How to Join Us
NeuroData is literally always hiring exceptional individuals. If you think you’d like to work with us in any capacity, please email us now! Some thoughts that might be useful prior to emailing us to consider further:
- We are interested in all kinds of people with all kinds of backgrounds, we do not discriminate for any reason, and we are all students at different stages. Although this should go without saying, this includes women and minorities.
- We believe that to maximally flourish requires being in the appropriate environment specifically for you. Each individual benefits from unique circumstances. We wrote this blog post which describes out thoughts on choosing projects, but it is also relevant for choosing teams. If you are reading this far, it seems likely that the kind of work we do is intrinsically motivating for you. Even if not, and you think we could help find a team better aligned with your dreams, please email us.
- To create the most peaceful and productive environment, our team has constructed these agreements, which we all adhere to. This includes treating everyone with respect on the team, and at any team events. See our code of conduct for details. If it seems like that kind of environment would suit you well, please email us.
- If you are interested in pursuing graduate studies with us, there are many different programs that are available. The Johns Hopkins University Biomedical Engineering graduate programs are the most common approach, which includes the MSE and PhD programs, as well as a few others (Tsinghua JHU-BME dual degree and MD/PhD). Note that BME@JHU is the #1 rated BME graduate school in the world according to US News & World Reports. I also sometimes advise students in Computer Science, Applied Mathematics & Statistics, Biostatistics, and Neuroscience. If you are interested in graduate studies with us in a different program (e.g., JHU/Janelia, or ECE@JHU), please also feel free to email us.
- If you are already enrolled at JHU and are interested in joining the lab, the simplest route is to enroll in the year-long project-based course we offer called NeuroData Design. A key motivation for offering this course was to ensure that we could work with as many amazing individuals as possible. If for some reason, enrolling in the course does not seem feasible for you, please email us and we will try to figure out some other arrangement.
- If you are a visiting or exchange student, please see JHU’s official exchange program overview, and go through the official process; after you do this, email us to say you applied. It is complicated for legal and bureaucratic reasons to accept visiting/exchange students outside these official programs, although it is possible. So, if those programs do not work for any reason, please email us.
- In general, we find part time work, and remote work, inefficient, and unlikely to be in your or our best interest (though there are exceptions). If that is the only option for you, we’d be happy to discuss your interests with you to find a more suitable position given your constraints.
OK, given all the above, we recommend that you email us. Below we provide an example email. Note that we will respond within a week in almost all cases.
Dear Prof. X,
I have been studying [something quite relevant to your research] for the last [X duration], and I expect to graduate from [Y institution] in [Z expected month].
I recently became interested with your work, specifically, the article “[some article from our group]”.
I am particularly intrigued by this work because of [X], which is one of the things I am most excited about studying next.
I would therefore be thrilled to do [X] for a period of [Y duration] in your group.
For your convenience, I have attached my CV, and and an unofficial copy of my transcript.
I look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience.
Best, [Some Awesome Person.]
In conclusion, a brief checklist that may help you of what to include in your email to faculty:
- Excitement about working on something specific relevant to the individual you are contacting
- Relevant background experience
- Desired duration and title of position
- Up to date cv
- Remember, the shorter the better, this is just to get your foot in the door.
Good luck!