ntwalker

Location: Germany

Willing to relocate: Yes (Germany, Scandinavia, and US; US Citizen currently on Blue Card)

Technologies: Python (Torch, Numpy, Pandas, Transformers, scikit-learn, etc.), Ollama/LMStudio, Docker, GCP, vector databases (e.g. ChromaDB)

Résumé/CV: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1usoxKxUZbI_KMd2_loLsVTlWJms...

Email: nwalk92[at]gmail[dot]com

I'm currently a postdoctoral researcher working on dialogue systems research who completed my PhD working on dialogue systems (dialogue management, specifically) in late 2024. Besides dialogue systems research, I specialize in NLP and information retrieval, and before my PhD I worked in industry as a data scientist implementing search and match applications. Projects I've worked on over the years encompass both classic machine learning technologies as well as more recent AI approaches using LLMs and RAG.

I'm currently looking for opportunities both in Germany and the US for after my postdoc ends this year. I'm also happy to connect with anyone for networking on LinkedIn or otherwise!

Location: Oslo, Norway

Willing to Relocate: Yes

Technologies: Natural Language Processing, machine learning, Elasticsearch, Google Cloud Platform, Python, some Java and Javascript

Resume: Sent on request

Email: nwalk92 [at] gmail.com

I'm a computer science PhD candidate originally from the US finishing up my thesis at the end of December. I'm looking for a new, exciting position for next year where I can use my experience and tackle interesting problems. My specialization is in NLP, but I have experience with general machine learning approaches (e.g. SVMs, clustering algorithms with Scikit-learn) as well as current deep learning methods. From before my PhD program, I have 4 years of experience as a data scientist implementing practical solutions for business-critical applications.

I would prefer to remain in Norway but I am open to opportunities elsewhere, particularly the US.

They pretty much have to be. The infrastructure of the US is such that if cars cost what they do in Europe then a massive section of the population would be entirely locked out of the economy unable to hold a job.

My take on it, personally, is that the primary benefit of a monarch is precisely that they are inherently illegitimate, in a way. This means that every day they have to justify to the people and keep answering the question "Why do we keep these people around?"

A president only has to convince (fool?) the people twice, and can always hide behind a "mandate" from the people to justify bad behavior. A monarch has to fight to earn that legitimacy every day. Plus they have the incentive of not screwing their kids' inheritance up. That's the value I see in it anyways, I don't know if there's a more sophisticated articulation of this idea out there.

I've always found it a funny thing that for me, the thing that got me really interested in Chinese history where I never had interest before was playing the Dynasty Warriors series. I ended up buying the Romance of the Three Kingdoms and a book on Chinese history as a result. It opened my mind to a whole new part of the world. Also Bioware's Jade Empire deserves a mention. It'd be a shame to imagine people shying away from making art that draws from other cultures.

This is something that definitely weighs on my mind, I think. I've got an MSc, but I feel intense self-doubt and feel like I can't be an expert until I've gotten a PhD. In that sense maybe I've internalized the idea, and telling myself I'm not "qualified" to speak on issues of science in my field. And not to mention, doing a PhD brings the benefit of several years of being able to devote full time to learning and development. A full-time job can (should) be a growth environment but one's work will always be subordinate to business needs (most often applying knowledge you have rather than learning new things), and take most of the time of your week.

The quest for autonomy and recognition is rough, it's a very tough game and it's not easy to stay motivated at trying to make progress.

Perhaps that could be a regional thing? The things I hear about the Bay Area for instance make it sound like another planet. A friend of mine (27) just got IT certifications (never went to college) and he has a cool new job in IT support, working on becoming a sysadmin. But either way, keep trying!

The big draw for me is to be able to actually invent and innovate and not just implement old ideas over and over in a boring corporate space. All the exciting research jobs I see in my field (NLP) require a PhD, so I feel like I'll hit a career ceiling at some point and be implementing boring corporate solutions for the rest of my life and never really innovating.

But as you say, appearances can be deceptive and it's like the grass is always greener, so maybe I need to broaden my horizons somehow. It's definitely hard to find that path at the moment though.

Edit: Oh and I do have to admit the fancy title that lets me feel like I'm truly educated and learned, and satisfies credentialism in the world is a draw too... Peer pressure is a hell of a drug

This feels basically exactly like my experience too this year and last. I even had a professor tell me straight up when I emailed him that I basically wouldn’t get in since he already had prospective students with publications in the exact area reach out to him. I’ve kind of realized that without a string of publications ahead of time you’re basically out of the game before you even try. It’s like you have to have done PhD level work before you can do the PhD. It’s left me totally lost on what to do from here, getting a PhD has been a life dream for me so it’s hard to ditch the idea. I guess we might be in the same boat.