If you took a class
with me, I will be happy to write a letter for you. Simply
provide the appropriate materials to my assistant Molly
Flesner (mflesner@cs.uiuc.edu)
with a note indicating which classes you took with me, when, and
your grades in those classes. However, unless I got to know you
in class, this will be a rather generic letter effectively
stating that you took the class with me, got a grade of XYZ, and
a total score ranked XYZ. Frankly, such a letter isn't
particularly valuable for a graduate school application, but I
can't write any more if I don't know you. If you feel that I did
get to know you in class (e.g., you participated a lot in class
and I knew you by name), send me an email and/or come by my
office (during my office hours) to jog my memory. In this case,
I will personalize the letter.
If I
am your assigned advisor, feel free to drop by my office hours
(posted on my web site). If you can't make my office hours, send me
an email for an appointment. To discuss your academic progress
and/or your schedule for the next semester, please bring your grad
check along and preferably have some idea of the courses you would
like to take next semester.
If you already have a
thesis advisor, you should meet with him/her for advising.
(Ensure you have submitted a form to the academic office
declaring your advisor.) Otherwise, if I am your assigned
academic advisor, feel feel free to drop by my office hours
(posted on my web site). If you can't make my office hours, send
me an email for an appointment. To discuss your academic
progress and/or your schedule for the next semester, please
bring a hard copy of the progress report from the academic
office with all the blanks filled in and also email me the
corresponding pdf in advance. Also, take a look at the timetable
and try to get a rough idea of the courses you are interested in
taking for the next semester..
In general, if I
don't know you or your work by the time you are ready to take
your prelim, I am probably not the right person to be on your
prelim committee. In other words, if you would like me to be on
your prelim committee, make sure we get to know each other well
before the prelim.
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