Prospective students

I am always looking for excellent students and researchers at all levels: postdocs, PhD, MSc, and undergraduates with computer science or engineering backgrounds. Our lab is an intellectually vibrant and a socially inclusive environment, and I enjoy working closely with my students, both graduate and undergraduate. When you join RVL, you will also have the opportunity to closely interact with my colleagues at the UofT CS Robotics Group as well as their students. We have very active members and weekly reading groups, as well as state-of-the-art facilities for robotics research. You will be part of a large, vibrant and healthy community. To learn more about the research at RVL check out our lab's research, our publications, and this recommended reading list for new and prospective students. Note that you do not need to be interested in all of these areas, but at least one.

Email policy

I welcome emails from prospective students, however, I will not be able to answer all of them. I reply to messages from prospective students who seem like a good fit for my lab and I encourage them to apply. If I haven't replied to your message, it is probably because I don't see a strong fit with my lab's research.

FAQ for prospective postdocs

How can I join your lab as a postdoc?

Email me with your CV, unofficial transcripts from your graduate and undergraduate studies, your research interests, and a link to your publications. Take a look at these postdoc funding opportunities. If you are also interested in simultaneously collaborating with an industrial partner, then take a look at the Mitacs Elevate and Mitacs Accelerate program. There are also many other external funding opportunities. Whatever your funding situation may be, if I see that we are a strong research match, I will do my best to find funding for you.

What types of fellowship or scholarship opportunities are there for postdocs?

Take a look at this document.

How can I maximize my chances of working as a postdoc in your lab?

The more of these criteria apply to you, the better:

  • you have at least 2-3 interesting and well-executed first-author papers on topics that are relevant to our lab
  • you have published at RSS, CoRL, ICRA, NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR, CVPR, ICCV, SIGGRAPH or related journals
  • you have strong software engineering skills
  • you have strong math skills
  • you have read and understood relevant research papers to our lab
  • you have industry experience
  • you have excellent reference letters
  • you can work well both independently and in a team setting
  • you have or you want to develop leadership skills

FAQ for prospective MSc and PhD students

How can I join your lab as a PhD student?

Feel free to email me with your CV, unofficial transcripts from your studies, and your research interests. If I see that we are a good research match I will reply and encourage you to submit an application. Unfortunately, I can not reply to all such emails because there are simply way too many. If I have not replied to your message, it is probably because I do not see a strong fit with my lab's research. You should follow the application instructions for the PhD program at the Department of Computer Science at the University of Toronto. You will be asked to list up to five potential supervisors when you apply. You should list my name, as well as robotics as one of your three research areas to ensure that I will see your application. Typically, the application deadline is in December for students applying to start in September of the following year. I will follow up with one or two Zoom interviews in the first weeks of January. If you get admitted to UofT CS you will have guaranteed funding for 4 years if you already have a MSc degree, or 5 years if you do not. That funding comes partially from the CS department, partially from my grants, and partially from any scholarships that you might receive.

How can I join your lab as a MSc student?

Feel free to email me with your CV, unofficial transcripts from your studies, and your research interests. If I see that we are a good research match I will reply and encourage you to submit an application. Unfortunately, I can not reply to all such emails because there are simply way too many. If I have not replied to your message, it is probably because I do not see a strong fit with my lab's research. You should follow the application instructions for the MSc program at the Department of Computer Science at the University of Toronto. You will be asked to list up to five potential supervisors when you apply. You should list my name, as well as robotics as one of your three research areas to ensure that I will see your application. Typically, the application deadline is in December for students applying to start in September of the following year. I will follow up with one or two Zoom interviews in the first weeks of January. If you get admitted to UofT CS you will have guaranteed funding for 17 months. That funding comes partially from the CS department, partially from my grants, and partially from any scholarships that you might receive.

Should I apply to the MSc or the direct-entry PhD program?

If you are a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, I strongly recommend you apply to the MSc program. At the end of the program, if you, your supervisor, and the department agree, you will be able to directly continue to the PhD program without re-applying. There will be no difference in graduation time if you pursue the MSc + PhD option vs. the direct-entry PhD option, they are designed to be equivalent. If you are an international student, please apply to the direct-entry PhD program instead of the MSc. If you apply for the MSc program and you change your mind, don't worry, your application will be automatically considered for the direct-entry PhD option, no need to apply twice.

What types of scholarship opportunities are there for MSc or PhD students?

Take a look at this document and this list of internal awards. For the internal awards, you will be considered automatically after you have submitted your application but only if you receive an admission offer.

Does UofT CS provide guaranteed funding for MSc and PhD students?

Yes, for both! Take a look at the funding package details.

Does getting an external scholarship increase my chances of admission?

Receiving an external scholarship is a bonus for your funding package after you get admitted, but it does not affect the admission decision.

How can I maximize my chances of MSc or PhD admission?

The more of these criteria apply to you, the better:

  • you have done well in math, robotics, machine learning, or computer vision courses
  • you have strong software engineering skills
  • you have done research before
  • you are really persistent and eager to learn more about the field
  • you have read and understood relevant research papers to our lab
  • you have industry experience
  • you have excellent reference letters
  • you can work well both independently and in a team setting
  • you have or you want to develop leadership skills

FAQ for prospective undergraduate students

I am an undergraduate student at UofT. Can I do my thesis/capstone project with you?

I enjoy supervising about 3 undergraduate thesis/capstone students every year. You are expected to have taken or audited one of the courses that I teach, or some of the AI-related courses in CS or Engineering.

I am an undergraduate student at UofT. Can I do summer research in your lab?

Our lab offers multiple opportunities for undergraduate students to do paid summer research. You are expected to be available full-time over the summer. You also need to have taken or audited one of the courses that I teach, or some of the AI-related courses in CS or Engineering. If that is not the case, you are expected to have done well in math-heavy courses or have software engineering skills. If you are interested in applying for these positions, you should apply for as many of the undergraduate summer research awards listed in this document as possible. The deadlines for many of these awards are in mid-January, so please contact me in December. If you do not get any of these awards, I will try to find other ways to pay you, but I will have significantly fewer such positions every year so it is in your best interest to apply for them.

How can I maximize my chances of working in your lab?

The more of these criteria apply to you, the better:

  • you have done well in math, robotics, machine learning, or computer vision courses
  • you have strong software engineering skills
  • you are available to work full-time over the summer
  • you have been involved with undergraduate student groups focusing on robotics or AI
  • you are really persistent and eager to learn more about the field
  • you have read and understood relevant research papers to our lab
  • you can work well both independently and in a team setting

FAQ for prospective visiting students

I am a student at a university other than U. Toronto. Can I do an in-person visit in your lab?

If you think we are a strong research match and if you are planning to dedicate at least 6 months of full-time work to your visit then feel free to email me with your CV, unofficial transcript, and research interests. You should also check out funding opportunities for visiting students, such as Mitacs Globalink or opportunities for international visiting graduate students (IVGS) at UofT. For the IVGS program please reach out to me at least 6 months before the start date of your visit. Finally, check out this page.

I am a student at a university other than U. Toronto. Can I do a remote internship in your lab?

I do this very rarely nowadays, but if you think we are a strong research match and if you are planning to dedicate at least 6 months to your internship then feel free to email me with your CV, unofficial transcript, and research interests.