Faculty at Rochester Institute of Technology invites applications for PhD fellowships starting fall 2022. The PhD fellowships are fully funded.
We are looking for self-motivated graduate students who are interested in conducting research on data security and electronic waste. The project is a collaboration between RIT’s Institute for Sustainability and College of Computing and Information Sciences, and is supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation. The goal of the project is to understand data vulnerabilities of electronic devices while used and at end-of-life, and to better manage data for improved security and increased reuse. For a set of Internet-of-Things and other home consumer electronics, consumers are surveyed on privacy and end-of-use behaviors. Personally Identifiable Information stored on different devices is assessed and analyzed for privacy risk. The usability of data wiping protocols is evaluated to clarify how easy and effective it is to remove personal data from different devices. The results from these activities leads to construction of a model predicting security and end-of-use behaviors for different consumer groups. This model is used to suggest effective interventions to improve privacy and sustainability outcomes, e.g. improving the usability of wiping protocols or educating consumers.
Successful applicants should hold at least a bachelor’s degree, an MS degree in addition and/or prior research experience is desirable. Good speaking and written English are required. Previous experience and/or documented knowledge in one or more of the following areas are highly recommended to apply:
- Machine Learning and/or other data analytic methods to predict behaviors,
- Survey design and analysis,
- Cybersecurity and/or penetration testing,
- Waste management, in particular for electronic waste.
More information on the project is available at https://nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2037535&HistoricalAwards=false. More information on the RIT faculty investigators can be found at https://www.rit.edu/directory/exwgis-eric-williams and https://www.rit.edu/directory/thoics-tae-oh.
If you are interested in the position, please contact Dr. Eric Williams (exwgis@rit.edu) and Dr. Tae Oh (thoics@rit.edu ), and provide a curriculum vitae and brief explanation of educational and past experiences relevant to this position. Formal applications to RIT are due January 15 for full consideration.