I am always eagerly searching for talented and self-motivated individuals to join my research group. I believe the greatest aspect of my job is to have the privilege to work with dedicated students and colleagues who are motivated to do original work. Nevertheless, going to graduate school or working as a postdoc is a very substantial commitment for all parties involved. Since joining Columbia in 2014, I have graduated four Ph.D. students, two of them found tenure track positions (McMaster and Northeastern), and two joined Los Alamos National Laboratory as postdoc research associates. Two of my former postdocs are now assistant and associate professors at the University of Hong Kong and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (see specific job placements in team member page [URL]).
Generally speaking, I try to recruit one to two graduate students or postdoc per year, depending on the availability and time constraint of funding and my ability to maintain the quality of the research with the existing students and postdoc research associates. The review of the Ph.D. applications typically begins in the spring and ends before the summer. Postdoctoral applications are reviewed continuously. Ideally, the successful Ph.D. candidates should have (1) a master degree in civil engineering, applied mechanics, geomechanics, applied mathematics, or other related disciplines, (2) some background on computational mechanics and reasonable mathematical skills (e.g. linear algebra, partial differential equations), (3) be proficient in Python, C++, Java and/or FORTRAN code developments, and (4) possess excellent communication skills. At the beginning of the Ph.D. study, I expect that the incoming students are at least competent in basic linear algebra and calculus, and have some general ideas about mechanics. Postdoc candidates are recruited based on (1) research accomplishment, (2) future potential, (3) joint interest in the funded research topics, and (4) compatibility. Ph.D. students in my group on average takes about four years to finish their Ph.D. studies if they have a master's degree in a related field. I encourage the job applicants who are seriously considering working with me to talk to my current team members and the former ones to get a fuller and more balanced picture of the level of commitment required to be successful and the work-life balance as a Ph.D. student /postdoc associate.
While working with Ph.D. students and postdoc fellows, my goal is to find a research theme that (i) makes the student and I both excited about the work, (ii) matches well with the student's key competencies, personality, and work habits, (iii) contains elements that are of fundamental importance, (iv) has sufficient chances to find sustainable funding during and, ideally, beyond the Ph.D. study. As your research advisor, it is my duty to (1) provide an intellectually stimulating and safe environment for group members to conduct meaningful research, (2) to set high standards for research, (3) to provide the nuclei of research ideas, (4) to help group members to pursue research ideas as efficiently as possible, and (5) to evaluate critically the development of each group member. I try to respond to the needs of my students and postdoc researchers as quickly as possible, as much as I am capable of while maintaining the right professional boundaries at work. I am willing to do anything I can to make sure that all group members become respected scientists and engineers anywhere they might work.
I believe that one cannot truly succeed in mechanics research without strong internal motivation, but the satisfaction and pure joy brought by solving difficult problems are pure and unparalleled to anything else. It is a requirement that all Ph.D. students and postdoc research scientists must be able to produce research results worthy of publishing in well-respected peer-reviewed journals within a reasonable amount of time in my research group (e.g. Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering [PDF1][PDF2][PDF3][URL], Journal of Engineering Mechanics [PDF], International Journal for Numerical Methods in Engineering [PDF] and International Journal of Analytical and Numerical Methods in Geomechanics [PDF]). All postdoctoral scholars, graduate students, and visiting scholars remained as our team members beyond the first year are expected to continue this trend. It is expected that all team members in this research group would set the highest standard on their work and thrive to conduct high-quality research that impacts our research field.
I also hope that my team members will value their own time as well as the time of other team members as well as mine. While many activities can be beneficial, knowing how to set priorities and stay focus is one of the most important skills you will learn in graduate school. Provided that the time investment is justifiable, I formulate research directions, brainstorm ideas, check derivations, proofread manuscripts, discuss problems, provide feedback, rehearsal presentations, prepare job interviews, and handle the paperwork daily, in addition to my other duties and obligations. In many cases, your success is often dictated far more by how well you manage your time, your level of motivation, your attitude, patience, and discipline on handling failures and setbacks than your talent.
When there are setbacks, don't be discouraged but also be realistic about what you can achieve within a finite amount of time. Be patient to get the details right and don't afraid to make mistakes. Take some time off if you feel overwhelmed and build a supportive network of friends and colleagues that can enrich your life. Some advices on life as a graduate student and early-career researcher can be found in Gassman (1988), PCM (2008), Hardevella et al. (2015), Terence Tao, recently Baker (2020).
Interested candidates please contact me and visit http://gradengineering.columbia.edu/onlineapplication for general information. Answers of general admission questions can be found at http://gradengineering.columbia.edu/frequently-asked-questions-2. In your application, please indicate your interest to work with my research group. I also highly recommend students applying for the NSF Graduate Fellowship, the DOE Office of Science Graduate Fellowship, the Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship, and the d NDSEG Fellowship. Please notice that my Columbia email account will filter out the generic application emails sent to numerous recipients/universities and classified them as spams. Please be specific about (1) why you think our research group is a good fit for you and (2) why you want to attend graduate school.
Due to the large number of applications and inquiries I received, I might not be able to read and respond to all the emails I received. If you decided that you would like to explore the possibility of joining my research team, please list me as the potential advisor in the application package. For postdoctoral students, please consider applying the NSF Earth science postdoctoral fellowship. For information about housing options for graduate students, please visit http://engineering.columbia.edu/housing-2. Admitted SEAS master students with sufficient background on computational mechanics and/or geomechanics are invited to schedule appointments to discuss possible Ph.D./MS projects with me (wsun@columbia.edu). Admitted Columbia students interested in mechanics research are strongly advised to take the Computational Poromechanics course (ENME6320) or Finite Element in Geotechnical Engineering (CIENE4263) offered during the Autumn semester.
If you are interested in visiting my research group temporarily (with external support), please contact me at least a few months ahead of your proposed arrival date. Visiting scholars must provide evidence that they possess sufficient communication skills and have sufficient support to apply for a US visa. Only researchers with compatible research interests and sufficient research background will be considered. We do not support visiting researchers coming to New York for leisure travel. Interested candidate please contact me by email and fill out the application form available at https://portal.seas.columbia.edu/form/view.php?id=114.
Last update: 8/1/2020
Generally speaking, I try to recruit one to two graduate students or postdoc per year, depending on the availability and time constraint of funding and my ability to maintain the quality of the research with the existing students and postdoc research associates. The review of the Ph.D. applications typically begins in the spring and ends before the summer. Postdoctoral applications are reviewed continuously. Ideally, the successful Ph.D. candidates should have (1) a master degree in civil engineering, applied mechanics, geomechanics, applied mathematics, or other related disciplines, (2) some background on computational mechanics and reasonable mathematical skills (e.g. linear algebra, partial differential equations), (3) be proficient in Python, C++, Java and/or FORTRAN code developments, and (4) possess excellent communication skills. At the beginning of the Ph.D. study, I expect that the incoming students are at least competent in basic linear algebra and calculus, and have some general ideas about mechanics. Postdoc candidates are recruited based on (1) research accomplishment, (2) future potential, (3) joint interest in the funded research topics, and (4) compatibility. Ph.D. students in my group on average takes about four years to finish their Ph.D. studies if they have a master's degree in a related field. I encourage the job applicants who are seriously considering working with me to talk to my current team members and the former ones to get a fuller and more balanced picture of the level of commitment required to be successful and the work-life balance as a Ph.D. student /postdoc associate.
While working with Ph.D. students and postdoc fellows, my goal is to find a research theme that (i) makes the student and I both excited about the work, (ii) matches well with the student's key competencies, personality, and work habits, (iii) contains elements that are of fundamental importance, (iv) has sufficient chances to find sustainable funding during and, ideally, beyond the Ph.D. study. As your research advisor, it is my duty to (1) provide an intellectually stimulating and safe environment for group members to conduct meaningful research, (2) to set high standards for research, (3) to provide the nuclei of research ideas, (4) to help group members to pursue research ideas as efficiently as possible, and (5) to evaluate critically the development of each group member. I try to respond to the needs of my students and postdoc researchers as quickly as possible, as much as I am capable of while maintaining the right professional boundaries at work. I am willing to do anything I can to make sure that all group members become respected scientists and engineers anywhere they might work.
I believe that one cannot truly succeed in mechanics research without strong internal motivation, but the satisfaction and pure joy brought by solving difficult problems are pure and unparalleled to anything else. It is a requirement that all Ph.D. students and postdoc research scientists must be able to produce research results worthy of publishing in well-respected peer-reviewed journals within a reasonable amount of time in my research group (e.g. Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering [PDF1][PDF2][PDF3][URL], Journal of Engineering Mechanics [PDF], International Journal for Numerical Methods in Engineering [PDF] and International Journal of Analytical and Numerical Methods in Geomechanics [PDF]). All postdoctoral scholars, graduate students, and visiting scholars remained as our team members beyond the first year are expected to continue this trend. It is expected that all team members in this research group would set the highest standard on their work and thrive to conduct high-quality research that impacts our research field.
I also hope that my team members will value their own time as well as the time of other team members as well as mine. While many activities can be beneficial, knowing how to set priorities and stay focus is one of the most important skills you will learn in graduate school. Provided that the time investment is justifiable, I formulate research directions, brainstorm ideas, check derivations, proofread manuscripts, discuss problems, provide feedback, rehearsal presentations, prepare job interviews, and handle the paperwork daily, in addition to my other duties and obligations. In many cases, your success is often dictated far more by how well you manage your time, your level of motivation, your attitude, patience, and discipline on handling failures and setbacks than your talent.
When there are setbacks, don't be discouraged but also be realistic about what you can achieve within a finite amount of time. Be patient to get the details right and don't afraid to make mistakes. Take some time off if you feel overwhelmed and build a supportive network of friends and colleagues that can enrich your life. Some advices on life as a graduate student and early-career researcher can be found in Gassman (1988), PCM (2008), Hardevella et al. (2015), Terence Tao, recently Baker (2020).
Interested candidates please contact me and visit http://gradengineering.columbia.edu/onlineapplication for general information. Answers of general admission questions can be found at http://gradengineering.columbia.edu/frequently-asked-questions-2. In your application, please indicate your interest to work with my research group. I also highly recommend students applying for the NSF Graduate Fellowship, the DOE Office of Science Graduate Fellowship, the Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship, and the d NDSEG Fellowship. Please notice that my Columbia email account will filter out the generic application emails sent to numerous recipients/universities and classified them as spams. Please be specific about (1) why you think our research group is a good fit for you and (2) why you want to attend graduate school.
Due to the large number of applications and inquiries I received, I might not be able to read and respond to all the emails I received. If you decided that you would like to explore the possibility of joining my research team, please list me as the potential advisor in the application package. For postdoctoral students, please consider applying the NSF Earth science postdoctoral fellowship. For information about housing options for graduate students, please visit http://engineering.columbia.edu/housing-2. Admitted SEAS master students with sufficient background on computational mechanics and/or geomechanics are invited to schedule appointments to discuss possible Ph.D./MS projects with me (wsun@columbia.edu). Admitted Columbia students interested in mechanics research are strongly advised to take the Computational Poromechanics course (ENME6320) or Finite Element in Geotechnical Engineering (CIENE4263) offered during the Autumn semester.
If you are interested in visiting my research group temporarily (with external support), please contact me at least a few months ahead of your proposed arrival date. Visiting scholars must provide evidence that they possess sufficient communication skills and have sufficient support to apply for a US visa. Only researchers with compatible research interests and sufficient research background will be considered. We do not support visiting researchers coming to New York for leisure travel. Interested candidate please contact me by email and fill out the application form available at https://portal.seas.columbia.edu/form/view.php?id=114.
Last update: 8/1/2020
