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I am currently working as a software developer. Of recent I have developed interest in programming languages ever since I started learning Lisp. I have started myself using Clojure(a dialect of Lisp on the JVM) at work nowadays. Consequently there are other things which have attracted me like garbage collection and various concurrency models (like CSP, actors, STM etc) which I want to study more about.

In general I haven't found much current research on languages like Scheme or Common Lisp. However another one of my favorite languages Haskell seems to be one of the favorites among academicians and prominent people like Philip Wadler and Simon Peyton Jones are doing lot of research on them. In general I have an inclination towards functional programming language compilers and concurrency models used in them. Also type theory, but I feel each of the above topics are extremely vast and I need some guidance in organizing my thoughts.

The problem is I have no research paper published or have any formal background in Computer Science. I haven't done any of the necessary courses on Theory of Computation or Compilers formally. Although I have read many books on compilers, Functional Programming and lambda calculus on my own and have also done some courses on Coursera there is no certification as such. How do I go about approaching my desired advisors?

Further info: I have a Masters in Mathematics.

EDIT

More than a European or US university, I am concerned with my advisor(irrespective of which university he is associated with). A lot of good researchers in this field come from ETH Zurich so I have a stronger inclination towards it. Also University of Edinburgh.

Abhiroop Sarkar
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  • Do you have a BSc degree (not necessarily in CS)? – Alexandros Dec 08 '15 at 17:22
  • I have a Masters in Mathematics. – Abhiroop Sarkar Dec 08 '15 at 17:30
  • A more accurate title might be "Pursuing a Ph.D. with informal experience in the field" –  Dec 08 '15 at 18:52
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    How do I go about approaching my desired advisors? – What part are of this are you skeptical about? Why would you not just describe your situation and background like you did here? – Wrzlprmft Dec 08 '15 at 19:47
  • I have spoken to professors via mails in certain instances. And most of my interactions have been professional regarding some query on the books they have written or some doubt in their research papers. This is a more personal situation and professors from US universities tend to encourage the students to apply straight to the college rather than contacting them. Am I supposed to describe my situation to the selection board and spend lots of money behind GRE exams hoping they consider my situation alongside thousands of other applications they receive? – Abhiroop Sarkar Dec 08 '15 at 19:54
  • @AbhiroopSarkar: If the PhD programs in question are in the US, you probably want to read this first. Also, note that you can and should edit your question to add clarifications. Finally, please use @-replies (example at the beginning of this comment), to have one appropriate recipient informed about your comment. – Wrzlprmft Dec 08 '15 at 21:39
  • @Wrzlprmft Thanks for the reference post. And I am not limited to applying in US. Rather my inclination is towards European nations, specifically ETH Zurich. – Abhiroop Sarkar Dec 08 '15 at 21:53
  • I believe this Q&A Can I reach to compiler engineer/designer position without a degree from a compiler developer position? would be useful for you, particularly the compiler part. – Nobody Dec 13 '15 at 04:42

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