Ph.D. Student Profile: Kevin Lin
Kevin Lin
Education
Ph.D. in Data Science Candidate, University of Virginia
M.S. in Applied Mathematics 2019, Air Force Institute of Technology
B.A. in Mathematics 2017, University of Washington
Hometown
Seattle, Washington
Q: When and why did you become interested in Data Science?
Data science was a natural progression from a background of mathematics and desire to stay on the applied side of the field. Hearing the excitement right at the start of the “data science boom” was contagious and I instantly wanted to be a part of it.
Q: Choosing a doctoral program is a big decision – why did you decide on UVA's Ph.D. in Data Science?
I am a sponsored student through the United States Air Force (USAF) where I serve as an operations research analyst. I applied to UVA’s Ph.D. in Data Science after seeing a shift in both military and industry to adopt data science in projects. Data science has truly spanned from “mind reading” algorithms using fMRI data to autonomous vehicles so I knew that I could research something I am interested in here in the UVA Ph.D. program.
Q: What is your research area of interest? Do you know what will be your dissertation topic?
My research areas of interest are Bayesian uncertainty, domain adaptation, and computer vision. My dissertation topic will be “Domain Adaptation Evaluation for Deep Image Segmentation.”
Q: What has been your favorite class OR professor in the program so far and why?
I really enjoyed Bayesian Machine Learning with Dr. Brown. As a person who always used frequentist methods all the way through my masters, I appreciated the rigorous dive into Bayesian approaches and when to favor them.
Q: What advice do you have for someone interested in pursuing a Ph.D. in Data Science?
Read some of the research that’s being done here and reach out to the current students and faculty. Still interested? Send that application!
Q: What is a fun fact about yourself?
I am an avid photographer and finally switched over to a mirrorless full frame. Also, I shaved my head for my master’s graduation and ended up on the front page of the local newspaper!
