Frequently Asked Questions

Max Gallup

Hardware Lead, Course Organizer

Elias Groot

Software Lead, Course Organizer

Site contents

Who maintains this site and the docs?

The site is maintained by the organizing team (Max and Elias). Contents do not reflect supervisor or contributor statements unless explicitly stated.

Admission and grading

By when do I have to apply? When is the project due?

For all questions about meetings, times and deadlines see the timeline page.

What research topics can I choose from?

We much encourage students to come up with their own research ideas and topics. For some inspiration, see our research topics page and explore interests of possible domain experts on the team page. Also check out the project showcase with projects from previous years.

I have a question, comment or concern, what do I do?

First check this docs page thoroughly (use the search functionality). Then, if you still can't find an answer send an email to ase@vu.nl. Do not reach out to individual team members directly.

I don't have excellent grades, can I still apply?

If ASE interests you, you should always apply. We understand that grades don't tell the whole story so in the application form we try to get a complete picture of you that also considers experience, motivation, prior projects and research relevance.

Do I have to work in a team of two?

Yes, but final team sizes are subject to availability.

Do I need to have any prior experience?

No, but we much prefer students with strong programming fundamentals (see our expectations page). You should have passed all your Bachelor courses up until the moment of application.

Can I sign up with a team mate?

No, applications for this project are individual. On your application you can express your team preference but we provide no guarantees about who you team up with.

Can I receive a different grade than my team mate?

Yes, this is very well possible depending on your individual contributions and work.

Can I work from home/remote?

We don't disallow this, but you will need to meet with your domain expert (see expectations) who might prefer to meet in-person. Also, the office hours organized by the on-site supervisors are held in-person only. Besides, you will want to work on the Rover, and this can only be done in the ASE lab at the VU.

What if I miss a meeting?

This depends on your domain expert. We suggest you send us an email at ase@vu.nl so that we can let them know if you want to (re)schedule or are unable to attend.

I also applied to professor X

This is understandable but since available spots for ASE are limited, the deadline to confirm your spot is 5 days after being accepted into the project. After this, your spot will be given to another student.

How many students are selected?

There is a maximum of twenty spots available but this is subject to change.

Can I work on this project outside the suggested period?

No, the project period is set in stone.

Does bad code quality impact my final grade?

Not per se. This depends on how your supervisor assesses your work.

Supervisors, domain experts, assessors, on-site supervisors, teaching assistants.... What is all this?

They all have a different role in the ASE project and grading your work. In short:

• Domain experts/first assessors provide you with knowledge and guidance in your research topic of choice. They will grade your thesis, work and presentation. They sign the final grade.
• Second assessors also assess your thesis and work. They will sign a grade as well, but this is only to verify the work of the first assessor.
• On-site supervisors will provide you with technical support. They act as observers and report on your way of working to your first assessor. The first assessor can use these reports to get a more complete picture of you, but the on-site supervisors will not grade your work or thesis.

Expectations and meetings

What is the expected workload for this project?

We advise not to have other time commitments during this project, since it will require roughly 40h/week.

Writing code and using hardware

Will I have to work on embedded or implement anything hardware related?

If the project scope doesn't include changing or building anything, then there is no requirement to work on the hardware. The ASE-Team will provide working rovers and hardware support throughout the project.

Do I need to know Linux?

Yes, you should be familiar with basic Linux principles and using networked devices. There is no time to catch up during the project.

Do I need to have Linux installed?

Yes, we only provide support for native Linux installations. WSL and macOS might work but there are no guarantees.

Do I need to know Rust and/or Go?

No, most of the ASE software components are written in Rust and Go, but you are not expected to have prior Rust/Go experience. To get started quickly, we provide official ASE libraries and tutorials for C, Python, Go and Rust but you can write your software in any language you like.

Using the Rover

Can I add a sensor/actuator/motor to the Rover?

The ASE-Team will provide you with an extensive set of building blocks to interface with the hardware conveniently. If you want to add your own hardware or software implementation, you are expected to write it yourself and if you are not using the ASE framework, the team will not provide technical support for this.

Can I install anything else than ubuntu on the Rover?

You are allowed to, but we provide no support for it.

Can I make network changes?

No, you cannot. In the labs we utilize a high-speed dedicated network to provide seamless communication for all. You must always request permission from the ASE-Team before changing network configurations, restarting the network or making changes in any way.

Can I take the Rover home?

No you cannot. If you want to showcase the Rover for a project, please get in touch with the team.