option 3 will likely be dictated by personal circumstances, whether you can financially afford two extra years of training, etc.
If you can, talk to different people in the field you are in now and the field you think you want to go into (both junior and senior). They will have the most relevant real world advise.

"What type of research would you like to do in that context".

I am not sure at this point. Probably chemical reprogramming and drug delivery.

"Are you also thinking bench work or only computational?"

Yeah, I could do bench work. But primarily interested working in a wet lab.
Overall, I believe that aging is a big problem, worth studying. Although I've heard that, Biotech as a whole offers lower pay and demands longer working hours compared to other industries. And money and financial security are actually important as well.

chemical reprogramming and drug delivery seems quite far removed from epigenetic and more towards a (bio)chemical angle. In either case, it sounds like you would benefit from a solid background in molecular biology (including (epi)genetics and biochemistry) in that case.
You may want to begin monitoring for positions in the area you are interested in right now - in Europe positions are often advertised by individual labs. See what's asked in terms of background for areas you are interested in. Then again, it could very well be that the "job and background of the future" doesn't exist yet.

If you are primarily interested in working in a wet lab, then you will want to develop wet lab skills (that's what I meant with "bench work"). Of course you could be "the computational person" in a wet lab, but if you yourself want to do experiments, then you'll want to get proper training in that at some point - either before, during or after the PhD.
I would encourage you to seek out local advisors to discuss different options. In the end it is about finding what you like and how you measure up against the competition once you apply to programs you are interested in.

Ok, Now I understand more, thanks!

For US students, changing fields between undergraduate and graduate study is common. For those who want a career in academia, the usual approach is to apply to doctoral programs in the last year of undergraduate studies. However, this is enabled by the nature of the undergraduate program, which is quite broad here. A typical program is only about 40% or so in the major. So, a math or physics student will also have courses in history, writing, literature, philosophy (perhaps), and many others. Even within a field, the education tends to be broad, covering many of the important sub-fields rather than concentrating on one. There might be an opportunity for some low level research along the way, but not many get an opportunity for anything serious due to time constraints and the  open ended nature of research. Relatively few US undergraduate students have publications at graduation for that reason and also the delays in the publication process. Having publications is a plus, but not an essential element for entry to graduate programs.
For a foreign student, things are more complicated since many programs outside the US are much more focused on one field making familiarity with other fields less common. It is one reason that undergraduate programs are typically longer here than elsewhere.
So, if your current program has no opportunity to look at biology and its methods then it will be harder to switch as you might be seen as lacking the necessary background. If you try to enter already having a masters that includes no biology then it will be harder (and a longer path) but not necessarily impossible.
Note also that US doctoral programs don't have an unlimited number of seats available and there is competition for them, so you need to be seen as a good candidate for success in a new field. Highly rated programs are also selective in who they admit. It is considered a waste of time and effort to admit students to doctoral programs who aren't very likely to succeed.
So, while nothing is impossible, the earlier you get familiarity with basic ideas of a new field, the more likely you are to be accepted, and the more likely you are to know you have chosen a good path.
This suggests that 3 is likelier than 1 to reach the point of acceptance. Your 2 might work but would also probably delay graduation.

So What you are saying is that doing the longevity related work, prior to PhD, would make the PhD application more competitive? There's no organic chemistry or biology in the coursework of my current major.

Making a radical switch with no background in the new field is an issue. And, while physics isn't my field, condensed matter to genetics seems like a long jump, both conceptually and in research process. See: https://academia.stackexchange.com/q/176908/75368

Ok, Now it is more clear. Thank you


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Is spending 16 years (in total) in academia to get three degrees career suicide? What do I do?
It took me 5.5 years to get my BSc, 3 years to get my MSc, and 6 years to do my PhD. I had a child as a teenager (so I have spent my entire adult life a mum) and we moved countries (to Germany) when I went to do my PhD. 16 years is a long time in University. Now I am looking to start my Post-Doc this fall (at the same institution) and I am trying to figure out my options. I love doing research, but I am incredibly insecure about the time it has taken me to get here. I decided awhile ago that becoming a professor is not for me... is there hope for me in industry? Or am I too old/in school for too long? This is causing me an immense amount of anxiety.
Edit: I should mention that I took around 8 months out (spent the time teaching) in between the BSc and MSc for my child (she got sick and needed surgery) and then it took something around half a year to move to Germany and settle before my start date. Furthermore, I just turned 36. The first two years of my PhD were spent with the lab under construction, and I was building up the fumehood gas lines and experimental setups. It took way longer than originally planned. So really my actual PhD work took 4 years to complete with 3 first author papers at the end.

What is your phd in? 6 years is average for math.

Time (like age, duration of study, etc) maters less if you try to reach your goals in your life and receive satisfaction because of your activities. So do not worry. Just enjoy your life and try to be happy.

Not a direct answer, but maybe valuable information: In many European countries, it is a common requirement for faculty positions that you must have completed your PhD not more than x years ago. (This does not affect you at the moment, as you talk about the time from before your PhD.) This requirement typically goes with a note saying that taking time off for reasons similar to what you mention does not count against the x years. My impression was that being a mother may also be a valid reason to loosen this time requirement. This all sounds very encouraging for your situation.

The first two answers here are very good advice. You are only "too old" to start a career (even in academia) if you are already past retirement age. Good luck.

Thank you everyone for your input! I appreciate it.

Why did you give up academia as a career? Just because you thought you couldn't or some more essential reason?

For tenure track positions at my institution (Europe), candidates are evaluated according to their "academic age" which is the time since completing their PhD. So finishing later doesn't put anyone at a disadvantage.

@cheersmate A warning about Germany in particular, though - for W1 professorships (which tenure track positions normally are), the laws of at least some of the 16 states have conditions on the academic age of the applicants that start counting at the beginning of the PhD phase. They are somewhat flexible but still part of the law book. For permanent academic work, if may be useful for the OP to talk about the possibility to stay for a habilitation with their advisor/head of the group.

You are doing well --- enjoy the ride
I had a somewhat similar journey to you.  I was also a teen parent and went through university raising two little girls.  The undergraduate program I chose was a long one (6 yrs with honours), and I also had to wait a long time for my PhD dissertation to be reviewed.  I got my PhD conferred a bit over 12 years after I entered university; a bit less than in your case, but not a huge difference in the scheme of things.  In my time in academia I have known one other academic who was also a teen parent, and she also had a hard slog to get her doctorate.  It certainly has its challenges raising children while studying, but it is a very rewarding experience, as you would certainly know.
So firstly, don't be insecure about your circumstances and path through your higher education.  You have raised a child and also trained yourself to do academic research, which is nothing to be sniffed at.  The good news is that now you get to the fun part where you can work as a researcher in a university, and while your peers are just thinking about starting a family, you are already well advanced into this.  As you go through academia you will probably encounter some other academics who also had interesting circumstances through their education; there are a few academics floating around who were teen parents (we were just more advanced than the rest of them!) so you are not alone.  You will also find that there are many other academics who had careers prior to academia, and completed their PhDs late in life.
You don't say how old you are, so it is difficult to offer advice on limitations here, but nothing in what you have written precludes a successful academic career.  There is no need to get ahead of yourself and worry about whether or not you will become a full professor.  In the early stages, just enjoy having a job in the field and use your time to gain mastery over your research area.  As you progress and publish more papers you will learn more research skills and you will then have a better idea of exactly what you want to do.  Enjoy your post-doc position.

If you enjoy what you are doing, don't mind the pay, and don't want to be a professor, then you are doing great for you!
I suggest that you write down why you enjoy your job. When one of the naysayers comes to try to put you down for choosing this, remember your own rationale.
That being said...  the reason most people don't like to stay for extended periods as a Postdoc is the pay, which is typically low. For this reason, most people prefer to go to industry, or to try to find a professorship. However, neither of those come with the independence of being a Postroc. Professors are bound to teaching and funding duties, and industry professionals are bound to the customer's desires.
As long as you are doing work even semi-relevant to industry, I think you would always be able to find a position in industry if you want. But the work is much much different than what you are probably used to as a Postdoc. Furthermore, it is my experience that Postdocs have a much more laid back lifestyle compared to industry professionals, which is advantageous with children (although in Germany that point might be mute).
Even direct out of a PhD, you could of course just apply to some jobs in industry to see what they are offering... Remember an interview is also a chance for you to interview the company. You do not need to accept every offer presented to you. It may also help with your self esteem if you get some enticing offers that you can turn down! Just beware that a lot of companies offer positions that they say involve research, but in truth are more tied to customer interactions. The best case is if you know somebody in the company who can give an honest assessment of the work.

Postdoc pay in Germany is nice, but still much lower than industry. I know several people that have been Postdocs for more than 5 years in Germany. They enjoy the independence of doing research without the pressure that comes with a professorship. It is definitely possible to have a "long term" postdoc, but this will depend on the funding situation of the specific group. The advantage from the point of view of the professor is that they get a very experienced person that helps to push forward long term projects.


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How should I tell my professor that I want to quit internship that I am doing under him?
A little background about me: I am an undergraduate engineering student currently doing my internship remotely at a prestigious foreign university since January. I have been working there for almost 6 months now. The execution of the project is very poor. No explanation of the prior work and what is to be done. No support if faced any problem. Although the project is good and in the due course of this time I've learnt a lot in it, it's not the project is not something I am very passionate about. The work seems monotonous to me and I often end up helpless and start feeling depressed. I am all alone in my internship with no team and do have a weekly call with my professor. My professor is a very nice and knowledgeable person but has very high expectations. He asks me to do stuff that experienced researchers in that field are doing and forgets I am a junior year undergraduate student. All he does is ask me to do work that I had never done before, no proper internet resource available and expects me to present the results within the week itself. He hardly listens to me except for what I say about the task I did that week and very often scolds me.
Present: I have officially completed the internship as prescribed by the international student relation office of both my university and his university and have completed the targets. But my professor now wants to keep me working informally under him. Keeping in mind, I don't even get a stipend of any kind. Now I am about to start an internship in a firm within a week that I am very passionate to work with. But working there would consume a lot of my weekdays time thus leaving me no room for continuing my present internship under the professor. I want to convey to my professor that I won't be able to work under after 10 or so days. Although I wasn't fully satisfied with my internship I want to end it on a good note and a positive relationship with him.
I am so scared and confused as to how to inform him about my situation. Any ideas as to what I should be mentioning to keep my tone humble and polite and convey my desire to leave the internship?
Kind regards
-Ravi

"Dear Prof X,
I have enjoyed working on our research over the past few months and learnt many useful skills. I have another internship opportunity for the summer that I would like to pursue. Since our targets have been met and the internship is officially complete, I would like to move on to my next opportunity.
Thank you."
Would this not work? I find that a direct approach is better with profs in Western universites. There is a far less likelihood that you'll have to walk on eggshells so as to not offend them. I could be wrong though.

@justauser thanks a lot. I am pretty scared that he might ask me to work informally under him thus might force me to do the current internship alongside my new one. The amount of work he gives just stresses me out and the lack of support I get is why I decided to quit it. Should I be saying to him directly that I've found a better opportunity, somewhere I am more passionate about and won't be able to work with him under any circumstance? And is it better to write him this in an email or tell him in our next video corenference with him?

If you did get a stipend would you be interested? Would the new internship make helping impossible? Do you fear retaliation from a "nice" professor? Can you make them happy with little effort? I wonder if there are cultural aspects that make an answer impossible for someone outside India.

@Ravi I would not use phrases like 'better opportunity' or 'more passionate about'. Instead, just say that you have a 'new opportunity' and while you enjoyed your project with the prof, it's not possible to manage time between both projects. I think conveying this face to face is better. Be direct, but polite.


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Is it true that a conference paper is considered more valueable than a journal paper in the field of Computer Science? If so why is it so?
I have heard that journal papers are more valuable than conference papers generally in other fields. Yet I read that in Computer Science field that conference papers are more valuable.

Hence I want to clarify exactly what is true?
Also if an extra importance does come to conference papers vs journals why so?

I m in the middle of my research work of AI pattern recognition and I am in the process of deciding to write a journal paper or a conference paper. Already in the field of my research alot of publications exists, yet I am doing a partial novel research, a tiny change to methodology. I want the end user to get an understanding of my data, also I want to get a permanent research job, then I wanted to know will publishing a journal or a conference paper look better in my cv? In the case of explaining my data to end user a journal seems the best option with a greater page count than a conference paper yet in terms of what the internet states the conference papers are better for CS Field, a conference paper would get more value to my cv than a conference paper. When I mean value in aspect

to my CV
and other aspect to provide the end user a complete understanding of my research

CS is a fast moving field, and conferences are where you get the greatest and latest news.  Traditionally, journals take too long to publish an article and they are used for archiving 'good' ideas only.    Also, some CS conferences are ultra selective, and thereby giving them certain prestige.

It is true that some conferences are more prestigious to publish your results in CS than some journals (and that it is the norm in many subfields that effectively all significant research gets submitted to a conference, with a longer journal version sometimes but not always being written up later). However the statement certainly would not remain true if we replace “some” by “all”. Thus, while the statement you are alluding to has a kernel of truth, it is phrased in a misleading way.

Likely duplicates: Why are conference papers so important in computer science (CS)?, Journal vs conference publications when looking for a job in in computer science, Which type of paper is best for computer science, journal or conference?,

Computer Science is a vast field. What you say holds true for some domains like AI and Computer Vision. This may not be true in the case of Theoretical Computer Science (though I am not sure about this).

It might be true for some subfields in CS (like AI, ML, DS, CV, NLP, etc) because if we compare an A* journal with an A* conference:

A* conference does not accept papers just because they are novel but also because they are at the top xx% -according to the judgement of the reviewers, which is most of the time subjective-. For example, if you submit a good paper to a conference with a usual acceptance rate = 15%, but there are 16% of submitted papers better than yours, your paper will be rejected. This means that the accepted papers are outstanding (again according to the judgement of the reviewers).
A journal from the other side accepts a paper without a direct comparison with other papers.
As mentioned already in the comments, CS is a fast-moving field and conferences are much faster with the review process than journals.

I don't think journals and conferences differ regarding point 1. Editors receive many, many more "good" manuscripts than they (can) publish (given a limited number of issues per year). Editors will compare the quality of each submitted manuscript that gets positive reviews to the average quality of the articles that are published; and they make the final decision what to publish or not (rather than the reviewers). The comparison may be more implicit, but it's the same comparison and the same competition.

@henning Are you doing this as an EIC?

@Younes so because the acceptance rate in journals are higher than in conference papers thats why conference considered as more valueable .Thanks


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How to publish a book chapter?
I have done some research in a topic. And now i think that i have enough understanding and material that can be used to write a chapter.
However, I don't have any idea about

How can i get it(my chapter) published.
How can I get the invitation to write a chapter in some ones book? what If I don't have contacts?
What would be the procedure of getting it publish.
In short the situation is like that I am the person with a book chapter in my hand and I don't know how to get it published.

Thanks in advance for replies.

Where did you do your research? Are you a student? Do you have a supervisor?

What domain? Why not a tutorial in a journal?

@ObscureOwl I have done research in my final year thesis of my bachelor's thesis. Now I am doing the job. Currently I don't have a supervisor. And my thesis professor is so busy that he did not even had a time to respond to my email.

@MorganRodgers Is there any other way?

@user2768 This is a good option I will consider it.

@MorganRodgers I want to build my academic profile so that i would be able to get Masters scholarships for abroad. As in Pakistan, right now our educational system is not much strong. Now as you said it is difficult for me to publish a book chapter, then what are possible steps i could take to build my academic profile apart from publishing papers in journals and conferences.

Assuming you are thinking of a review volume: you'll need to tell the editor of the review volume you are able to contribute, and the editor needs to choose you to contribute. Problem is of course you might not know there's a review volume being planned for the topic (they don't usually solicit contributions publicly).
Your best chance is to either be the editor yourself or to be well-known enough that anyone putting together a review volume will invite you. If you want to do the former, you'll need to put together a publication proposal and try to convince a publisher to agree. This will not be trivial; you'll need to show you are indeed an authority in the field. In the same way, if you are an authority in the field then there's a good chance someone putting together a review volume will invite you anyway.
Either way, review volumes aren't something for which it is trivial to contribute. If you don't have any contacts, you're stuck - no reputable publisher will publish your chapter. That said, if you really want, you could self-publish or put a manuscript on the arXiv or something, but it won't carry as much impact.