Join Us
We are always looking for thoughtful, creative researchers to join our team as students!
Please read this page completely before sending Prof. Sabelhaus an email. To join us:
Current Graduate Students at Boston University
Postdoctoral Researchers
Our lab is not taking postdoctoral researchers at this time. We will update this page when opportunities become available.
Ph.D. Applicants
Please apply to Boston University’s Ph.D. programs in Mechanical Engineering or Systems Engineering. Be sure to list Prof. Sabelhaus as one of your Faculty Interests on the application.
I do not discuss applications over email until they have been submitted and reviewed.
Availability of openings: BU’s College of Engineering admits students in cohorts as part of a rotation program, so prospective students should be interested in multiple faculty members before applying. The SRC Lab’s openings are part of this process, which we discuss internally with the department. We will consider all applicants each year, and the number of openings will vary based on the applicant pool. Please apply to be considered!
Please avoid unsolicited emails. I do not respond to generic email requests. If you send an email before submitting your application, that usually means you didn’t read this website, which is not a good look. My hope is that you’re looking carefully at prospective advisors before applying to grad school. If you do message Prof. Sabelhaus, please mention that you read this guidance, and suggest a reason for your message. I’ll keep an eye out for special situations.
How to get noticed: I am glad that you are excited about joining our group. Submitting a high-quality application to BU’s PhD program is the best way to join us.
How to write a great application: Talk about why you want to come to BU, and why you would like to join our group among others. Why do you want to get a PhD, instead of a master’s degree? What would you like to do in your career after you graduate?
When reviewing applications, I look for evidence that a prospective student can succeed despite the challenges in a PhD program. Examples: overcoming challenges, your organizational and teamwork skills, resilience, motivation to work in mechanical/systems engineering or robotics, creativity, compassion, dedication to making the world a better place for others, leadership, or self-reflection. I also look for well-rounded students who are comfortable with hardware experiments as well as mathematics.
Master’s Applicants
I actively supervise master’s students for thesis research; however, I do not discuss availability of thesis topics until a student has enrolled into BU’s MS programs in Mechanical Engineering or Robotics and Autonomous Systems. If you’re interested in research with my lab, please list me on your application to either of these programs. I will not be able to review your application directly. Please note that any master’s research will be unfunded: unfortunately, I am unable to pay MS tuition or a stipend with grant funding.
Undergraduate Students
Our lab only accepts current BU students as undergraduates as researchers at this time. If you are a current BU student, please log in here for more information.