Why join my group?
I will boast here. My group consists of a collection of excellent students who will end up succeeding at the highest levels. I am very proud of them. I focus on developing a skill set that will be in very high demand after you graduate. The culture in my group is very cross-supportive, so you will never be on your own. I also put a very high priority on providing support, financial and otherwise, for the students within my group.

What am I looking for in Research Assistants?
As well as stong indicators of potential for success, I prefer to have students who have built at least some of the skills they will need in their work. Relevant courses include the following: ECE 746 VLSI Design, ECE 591B MEMS Design, ECE 520 ASIC Design, ECE 744 Interconenct and Packaging, ECE 738/739 IC Tech and Fab, ECE 733 Digital Circuits, ECE 711 Analog Circuits. Note, I am not suggesting that you have to take all of these before you join my group, but my projects tend to rely on one or more of these. 746 is kind of the "core" course in all of this. Most of my projects requires some of the skills taught in that course. For PhD RAs, I like to see some indicator of potential for innovation. I consider evidence such as past publications, true innovation within the scope of a class project, the results of an independent study, etc.

For US Residents
If you are a US Citizen or Permament Resident, we will give you preference. Sometimes, we will pay for you to visit here so you can decide on NCSU as a grad school. Feel free to contact me for details. Foreign students might consider this "bias" unfair, but we are supported mainly by US taxpayer funds. Please note the FAQ below "How do you get a Research Assistantship from me?"

For Foreign Residents (though parts of this apply to everyone)
For good reason, a US graduate degree is very valuable. Unfortunately, that means that we get over 2,000 foreign applicants a year. I get at least 5 emails a day from foreign applicants. I will always reply to such letters but the generic "Dear Professor, I am interested in your area" letters get a short reply. A thoughtful letter gets a more specific (but not a long) reply. Of those 2000+ applicants, the Department admits maybe 200 students, and offers financial aid to maybe 50. I accept around 5 new research assistants per year. Don't be discouraged. The good still get admitted.

Please note that in total, I get over 100 emails a day, so can rarely answer questions requiring detailed answers.

How do you get admitted?
Generally, we are looking for quality, as measured by the quality of you current school, your current grades, GRE scores, your letter of purpose, andsupporting references. The package as a whole matters, not any one component. There is some preference to students who show a genuine interest to getting a Ph.D. You can express that interest by irrevocably applying for the Ph.D. program and clearly expressing why you want to do a PhD. Many students email me asking for an estimate of likelihood of admission. In most such cases, such an estimate is difficult to supply and in general I can not supply it.

How do you get a Teaching Assistantship?
Be the cream of the crop of the above plus get the attention of a Professor who is very interested in you. Currently, this is the main process we rely upon for both admission and assistantships. How do you get me to recommend you for a TA? You have to really spark my interest as a potential RA (see below).. There is no formula. If I recommond you, you will get a high priority for an RA in my group later. For students being admitted, only a few International students will be offered a TA. It is hard to predict the likelihood in advance.

How do you get a Research Assistantship from me?
I am mainly looking for Ph.D. students who are at that portion of their Ph.D. when they can apply a substantial portion of their time towards research. Generally, that means that they already have an MS or have done a significant portion of their coursework already. Most of my projects rquire a substantial time commitment from day 1 and are too long to be suited for an MS thesis. In practice, that also means that I tend to recruit students that have already completed a year here. Occassionly, I have projects more suited to MS students. However, again I tend to recruit those students from those who have taken the course here relevant to the project. I tend to recruit from a "pool" of students here who I (or someone in my group) has identified as having research potential. This potential can be established through displays of excellence in the courses you take with me and/or in an independent study. (Please note, I usually on direct independent study projects with students who have already taken the relevant courses.)

Usually my window for recruiting is that time immediately after I know a new project is starting. Research funding works like this. I write a proposal to a Federal Agency or a company. They decide to fund me. I have to start work within a month or two of hearing a response. Thus, I commence this work with students who are here. This system does not lend well to recruiting several months in advance. Please note that research funding is not "general support" that the Government hands to us, which we then spend. Unlike some other countries, US research funding is competitively won based on specific promises to deliver on particular highly innovative outcomes. Thus, I am looking for students who can help me in delivering on these items. You are a lot more interest to me if you have a proven ability to deliver and can cope with doing so on topics that are often poorly specificied up front (this is research after all). Thus I am looking for RAs that are likely to be able to innovate, in new areas, with only general direction. Generally, I am not looking for students to work on well specified designs (though it occassionaly happens). When I am evaluating a student, communcation skills (written and oral) and GPA also matter. However, in general, any evidence of your ability to innovate is very valuable in the selection process.

Should you consider coming without support?
Frankly, unless you already have an MS from a high quality institution, or are a US citizen or Permanent Resident, you are unlikely to be admitted with an RA. A few good International candidates will be admitted with TAs. Many MS students will be admitted without support. You should take great care in this situation. Though there are a reasonable number of opportunities to get support, but if we don't admit you with a guarantee, there are no guarantees. You might have to fund your entire MS degree, or for first year or two of a Ph.D., including full tuition. If you do well at the MS, or in the coursework phase of your Ph.D., your chances of getting an RA to support your research phase of a PhD are very high. In the meanwhile, opportunities for support include various technical jobs around NCSU (very often coding jobs outside of our Department), and Co-Op's with companies (4.5 - 9 months of full time work at a company). There is a very strong Co-Op here with many opportunities available. For International students, please note that INS rules dictate that Co-Ops require you be working on thesis or dissertation that will directly benefit from the technical experience to be gained in the Co-Op. You have to be enrolled in the thesis option, with an identified topic, before you can apply to the University for approval for the Co-Op.