Term Project

Fall 2025

Overview

The best way to learn is to research a topic of your interest. In this course, you will complete a research-oriented term project focusing on computer system security, either by yourself or in a team of two or three. It is possible to form a team of four if you have strong justifications, but please check with the instructor in advance.

To help you find a research topic, the instructor will give a broad overview of the course and suggest research opportunities during the first week. Throughout the semester, there will be several project milestones (e.g., project proposal) that are graded as homework assignments. The main artifacts of the term project are a conference/workshop-style project report and your code repo. You will also present your findings to the class by the end of the semester. The instructor will advise each individual or team throughout the semester as needed.

Milestones

  • Sep 3: Form a team and send your team information to TA
  • Sep 15: Project proposal due
  • Oct 31: Midpoint report due
  • Dec 3 & 8: Final project presentation (during the classes)
  • Dec 12: Final report due

Note: all milestones are due by the end of the listed dates (Central Time)

Project Report

Your reports must be formatted using this LaTeX template. All page limits exclude references. Note that not all sections in the template are needed for the proposal and midpoint reports.

Proposal (<= 2 pages): The project proposal should describe: (1) what research problem you or your team is trying to answer; (2) why this problem is important; (3) how you plan to address it; (4) what resources you will need; (5) what you are not sure about; and (6) if you are working as a team, how you plan to load balance the tasks between team members. After submitting the proposal, you or your team will schedule a 15-min meeting with the instructor to discuss and possibly refine your proposal.

Midpoint report (<= 4 pages): By this point, your team should have some preliminary findings. This report should describe: (1) your progress on answering the research problem; (2) a detailed description of your approach (but not finalized); (3) preliminary results; (4) what the remaining tasks are and how you plan to complete them.

Final report (<= 6 pages): After a semester of hard work, you will write up your findings like a short research paper (similar to ones we read throughout the semester but shorter). You can include supplementary materials as appendices.

Submission instructions: TBD.

Final Presentation

You will give a conference-style talk to present your term project. If you are working in a team, every member must present a part of the project. The talk will be 12-15 minutes long, with a 3-5 minute Q&A session afterward. The exact length will be confirmed based on the number of teams. To receive preliminary feedback from the instructor, you must send your presentation at least two days before your scheduled talk.