Call for Applications
Paper Submission Site

Author Instructions Page

AAAI and ACM/SIGART invite students to apply for the Sixteenth AAAI/SIGART Doctoral Consortium. The Doctoral Consortium (DC) provides an opportunity for a group of Ph.D. students to discuss and explore their research interests and career objectives with a panel of established researchers in artificial intelligence. The consortium has the following objectives: (1) to provide a setting for mutual feedback on participants' current research and guidance on future research directions; (2) develop a supportive community of scholars and a spirit of collaborative research; (3) support a new generation of researchers with information and advice on academic, research, industrial, and nontraditional career paths; and (4) contribute to the conference goals through interaction with other researchers and participation in conference events.

The Doctoral Consortium will be held as a workshop on August 7–8, 2011, immediately before the start of the main AAAI conference. Student participants in the Doctoral Consortium will receive complimentary conference registration and a fixed allowance for travel/housing.
Important Dates for Application Submission

* February 18, 2011: Application Package Submission Deadline
* April 1, 2011: Acceptance Notification
* April 26, 2011: Cameria-Ready Copy Due at AAAI Office
* August 7-8, 2011: Doctoral Consortium

The Application Packet

Applicants to the Doctoral Consortium must submit the following materials via the AAAI online submission site. Please combine the first three documents into one PDF document, formatted for US letter paper (8.5 x 11"). Please submit your application materials via the online Doctoral Consortium submission site.

1. Thesis Summary. A two-page thesis summary that outlines the problem being addressed, the proposed plan for research, and a description of the progress to date. The most successful applications directly address all three of these components. Please be sure to distinguish between work that has already been accomplished and work that remains to be done. Be sure to include a title for your work. The thesis summary MUST be in AAAI two-column format, with references.
2. Curriculum Vita. Include a CV (at most two pages) that describes your background and relevant experience (research, education, employment). Your CV must include your anticipated graduation date, or it may be rejected without review. Please include any additional items that may indicate your potential contribution to, and benefit from, the DC.
3. Participant's Expectations. A short (one page or less) statement of what you expect to gain from presenting and participating in the DC, as well as what you think you can contribute to the DC. For best consideration, your statement must address both of these expectations.
4. Letter of Recommendation. A letter of recommendation from your thesis advisor. It must include an assessment of the current status of your thesis research, and an expected date for thesis submission. In addition, your advisor should indicate what he or she hopes you would gain from participation in the DC. This document should be sent in PDF format by your thesis advisor directly to the AAAI Office at dc11@aaai.org.

Review Process

The consortium organizing committee will select participants on the basis of their anticipated contribution to the workshop goals. We solicit applications from any topic area and methodology within artificial intelligence. Students will be selected who have settled on their thesis direction, but still have significant research to complete. The perfect stage is having just had a research proposal accepted by the thesis committee. Students will be selected based on clarity and completeness of the submission packet, stage of research, advisor's letter, and evidence of promise such as published papers or technical reports.
At the Conference

The organizers invite all students to attend and participate in the Doctoral Consortium, whether or not they apply to present their work. In previous years, many nonpresenting students said they found it useful to observe their peers' presentations and to participate in the ensuing discussions.

All participants selected to present their work at the Doctoral Consortium are expected to be present throughout the consortium. Our experience has been that participants gain almost as much by interacting with their peers as by having their presentations critiqued by the faculty panel. As such, we expect a commitment from participating students to attend the entire DC.
Acknowledgements

Support for the 2011 Doctoral Consortium is provided by AAAI and ACM's SIGART.
Inquiries

Additional information may be obtained by writing to dc11@aaai.org or by contacting one of the cochairs of the organizing committee:
Doctoral Consortium Cochairs

* Bradley J. Clement
Artificial Intelligence Group
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
1-818-393-4729
bclement@jpl.nasa.gov

* Elizabeth Sklar
Department of Computer and Information Science
Brooklyn College
City University of New York
1-718-951-5657
sklar@sci.brooklyn.cuny.edu

The Doctoral Consortium call for applications is also available as a printable PDF document