“My professor was always ready to help if I was stuck on something”

Why, what, how and where: an alumnus takes stock of his experience as a predoctoral researcher at IMDEA Networks

20 April 2020

We interview one of the members of our Alumni Network, Dr. Pavel Chuprikov. He obtained his PhD from IMDEA Networks and Universidad Carlos III de Madrid back in November 2019 and is now a Post-doc Researcher at Universita della Svizzera Italiana.

Why did you decide to pursue a PhD?

I made this decision when I enrolled on my master’s course in theoretical computer science, which pretty much determined the next step. At that point, I was Software Engineer at JetBrain and I felt like I didn’t want to settle on a specific career path that early in my life. I wanted to try things. I wanted more challenge.

What would you highlight about your time as a PhD student at IMDEA Networks?

I think I was very lucky having Kirill Kogan as my supervisor. He was also ready to spend time with me discussing things. He was always ready to help if I was stuck on something, to introduce me to things that I had little experience on. I think if it was not for him, I would have spent a lot of time by myself trying to get that experience that he gave me.

Do you feel your time at IMDEA Networks prepared you well for your professional career?

I think so. I had experience in general research stuff like writing structuring papers, structuring research and many specific techniques in algorithm design or in software defined networking. In addition, I think it will be very useful for my future.

Have you moved into industry, academia or the research sector?

I have decided to stay in academia, to become a Post-doc and that decision was driven by my desire to have freedom in choosing the things that I work on.