A few things you have to know before you join the Summer Camp held by MLDM Research Group of CAS, ICT
A few things you have to know before you join the Summer Camp held by MLDM Research Group of CAS, ICT
Before I give my advice, you might be curious about some details about the 2024 summer camp exam.
First of all, you need to know that there are different forms of examination for each group in the summer camp held by ICT, and this article is only for the MLDM group.
The MLDM group has a total of three exams, which are computer test, written test and interview.
Computer test
The duration of the computer test is 60 minutes, a total of 5 questions, similar to the ACM competition system. The only difference is that when the wrong submission is not punished. The final score according to the ranking, the time is relatively tight.
The first four questions were easy, but the fifth was difficult. In fact, no one had worked out the fifth question in the computer test.
You can see these computer test questions in another of my posts: 5 mysterious programming problems
It is confusing that the problem description given in the computer test did not include the original Explanation for Sample Output in the fifth question, making it difficult for candidates to understand the meaning of the question.
Written test
The written test lasts 70 minutes and consists of 6 questions. The first problem among them examines the density function, edge probability, and expected value of polynomials for x and y in probability theory and quantitative statistics, and requires the use of double integrals.
The second question examines the eigenvalues of matrices, eigenvectors, and other knowledge of linear algebra.
The third and fourth questions examine the principles of neural networks and linear regression respectively.
The fifth and sixth questions must be answered in English. Read the chart and descript the feature of it; read the paper and write an abstract.
It should be noted that all questions are in English. Therefore, in the review before the exam, pay attention to the English vocabulary of various professional terms, and try to avoid the situation of not understanding the questions during the exam.
Interview
In the interview, you will face seven teachers and ask different questions to each student, but the general content is similar. First of all, make a self-introduction in English, requiring no manuscript and no English content on the PPT.
After that, you may be asked to talk about your research experience in machine learning and data mining. And the teachers will ask some questions about it.
The teachers will then examine your concepts and foundational problems in calculus and linear algebra.
For example: What is continuous? What is infinity? What is the difference between a system of homogeneous linear equations and a system of non-homogeneous linear equations? How to determine whether a matrix has a solution?
Some programming knowledge is also asked, such as explaining the principles of a certain sorting algorithms.
Be prepared for other common interview questions, such as what do you know about cutting-edge scientific research in machine learning?
Advice
Read the above content, you may have a basic understanding of the test. But there are still some things you may not be clear about.
Contact a mentor of your choice in advance and do an internship in the MLDM group, if only it was too late. An appropriate time to contact an advisor is during the winter break of your junior year or at the beginning of the next semester.
Have a resume ready in advance, even if it’s not required in the camp’s registration materials. Because you will need it for the interview.
Memorize your English self-introduction.
Prepare an 800-word introduction that focuses on your research practices in machine learning and data mining. Chances are you’ll get an email at 10 p.m. the night before your 9:00 a.m. interview, asking you to fill out a form that includes an introduction of no more than 1,000 words.
If you’ve forgotten all about calculus and linear algebra, that’s perfectly normal. But if you don’t review carefully at least half a month in advance, you will regret it.
Prepare a powerpoint presentation introducing yourself in Chinese, not English.
Computer tests are graded according to ranking. Even if you’re not familiar with online judge, there’s no need to be nervous. Because the rank 1 made 4 questions, the machine test score is 85 points, and you made only 1 question, ranked 20th, you can still get 65 points. The difference between your scores is only the score of one problem in the written test.