Joining ALFA

ALFA respects and welcomes every applicant. We conduct ourselves as team members and representatives of ALFA with the same respect and welcoming attitude.

Applying from Inside MIT

UROP and Super-UROP Opportunities

We invite MIT undergraduates to explore research opportunities in our lab through the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP). To get started, browse our current research to identify areas that align with your interests. We often seek UROP and Super-UROP students during the fall semester, so be sure to check the UROP webpage for specific details and deadlines.

M.Eng and TPP Students

If you’re an MIT M.Eng student interested in joining our lab, we invite you to reach out at alfa-apply@csail.mit.edu to explore how your thesis project might fit with our current research. Please include relevant courses and grades, relevant experience, expected year of graduation, and CV/resume in your email.

Opportunities to Join from Outside MIT

PhD Students

For the most up to date info, please see the EECS grad admissions website.

All applicants must apply through MIT’s graduate program admissions process for the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. The application deadline is typically in early December for study starting the following September (check the website for the exact date). In your application materials (e.g., statement of purpose), be sure to highlight your interest in topics related to our lab’s research and your desire to study under Dr. O’Reilly.

For informal inquiries, email alfa-apply@csail.mit.edu.

Postdocs

Potential postdocs should contact Una-May O’Reilly through alfa-apply@csail.mit.edu. It is very important when you contact us to clearly and concisely identify areas of mutual interest and provide information about your background. Having a face to face relationship with a member of ALFA in the group is very helpful.

The group has rotating funding for a modest number of post doctoral associate positions. Others are welcome if they can earn funding from other sources such as research foundations in their own country. Examples are NSERCs in Canada, NSFs from the USA, etc. In these situations, a letter of support may be required during your application process. That can be provided should the project match well with ALFA. In other situations, postdocs apply after they have a scholarship. Be aware that postdoc fellowships that are funded outside MIT are usually (but not always) subject to extra CSAIL specific fees to cover visa processing and/or resources usage which implies either Dr. O’Reilly must cover these costs or your scholarship should. Having an award in hand does not guarantee an invitation to join. We have limited resources and require mutual interests.

Short Term Visits

Students

In very rare occasions, outside thesis work can be conducted over a short visit. Note that for these visits, the visitor must cover costs including MIT visiting student fees, CSAIL specific fees to cover visa processing and resources usage, travel to MIT, local accommodations and travel. Most students are funded by their home institution or scholarship for the visit. The cost of a visit depends on the length of stay and time of year, and does not include accommodations and local travel. International students must meet the financial requirements for a visa.

Generally, you must be willing to work on a project of mutual interest, with our software libraries and infrastructure.

Contact alfa-apply@csail.mit.edu to apply and for more information.

Faculty Visitors

We welcome visits from our colleagues in academia. We are most interested in visitors whose research agenda closely aligns with our own or whom we have personally met through conferences, workshop and related travel. Note that visitor fees are not usually imposed upon short term faculty visits.

Contact alfa-apply@csail.mit.edu to apply and for more information.