===== 5 questions to Monika Csikos, assistant professor=====

{{:egalite-fh:monika_csikos.jpg?direct&200 |}}
Pole : [[https://www.irif.fr/en/poles/asd/index|Algorithms and discrete structures]]
\\ Team: [[https://www.irif.fr/equipes/graphes/index|Théorie et algorithmique des graphes]]


===Can you introduce yourself briefly?===

I am an assistant professor at IRIF since 2023. I work on **combinatorial data reduction, mostly on geometric data**. I was born in Hungary and studied mathematics there. I got a scholarship to finish my MSc in France, which lead to my PhD studies at Université Gustave Eiffel and post-doc at IRIF.

===What led you to pursue scientific studies?===

I had always been interested in applied mathematics, so in Hungary I **specialised in discrete mathematics and algorithms**. When I came to France, I learned that this coincides with the theoretical side of computer science and so I am a computer scientist since then. :)

===What led you to engage in research in theoretical computer science?===

During high school, I was much more excited about sports than studying, so I preferred those subjects which did not require a lot of memorisation: mathematics and physics. For my university studies, I was planning to apply for mechanical engineering. In the final year of high-school, one of my friends decided that she would **go to study mathematics, which was a revelation for me — I hadn’t thought about this as a possibility before!** Eventually I decided to pick mathematics over engineering, because **my dream was to become a university professor**.

===Have you been inspired by any female scientists? If so, who?===

**I used to think that great science is always achieved by men**, so initially the most inspiring were those women who were respected and treated as equal by their male colleagues. One early role example was **Erika Kovács**, a brilliant teacher of mine during my bachelor studies. Along the way, I had the good fortune to have met other outstanding female researchers (such as Claire Mathieu and Valérie Berthé at IRIF) and now I see that **great science is simply achieved by enthusiastic minds dedicated to research**.

===In your opinion, what could be done to attract more women to research in computer science?===

I think many girls get discouraged before they choose a study program. To prevent that, the **perception of computer science should change** in the common culture and high school education. I feel like there are already some positive changes in France, with initiatives like Fête de la science or Girls Can Code. 

On the personal side, I often felt like I only got acknowledged or encouraged because I was one of the few female students. Happily, during my masters internship, my supervisor interacted with me in a fair, professional way, and granted me respect and trust in my research abilities. This was a very impactful experience for me and surely contributed to me pursuing a PhD.