Welcome to the Machine Learning Department
& The School of Computer Science!

 

Things every entering ML PhD student needs to know ...

Updated 7/5/07

ARRIVAL FOR NEW STUDENTS:

• How to get to campus
• Short-term Lodging
• ML IC Schedule
• When do classes start?
  

ACTION ITEMS:

• I-20 Form
• Medical History Form

OTHER INFORMATION:

• Academic Calendar
• Schedule of Classes
• Change of Address 
• Core Courses and Prerequisites 

• CMU Housing Office 
• Medical Services / Health Insurance 
• International Student Orientation
• Financial Support 
• Women@SCS

Welcome to Pittsburgh, and to the Machine Learning Department at Carnegie Mellon. We are extremely pleased that you have decided to become a member of our department; we think it's a very special collection of faculty and students, and we hope you will too. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to send me email. We hope you have a good summer, and look forward to having you with us in the fall. 

Diane Stidle

2007 Graduate Student Orientation is August 14-16, 2007 for all incoming graduate students.
Please note: August 14 is only for International students.

ML Immigration Course (IC) will be Monday, August 27, 2007, beginning at 9:00AM.

You will receive a packet of materials during the ML IC. Office assignments will be available on August 27, 2007-- but probably not before. You are welcome to use the ML Lab if you need a desk before your office is ready, please see Diane to get a key. The schedule for the orientation will be posted when it is available.

You will receive a Report on Medical History, in your admissions packet, which should be completed and returned to the Department of Health, Carnegie Mellon, prior to your arrival on campus. All entering full-time students born after 1956 must demonstrate proof of immunity against measles, mumps and rubella by either providing dates of inoculation of two doses of the measles vaccine and at least one dose of mumps and rebella or providing blood titers that demonstrate immunity to these infections or providing documentation from a physician of having had the infection. Your registration will not be considered complete until your health information has been received. The Medical History form will be included in your packet of information. Additional requirements for International Students: All full-time international students must provide documentation of having had a PPD skin test to screen for tuberculosis within one year prior to enrollment in the university regardless of prior BCG inoculation. If the results of the skintest are positive, a chest x-ray is required. If you have questions, please call Student Health Services at 412-268-2157.

Health Insurance: Complete information about health insurance plans available will be forwarded to you by Student Health Services during the summer. Cost of the current plans range from $820 - $1,816 per year for individual policies, (subject to change). All full-time students are required to carry health insurance and will be assessed a charge for the individual basic mandatory plan offered through the university student health insurance program. The charge will appear on the invoice of the first semester of attendance in the academic cycle. The student is required to take one of the following three actions: 1) Enroll in the basic plan as charged. 2) Upgrade the benefit plan by enrolling in the enhanced student health insurance options during the open enrollment period. 3) Apply for a waiver from the mandatory plan.

Requirements for Waiver of University Health Insurance: Application for waiver from the university student health insurance plan must be made to Student Health Services by the last day of the open enrollment period. Students applying for waiver must provide documentation of continuing coverage verifying that they are enrolled as the dependent, partner/spouse or principal in an employer or government-sponsored insurance plan. Additionally, the plan must meet minimum standards for coverage as set forth below:

• It must offer at least 75% coverage for in-patient and outpatient medical services in the Pittsburgh area.
• It must include mental health benefits.
• The deductible must not exceed $500 per accident or illness.
• It must offer medical benefits of at least $50,000 per accident or illness.
• It must cover pre-existing conditions.

Housing:

Community Housing
For more detailed information on housing and related issues, you may want to visit the CMU Housing Office (412/268-2139) website, which can be very helpful in locating suitable apartments or houses for new students. They can provide computerized listings of spaces available to match your specific needs.

If you will be looking for an apartment before you arrive, the best times are either early May or mid-July. Most leases are for one year, ending in May or August. You can sign a lease any time if the space is available - but people don't always let the landlords know whether they'll be renewing until 30 - 45 days before the end of the lease. There is usually a little overlap in August -- old leases not over until the end of August, but you need a place by mid-August -- but it's often possible to "bunk in" with older students for a few days until your place comes available. Usually if you get in touch with the person who was your student contact s/he can be helpful in the transition.

Change of Address: Please notify Diane of any address changes throughout your time here at Carnegie Mellon. Also update your address in the Student Information System.

Information regarding registering for courses:
For schedule of courses and to register go to: http://www.cmu.edu/hub/online_services.html
I will register you for the following courses:
10-701 Machine Learning
10-705 Intermediate Statistics
10-920 Graduate Reading & Research (24 units)

Classes at Carnegie Mellon begin on August 27, 2007, with the exception of the Computer Science Department and ML. So the Statistics classes start the week of August 27, 2007 but the Machine Learning and other ML & CS classes don't begin until September 10th.

Computer Accounts will be set up for you by the time you arrive. Your CS account will be activated in August. You will also have an Andrew account on the university Andrew network to view your student account, register for courses, sign up for health insurance, etc. This is automatically assigned when you are entered into the Student Information System. You can find out your Andrew login (it's not the same as your CS account, unfortunately, by fingering yourfirstname.yourlastname@andrew.cmu.edu. The password is the first 8 digits of your US social security number, or your student ID number if you do not have an SSN. (International students should contact me by email to find out your student ID number.)

The Enrollment Services office will send you an invoice showing the amount of your tuition for the fall semester. Please write on the invoice "Tuition to be deducted from monthly support stipend from the ML PhD program". Return the invoice and any other forms they send to you directly to Enrollment Services. If you don't have time to send it, please give a copy of your invoice to Diane Stidle during the IC.

Monthly Stipend Checks are distributed on the last working day of each month and can be picked up in the CS Main Office. Your stipend begins on September 1, 2007, but you will not receive your first stipend check until September 28, 2007. In order to get "on the payroll" you are required by the US Citizenship & Immigration Service to complete an I-9 Form, showing that you are either a U.S. citizen, or have permission to be employed. Citizens of the U.S. must show either a valid U.S. passport, or a state-issued driver's license PLUS an ORIGINAL Social Security Card or a birth certificate bearing a seal. Those who are not U.S. citizens must show their passport (with attached employment authorization Form I-9, which will be issued by the CMU Foreign Student Advisor during foreign student orientation.) Please be sure that you have these documents with you when you arrive. If you have received external funding your contact person in CMU SCS will be Karen Olack (kdo@cs.cmu.edu) (412 268-7652).  If you have any questions feel free to contact her directly. Karen can also answer -- or get an answer from someone else -- for any questions regarding taxes. 

Dependency Allowance
If your spouse is unemployed, or earns less than $200 per month, you are entitled to a dependency allowance.A dependency allowance of 10% per month of the SCS base stipend amount for each eligible dependent is paid to a Ph.D. student provided that his or her spouse or qualifying domestic partner earns $200.00 or less per month.

In academic year 2006-2007, base stipend is $2,125.00 and the allowance per eligible dependent is $212.50.

Fellowships
ML appreciates the efforts of its Graduate Students in obtaining outside support. As an incentive for actively soliciting and obtaining support from outside sources, ML provides supplement money. Students receiving outside support at the initiative of ML (with only a vitae - or less - from the student) are not entitled to the supplement. If you have received a Fellowship please contact Karen Olack (kdo@cs.cmu.edu) to find out what information you need to supply her and what your supplement money would be in your particular case.

Please notify Diane Stidle if/when your email or physical address changes.

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