04/13/2026
Join us for a presentation by Steven Senczyszyn!
A Road Map of Research and Post-Grad Journey.
April 14th at 4:30 PM in EDI 225
Abstract:
When I first started my graduate studies working on carbon nanotube speakers, I never imagined I'd eventually be developing target recognition algorithms and safety frameworks for reinforcement learning agents. Research careers rarely follow the plan you have in mind during grad school. In this talk, I'll walk through my journey from thermoacoustics into active noise control, underwater acoustics on the Great Lakes, and eventually into machine learning and Al. Through this, I've been a grad student, a research engineer, a project manager, and a PhD candidate. I'll share what I've learned about being a soft-funded researcher, how your technical skills can help you pivot to adjacent fields, and how this winding career path can be a feature and not a bug.