Dr. Jelena Diakonikolas

Assistant Professor

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Biography

Jelena Diakonikolas is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Sciences and, by courtesy, the Department of Statistics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her main research interests lie in large-scale optimization, particularly in its applications to machine learning. Prior to joining UW-Madison, she was a Postdoctoral Fellow at UC Berkeley's Foundations of Data Analysis (FODA) TRIPODS Institute, where she worked with Mike Jordan. Diakonikolas has also held positions as a Postdoctoral Associate at Boston University and completed her Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering at Columbia University. Her research encompasses first-order convex and non-convex optimization algorithms, momentum-based methods, and optimization learning applications. Diakonikolas has been recognized with several awards, including the Google ML & Systems Junior Faculty Award and the NSF CAREER Award. She is actively involved in academic committees and has organized various workshops and conferences, contributing to the advancement of optimization methods in machine learning.

Research Interests

Experience

Assistant Professor

2020-01-01 — Present

University of Wisconsin-Madison • Madison, WI

Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Sciences and Department of Statistics, focusing on large-scale optimization and machine learning.

Awards

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Google ML & Systems Junior Faculty Award

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NSF CAREER Award

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AFOSR Young Investigator Program Award

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UW-Madison Provost's Award Mentoring Undergraduates Research

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Microsoft Research Fellowship

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Morton B. Friedman Memorial Prize Excellence

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Columbia EE Dept. Collaborative Research Award

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Qualcomm Innovation Fellowship

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MIT EECS Rising Star

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Jacob Millman Award (Outstanding TA)

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Columbia University M.S. Award Excellence

Requirements for University of Wisconsin–Madison

Doctorate Program
Requirements
GPA Requirement
Required:3
TOEFL
Total
Required:92
IELTS
Overall
Required:7
Duolingo
Overall Score
Required:125
Overall
Required:125
Prerequisites
Programming experience (Data Structures, Machine Organization) One year college-level calculus
Application Checklist
  • Statement of Purpose
  • CV/Resume
  • Three letters of recommendation
  • Unofficial transcripts
Specialization Notes

Department: Department of Computer Sciences