Try to cultivate the habit of thinking deeply and logically. Research is about analyzing other researches critically to point out their shortcomings and come up with remedies. In order to do that, you need to be critical and logical about the existing knowledge.
For a good research, you need to develop your ability to observe, to concentrate, and to endure. Of course, basic knowledge on the devices is important, but a lot of efforts and repetitions are also required to succeed. If you can learn to appreciate these tiresome processes, your hard work and devotion will be rewarded with unparalleled sense of accomplishment.
Try not to be too anxious about the future. With your academic background, just try to be unperturbed and constantly do your best, and you will have nothing to worry about.
For the students who would like to develop a system such as K-Glass that combines multiple fields of research, I would like to tell you that it is of utmost importance to have basic knowledge and experience over various academic fields.
The boundaries between various scientific fields have become less and less clear. Therefore, I suggest that EE students focus more on with whom they can collaborate with and not only on what they can research. It is very important to be able to communicate with people of different background and conduct collaborative research.
Have a definite goal in life and do your best to achieve it. Doing your best is just like a ship moving at its fastest speed. However, if its destination is not clear, then there is no point in moving as fast as it can. Therefore, it is very important to have a clear goal in life. Life is like a marathon; you cannot achieve everything in a year or two. Always be sure to distribute your passion and energy over the course of your life.
Be familiar with graphs rather than equations. When you focus only on the equations, the complexity of them can thwart you from completely understanding the characteristics of certain circuits or devices. Prior to proving systems with equations, you need to understand their characteristics through graphs. Most of what we learn started from phenomenon, not theories or equations. We commonly utilize graphs to understand phenomenon. Therefore, be familiar with graphs to better understand and analyze circuits.
In short, ‘you don’t have to be smart, but you should never be selfish.’ Collaboration and cooperation are of utmost importance for the research our research group conducts. We must always think of what we can do for the others. This behavior may seem like a loss at this moment, but I guarantee that it will end up being a benefit over time.
While it is very important to put one’s principle into practice, it’s extremely difficult to do so. Having gone through various experiences, I came to realize that if you truly want to abide by your principles, you should come up with your own principles based on your beliefs, rather than passively accepting others’.
Recently, Korea has been suffering from engineering avoidance. This is caused mainly by the limited number of domestic positions engineering students can take upon graduation. I personally believe that SHOULD the KAIST students thrive to expand their capacities, they can be the catalyst in solving the engineering avoidance problems.