Recruitment | Pan ZHOU

I have several full- and part-time Ph.D. opening positions for 2027 and 2028 admission, and are also constantly seeking Postdoctoral Fellows, SMU-fund / self-fund / CSC-fund visiting students and scholars, research assistants, and (remote) interns and scholars to join my team. I am also open to any industrial and personal collaboration without restrictions on the research topic. Please feel free to drop me an email.

What Dr. ZHOU Offers for Ph.D., Visitings and (Remote) Interns

An open research environment. You will work on frontier AI problems and aim to publish high-quality research in leading conferences and journals.
Close research mentorship. I provide regular guidance on problem formulation, idea development, experiments, and academic writing, with the goal of helping each member grow into an independent researcher.
Collaboration opportunities. When there is a strong research fit, opportunities to collaborate with academic and industry partners may arise.

1) Ph.D. Application

For full- and part-time Ph.D. applicants, please satisfy the following general requirements:

You should have a bachelor’s or master’s degree in computer science or mathematics or a related field, with outstanding academic performance.
You should have strong programming skills, and are familiar with deep learning frameworks like PyTorch. Winners of ACM/ICPC or NOI/IOI are preferred.
You should have some research experience and strong interests in machine learning OR computer vision OR optimization OR other AI fields. Having relevant research papers is a plus.
You should have good English reading, writing, and oral communication skills. Full-time applicants must satisfy the current language and standardized-test requirements published by SMU: TOEFL or IELTS is required when the medium of instruction for the applicant’s bachelor’s degree was not English, and GRE or GMAT scores are required unless waived for candidates with at least one first-authored top-tier publication.

You should be self-motivated and passionate about research, and have positive and optimistic mindset, a continuous learning attitude, and honesty.

Please see the official SMU Ph.D. requirements and application schedule. The funding options below apply to eligible full-time applicants. Part-time study is currently limited to Singapore citizens and permanent residents; competitive partial scholarships waive subsidized tuition fees, and SMU does not state a monthly living stipend for this route.

SMU Full Scholarship and Presidential Doctoral Fellowship. The Full Scholarship covers registration and subsidized tuition fees for eligible full-time Ph.D. students. Monthly stipends are S$3,800 before / S$4,300 after QE for Singapore citizens, S$3,400 / S$3,900 for permanent residents, and S$3,100 / S$3,600 for international students. The Presidential Doctoral Fellowship provides S$5,300, S$4,800, and S$4,300 per month, respectively. Singapore citizens also receive a 17% CPF contribution. For SMU applications, the August intake runs from 1 August of the preceding year to 31 January of the intake year, and the January intake runs from 1 February to 30 June of the preceding year. See the official application schedule.
AI Singapore (AISG) PhD Fellowship. The fellowship supports up to four years of full-time AI-related Ph.D. study at NUS, NTU, SMU, or SUTD, covering full tuition fees and monthly stipends of up to S$6,700 for Singapore citizens, S$6,500 for PRs, and S$6,300 for international students, plus other allowances and conference travel support. It is nomination-based: new applicants first apply through a participating university, which nominates suitable candidates; existing Ph.D. students must be no more than two years into their candidature. International fellows have a two-year service obligation in Singapore. Nomination deadlines vary by call; consult the official programme page for the current round.
A*STAR Graduate Scholarship (Computing; formerly ACIS). The scholarship supports up to four years of Ph.D. study at a Singapore autonomous university, covering full tuition fees, a monthly allowance, and book, computer, conference, thesis, and overseas research attachment support. Singapore citizens and permanent residents with at least a Second-Class (Upper) Honours degree or equivalent may apply; eligible international applicants must have completed or be on track to complete at least a Second-Class (Upper) Honours degree at a Singapore autonomous university. There is no service commitment for Singapore citizens or PRs, while other awardees have a three-year service commitment in Singapore. Applicants should identify both an A*STAR researcher and a university faculty member who are willing to co-supervise, and must apply separately for university admission. Applications are usually open 1 November–1 February and 1 June–10 August each year. The monthly allowance amount is not currently published. See more details here.

Application. For an initial enquiry, please email me your English or Chinese CV and proposed research topic. Use the subject line: [Target Position (Research Fellow or PhD or Visiting Student/Scholar or Remote Intern/Scholar or RA) Application] + Your Name + Institution Name + Qualification (Bachelor/Master/Ph.D.). Ph.D. applicants must also submit a complete application through the official SMU application system; email contact does not replace the formal application.

2) Visiting and Remote-interning Students/Scholars

For students, I am happy to be your co-supervisor for long-term collaboration if your supervisor agrees. But please seriously consider the co-supervisor choice. For all applicants, long-term collaboration is prefered, and please check the following general requirements:

You should be a master or Ph.D. or professor in computer science or mathematics or a related field.
You should have some research experience in machine learning OR computer vision OR optimization OR other AI fields. Having relevant research papers is a plus.
You should have strong programming skills, and are familiar with deep learning frameworks like PyTorch. Strong coding / mathematical skills is a plus, e.g., winners of ACM/ICPC or NOI/IOI.
You should be self-motivated and passionate about research, and have positive and optimistic mindset, a continuous learning attitude, and honesty.
You should have good English reading and writing skills, but are not required to have IELTS (TOEFL) and GRE (GMAT) test score.

For SMU-fund visiting students/scholars, please check the following requirements:

You should have top tier research papers in agent/LLM/MLLM, optimization, or generative AI.
For visiting students/scholars, you must get the approval of your superviors/schools.
The visiting duration should be at least 1 year in general, and can be six months for excellent applicants.

For self-fund/CSC-fund visiting students/scholars, please check the following requirements:

You should have top tier research papers in AI fields, especailly for visiting students.
For visiting students/scholars, you must get the approval of your superviors/schools.
The visiting duration should be at least 1 year in general, and can be six months for excellent applicants.

For (remote) interns/scholars, please check the following requirements:

For (remote) interns, you must get the approval of your superviors.
Internship duration is at least 1 year if you have some AI relevent papers; otherwise, is at least two years.

Application. For applicants, please send your English/Chinese resume with your interested research topic inside to my email. The email title should be: [Target Position (Research Fellow or PhD or Visiting Student/Scholar or Remote Intern/Scholar or RA) Application] + Your Name + Institution Name + Qualification (Bachelor/Master/Ph.D.).

3) Research Fellow (Postdoctoral Fellow)

To apply for research fellow (postdoctoral fellow) postion, please check the following general requirements:

You should have a Ph.D. degree in computer science or mathematics or a related field.
You should have top tier research papers in agent/LLM/MLLM, optimization, or generative AI.
You should have strong programming skills, and are familiar with deep learning frameworks like PyTorch. Strong coding / mathematical skills is a plus, e.g., winners of ACM/ICPC or NOI/IOI.
You should be self-motivated and passionate about research, and have positive and optimistic mindset, a continuous learning attitude, and honesty.
You should have good English reading and writing skills, but are not required to have IELTS (TOEFL) and GRE (GMAT) test score.
The duration should be at least 1 year in general, and can be six months for excellent applicants.

4) Research Assistant

To apply for research asssitant postion, please check the following general requirements:

You should be a master or graduate in computer science or mathematics or a related field.
You should have top tier research papers in agent/LLM/MLLM, optimization, or generative AI.
You should have strong programming skills, and are familiar with deep learning frameworks like PyTorch. Strong coding / mathematical skills is a plus, e.g., winners of ACM/ICPC or NOI/IOI.
You should be self-motivated and passionate about research, and have positive and optimistic mindset, a continuous learning attitude, and honesty.
You should have good English reading and writing skills, but are not required to have IELTS (TOEFL) and GRE (GMAT) test score.
The duration should be at least 1 year in general, and can be six months for excellent applicants.