Stony Brook University SUNY Korea

Mathematics serve a significant role in our daily lives. National Institute for Mathematical Sciences (NIMS 국가수리과학연구소) its goal of conducting strategic Research & Development, including industrial mathematics and medical mathematics, finding and solving mathematical problems in industry and the public sector. NIMS continuously endeavors to improve mathematical problem-solving ability in all fields, and to expand the role of mathematics for the public. (Source: NIMS)

In Korea, many students who study in this field want to work at NIMS, so the acceptance rate to get this position is very low. Even though NIMS hires only 8 interns a year, two SUNY Korea students were selected this year. Interviewers spoke with Suhyun Chun and Hyerin Choi, undergraduate students of Stony Brook University (SBU) who are working at NIMS, to discuss their preparation and some tips to get the internships. Let’s listen to their stories of their new journey at NIMS!

Please introduce yourself briefly

Suhyun: I am Suhyun Chun, and I am majoring in Computer Science (CS) at SUNY Korea.

Hyerin: Hello, this is Hyerin Choi and I am a Junior majoring in CS and Applied Mathematics & Statistics (AMS). You guys may have seen me on campus because I tend to have some strange colors in my hair :)

What is your current role and responsibility in NIMS?

Suhyun: They regularly hold seminars in which they share new knowledge or technology. And I also prepare and do seminars on what I studied every week. Last week, I did a seminar about the way to manage geospatial data in python, which is not a familiar topic to them.

Hyerin: I was recruited as an Industrial Mathematics Undergraduate Trainee at NIMS. It stands for National Institute of Mathematics and Science, and it has three branches, in Daejeon, Gwanggyo, and Busan. Each branch is slightly different in what they mainly deal with, but the Daejeon branch, where I am at, is mainly about Industrial Mathematics. Hence, some companies or organizations bring up a problem, and NIMS tries to solve it by building codes or algorithms. 

How did you prepare for the internship?

Suhyun: I just started to prepare for an internship, and this is my first chance to experience the workplace. What I did is that I actively participated in school activities such as a coding contest, Teacher Assistant (TA) works, and so on. These are good experiences to show my active attitude towards challenges.

Hyerin: NIMS only had one step during the application: resume and cover letter. The interview took place after I got the job, unlike other internships or trainee programs. For the cover letter and resume, Career Development Center (CDC) helped me a lot through it.

What challenges did you face while preparing for the internship?

Suhyun: They require a recommendation paper from a professor. I had only finished my second semester and did not have a chance to get close with professors at SUNY Korea. So, I was so worried that I wouldn't get a recommendation letter in time. Fortunately, I met a nice Applied Mathematics & Statistics (AMS) professor last semester, and he was willing to help me. 

Hyerin: The application due date was 21st June, whereas my finals ended on the 17th. So the time was the main challenge for me. Also, the second challenge was that the information about the program was hard to find. This program is for 4~8 people each year, so there have not been many people who participated in this program.

I heard that the acceptance rate to get this position is really low. What makes you stand out from other applicants?

Suhyun: I think my major, Computer Science, makes me stand out from other applicants. They highly focus on mathematics to solve problems. And they think they need a person who has new perspectives on the same problems because it would be helpful to learn and experience new fields.

Hyerin: I have participated in a research program with Professor Suil O regarding graph theory, and also in Artificial Intelligence Winter School (AIWS) held by SUNY and Ghent last winter. With Professor Suil O, the research program was basically making algorithms for each graph solving method. AIWS dealt with the basis of Machine Learning and furthermore, provided enough practical hands-on experiences to join the ongoing research with graduate students and professors. I combined these two experiences to show I am qualified mathematically and technically. 

What is the most exciting part of your job?

Suhyun: As I already mentioned in the above answer, seminars are the most exciting part of my job. I can learn new technology and knowledge by joining others’ seminars. Also, I can see how they research new topics and work on them.

Hyerin: I love the part where I am participating in what can be used in the real field. I am dealing with a Battery Management System which is predicting the state of charge for each battery, and a Machine Learning program to count the number of birds in a picture. The former is crucial to prevent battery explosion, and the latter is to detect the degree of global warming progress. Likewise, what I research and study as being practical in some fields is the most exciting part.

What skills are needed to work at NIMS?

Suhyun: They work based on mathematics, so if you have high-level mathematics knowledge, it would   be easier to follow up.

Hyerin: As Industrial Mathematics does not include hard proving, most of the people majored in Mathematics, but some majored in Mechanical Engineering (ME) and CS. As NIMS is working with other companies, skills to model the problem mathematically will matter rather than your major. This is not like solving problems in the exams nor textbooks; you should find out the problems yourself and systemize them by using the given information.

What help did you get from the SUNY Korea CDC?

Suhyun: I got a lot of help from the career center for my resume. This is my first internship experience. Everything is new. And I even had no idea how to write a resume. With a lot of support and help from the career center, I could see how things should be done.

Hyerin: I mainly got help with the resume. As I have no experience as an intern before, it was my first resume, which made it so hard to decide what to write in each section. CDC polished my resume sentences to make them neat and clear. Also, they emphasized my strengths and de-emphasized my weaknesses, so I can stand out from the other applicants.

What are your long-term career goals? 

Suhyun: I am not only interested in programming, but also web design. So, I want to be a User Interface/ User Experience (UX/UI) designer in the future.

Hyerin: As I am double majoring in CS and AMS, I would like to combine those two majors and specialize in Machine Learning and Big Data. Especially, in the future, most of the work will be done by Artificial Intelligence (AI), so my goal is to be an AI Specialist. 

Do you have any advice for your friends preparing for internships?

Suhyun: Don’t hesitate to challenge yourself. Some of my friends think of themselves as not prepared for an internship, and this is exactly what I thought before. However, I realized that I prepared better than I thought when I got into the workplace. There is no reason to hesitate with challenges. You are good enough.   

Hyerin: ‘Just apply’ would be my advice. I didn't even think that I would get this position, because when I was applying, I knew that they were only recruiting 8 people from the whole country. But I just applied anyway, and I got the job! Applying means at least you get the chance to be looked at, so you’d better apply for anything that you are interested in. Furthermore, if you get the job, that will lead you to better chances of getting hired next time :)