COMP-604 Graduate School Fundamentals
Fall 2023, Course co-coordinators: Oana Balmau, and David Rolnick
Welcome to COMP-604!
The goal of the course is to introduce students to fundamental skills every graduate student in computer science requires. This includes skills in research and communication with a focus on the culture and research in computer science, including graduate student orientation, research integrity and ethics, equity, diversity and inclusion, science communication for a general audience, elevator pitches, science writing for a general audience, finding/reading the literature, and peer review. The course will also introduce to the different career paths graduate students in computer science pursue and how to structure one’s graduate studies according to these paths.
When: Tuesdays, 2:35 PM - 3:25 PM
Where: McConnell Engineering Building, ENGMC 103. The class is in-person only, and the sessions/panels will not be recorded.
Credits: 1 credit.
Prerequisites: None.
Discussion forum: EdStem (to participate in the forum, you need to first sign up using this link, with your McGill email) Please ask all course-related questions on Ed, so everyone can benefit.
MyCourses page: https://mycourses2.mcgill.ca/d2l/home/656963
For personal issues, you can reach out to one of the course co-coordinators at comp604@cs.mcgill.ca.
Tentative Schedule
Week 1, no class. The semester starts on Wednesday.
Week 2, Sep 5
Lecture: Introduction and logistics. Prof. Oana Balmau.
Week 3, Sep 12
Panel discussion: Working in a research group
Panelists: Prof. Martin Robillard, and Prof. Siva Reddy. Moderator: Prof. Oana Balmau.
Week 4, Sep 19
Panel discussion: Work-life integration
Panelists: Prof. Robert Robere, and Prof. Jacob Errington. Moderator: Prof. David Rolnick.
Week 5, Sep 26
Updated: Lecture: Writing tips for computer science. Prof. David Rolnick.
Week 6, Oct 3
Updated: Lecture: Oral presentation tips. Prof. Paul Kry.
Week 7
No Class: Reading week.
Week 8, Oct 17
Panel discussion: Results reproducibility
Panelists: Prof. Jérôme Waldispühl, and Prof. Clark Verbrugge. Moderator: Prof. David Rolnick.
Week 9, Oct 24
Panel discussion: Ethics and sustainability in CS
Panelists: Prof. Golnoosh Farnadi, and Prof. Bettina Kemme. Moderator: Prof. David Rolnick.
Week 10, Oct 31
Online lecture: Equity, diversity, and inclusion. Lecturer: Sara McAllister
Zoom link: https://mcgill.zoom.us/j/6796939400
Week 11, Nov 7
Panel discussion: Effective networking
Panelists: Prof. Jackie Cheung, and Prof. Derek Ruths. Moderator: Prof. David Rolnick.
Week 12, Nov 14
Presentation week:
Jiaxuan Chen
Maxime Darrin
Ruoyu Deng
Zachary Doucet
Shwetali Shimangaud
Week 13, Nov 21
Presentation week:
Chaitanya Santosh Tekane
Shubham Vashisth
Suraj Verma
Fatemeh Yaghoubpour
Week 14, Nov 28
Panel discussion: Effective teaching
Panelists: Prof. David Becerra, and Prof. Mona ElSaadawy. Moderator: Prof. Oana Balmau.
Week 15, Dec 5
Panel discussion: Career directions after the PhD
Panelists: Prof. Joelle Pineau, and Prof. Mathieu Blanchette. Moderator: Prof. Oana Balmau.
Grading Scheme
Participation: 10%
Students are required to attend lectures for a minimum of 9 weeks and engage in the panels and lectures by responding to questions raised by the instructor, by asking questions, or by participating in discussion points highlighted by the instructor.
Oral presentation: 30%. Presentation days Nov 14th & Nov 21st.
Short written report: 30%. Due Nov 28th.
Peer review: 30%. Due Dec 5th.