Gennaro Vessio

🎓 Motivated students are welcome to work on their thesis under my supervision, focusing on one of our ongoing research topics. Alternatively, you are encouraged to propose a topic aligned with your own interests, which I will be happy to explore together with you! Occasionally, theses may also be carried out in collaboration with local companies, offering the opportunity to combine academic research with hands-on experience through external internships.

We provide a set of resources to support students. A thesis template in English, designed primarily for M.Sc. and Ph.D. theses, is available on Overleaf. A research diary template for sharing notes and tracking progress is also provided on Overleaf. Finally, a simple presentation template, including guidelines and tips, can be downloaded from Google.

Doing a Ph.D. is like "navigating stormy waters". It is a deeply transformative journey that shapes your intellectual identity. By the time someone completes a Ph.D., they are no longer the same person who began it.

🎓 Some tips for a successful Ph.D. thesis

Choose your topic wisely: Pick something you love and value the expertise of the supervisor working on that topic.

🔥 Prefer a hot topic: Unfortunately, the academic career path can be highly competitive and heavily influenced by quantitative measures. If you see your Ph.D. as the first step toward an academic career, it's better to start with a topic that attracts significant interest rather than an isolated niche...
⚖️ Avoid extremes: Try not to choose a very famous professor who may have little time to supervise you closely, nor an overly isolated one who lacks the influence to create opportunities and visibility for your work...

Good ideas don't appear out of nowhere:

📜 Start with a very recent paper from a top journal or conference on your topic.
🕵️ Trace your bibliography backwards from the Related Work section to the foundational papers in the field.
🔄 Replicate the study to establish a solid baseline for comparison.
🔍 Identify open issues, which are often highlighted in the Conclusion or Future Work sections.

Structure your thesis carefully:

Think of it as an hourglass ⏳.
Start with high-level abstraction: motivations, goals, and background knowledge.
Narrow down into the specifics: materials, methods, and experiments, ensuring reproducibility.
End with high-level abstraction: discuss limitations, implications, and possible future directions.

Understand the purpose of a Ph.D. thesis: It typically focuses on solving one or more open problems in a research community. It demonstrates the effectiveness and limitations of your proposed approach through rigorous experimentation.
Set a productive routine: Some argue that successful people get up early and make their bed—a great way to start a focused day!
Last but not least: Coffee ☕. A Ph.D. student's best friend!

🎓 Some tips for a successful M.Sc. thesis

The same principles apply, but in a more relaxed form. An M.Sc. thesis usually focuses on a single experiment and requires less autonomy. For scientific or technological topics, it should be experimental or at least implementation-oriented. At this stage, it is generally advisable to avoid purely literature-based theses, which often lack the depth expected from a strong M.Sc. project...

🎓 Some tips for a successful B.Sc. thesis

Here, the principles apply in an even more relaxed way. A B.Sc. thesis typically focuses on a single, well-defined task and requires limited autonomy. It should be seen as a first step—an opportunity to acquire foundational research skills and prepare for future academic or professional paths.

🎓 Well, I have a Ph.D.: now what?

Being a post-doc is often the most non-linear and uncertain part of the academic career path. Even for very strong candidates, success depends not only on merit but also on a non-negligible amount of luck...

Factors like these can significantly influence your chances:

Is your supervisor influential?
Are there enough financial resources to fund your post-doc?
Is the historical period favorable for hiring at your university or in your country?
Have you become (almost) indispensable to your group's research activities?

Statistically, only a small fraction of post-docs secure a stable academic position... However, going abroad and expanding your social graph can improve your chances. My advice? Be dynamic and proactive! If you feel stuck, like you're orbiting without progress, change the air—it might be the push you need to advance.

🎓 Well, I have an M.Sc. degree: now what?

If you're young enough (unfortunately, age is a factor that cannot be ignored...) and have the light in your eyes ✨, you might consider pursuing a Ph.D. However, be prepared: you'll see your friends get married, drive the car you dream of, earn more money, and enjoy weekends off. But—hey—you'll be a "real" doctor! More importantly, a Ph.D. will give you a level of maturity and self-confidence that can prepare you to tackle almost any challenge life throws at you!

🎓 Well, I have a B.Sc. degree: now what?

The situation is quite similar. If you're young enough, consider pursuing an M.Sc. It can open new doors and give you deeper expertise in your field. That said, the 3+2 formula is a hotly debated topic. Personally, I think it might need to be rethought—if not entirely removed—but that's a story for another day...

Alessandro Bianchi did not like appearing in photos much, but I secretly took this one of him at St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna during our first conference together. He was my Ph.D. supervisor, and we collaborated on formal methods. Sadly, he passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on August 29, 2019...

Alessandro was a true gentleman of Computer Science. He taught me so much and, unlike many others, always treated me as an equal. His kindness, humility, and brilliance left a lasting impact on me. Ciao, Prof.

He also found it amusing to have a connection to Paul Erdős. As one of Alessandro's co-authors, my Erdős number is at least 5. One known path is:
P. Erdős → S. Marcus → G. Păun → P. Mussio → A. Bianchi → G. Vessio.