Graduate and Professional Development in Imaging and Optical Signal Processing, and Related Fields

Image processing, signal processing and computer vision are increasing in importance, and are indeed slowly being considered as core competences in computer science. The specification of computing curricula by the ACM and the IEEE Computer Society states that technical advances over the past decade have increased the importance of topics such as graphics and multimedia, and considers as a core topic Graphics and Visual Computing. With the advent of courses in digital media in electrical engineering and computer science, the increasing importance of computer imaging and vision is manifest, and not only in electrical engineering and computer science departments. The need for development and training of research students is more often than not badly catered for at the present time in Irish universities (Republic, Northern Ireland). Research students are often from diverse discipline and educational system backgrounds. A characteristic of a dynamic and effective graduate and research student environment is not just the raw numbers of PhDs produced, but also relative consensus on the part of the "community" on the most effective major directions of innovation and of focus. On any such qualitative characteristic, Irish universities, institutes of technology and research institutes are not performing well. Successful models for such community-strengthening include doctoral networks at European level, and summer schools at national or regional level. This paper addresses specific issues: (i) the means by which the needs for graduate research level community-strengthening in the areas of signal processing, and image processing and computer vision, can be satisfied; (ii) what the most crucial elements of these fields are, i.e. proposed key areas and curricula.