Want to Join Us?
We are always looking for great students (including undergraduates) and post-docs, and welcome visiting faculty from outside Israel. If you are interested in joining our group, please set a meeting with Prof. Kaminka and send mail describing your interests (if you don’t hear back within two days, re-send and make him feel guilty 😄). When all else fails, you can always contact the lab manager Chana Weitman.
Doing research is time-consuming and takes consistent serious effort; it’s worth it because you’ll be answering questions whose answers are not known. To anyone. If this is what you are after, we want to talk.
Post-doc? Visitor? If you are a researcher looking to visit us for a short duration or even a year (e.g., on sabbatical), by all means feel free to contact directly in mail. We have a history of visiting scholars from the USA and Europe, and will be happy to host you. Please contact Prof. Kaminka directly, and don’t be shy about reminding him if you don’t hear back within 2 days.
Joining as a Graduate Studet (Ph.D. or M.Sc.)
The purpose of advanced degrees is to learn how to do research. The method of learning is old; learning by apprenticeship, under the guidance of an academic advisor. The student learns research by tackling an open scientific question of some importance, and discovering an answer. The role of the advisor is assist the student in his or her research: point to related previous work, offer ideas for solution approaches, explain the scientific method, offer a sounding board to arguments, help in building a professional network, and teach effective communication of the results.
The dissertation or thesis is just a platform for this learning process. At the end of a Ph.D. (and to some extent, also of a Masters), the student should be the world’s greatest expert on the specific topic of the Ph.D.; more so than his or her advisor. But the goal is to gain enough knowledge of how to carry out research, so that the student can continue independently.
The initial topic of the research can come from the student, or the advisor, or both. As the research progresses, it is up to the student to take an increasingly active role in leading it.
Joining as Undergraduate
The MAVERICK group has been a home to many undergraduate students (affectionately nicknamed Gal’s Geeks), who have become a part of the group while studying for the undergraduate degree, during their second or third year.
If you are a good student , and you are curious about research and want to learn, you should come talk to us. Expect hard work, but also lots of fun!