TCS @ Illinois

Theoretical Computer Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Faculty

Primary Faculty

Computational Geometry, Algorithms, Data Structures
Combinatorial Optimization, Integer Programming, Probabilistic Methods and Analysis, Randomized Algorithms
Economics and Computation, Social Choice Theory, ML
Approximation Algorithms, Combinatorial Optimization, Algorithms
Societal aspects, Fairness, Game Theory, AI/ML (Starting Fall 2026)
Computational Geometry and Topology, Algorithms
Pseudorandomness, Algebraic Computation, Computational Complexity
Computational geometry, algorithms
Algorithmic Game Theory, Algorithms, Mathematical Programming
Computational Geometry, Geometric Approximation Algorithms
Optimization, Operations Research
Algorithms, Complexity, Codes, Quantum
Cryptography, Secure Computation, Zero-Knowledge, Differential Privacy
Algorithmic Game Theory, Mathematical Economics, Efficient Algorithms
Quantum Computing, Complexity, Optimization, Stochastic Processes
Computational complexity

Related Faculty in Computer Science

Geometry, Parallel Algorithms, Computational Biology
Machine learning, AI, Data mining
Combinatorial Optimization, Integer Linear Programming, Computational Biology
Networking systems and theory
Cryptography and Security
Reinforcement Learning Theory, Machine Learning, Sample Complexity Analysis
Logic, automata theory, verification
Cryptography, Distributed Algorithms
Parallel computing
Parallel computing
Automata theory, logic, algorithmic verification, security
Graph Algorithms, Statistical Estimation, Applications to Biology & Historical Linguistics
Machine learning theory, algorithms, optimization
Machine Learning, Information Theory, Representation Learning

Related Faculty in Other Departments

Algorithms, computational complexity, cryptography, information theory
Combinatorics, graph theory
Quantum information theory
Quantum information, condensed matter, and computing
Partha Dey (Math)
Probability theory and connections
Communication networks, stochastic analysis, information theory
Quantum information theory, operator algebras, functional analysis
Combinatorics, graph theory
Quantum information theory
Quantum information theory, many-body physics
Yi Lu (ECE)
Networks, coding, performance analysis
Combinatorics, graph theory
Coding theory, algorithms, bio-informatics
Statistical machine learning, information theory
R Srikant (ECE)
Communication networks, stochastic analysis, optimization, game theory
Queuing theory, applied probability
Machine learning, submodular optimization
Queuing theory, applied probability, OR applications
Mathematical physics
(Applied) Cryptography and Security

Current PhD and MS Students

Krishna Agaram
Ricardo Garcia
William Gay
Haoxiang Jin
Peter Jin
Ethan Luo
Qizhao Huang
Tzu-Hsiang Huang
James Hulett
Raymond Jiang
Connor Mowry
Harshul Sagar
Abhi Shukul
Andrei Staicu
Cheng Tang
Yuanchen Tang

Alumni

Recent PhD Graduates and Postdocs

Category Labs
Coinbase
Postdoc, Toronto/Waterloo
Google
Texas A&M
VIRTU Financial
University of Notre Dame
Dartmouth College
University of Illinois
Boston University
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
UC Santa Cruz
Google Research
IAS Postdoc
Postdoc at Northwestern
IISc Bengaluru
Google
Postdoc, Chile
Rose-Hulman
Amazon
Purdue University
CMU Tepper School of Business
Oregon State University
Purdue University
University of Texas at Dallas
Startup
Oregon State University
University of Wisconsin, Lacrosse
UI Chicago
Renaissance Technologies
J. P. Morgan
Boston University
University of Electronic Science and Technology of China
Postdoc at IST Austria

Master Students

University at Buffalo
Virginia Tech

Theory Courses - Spring 2026

CS 473
Algorithms
Michael Forbes
CS 498AE
Elfarouk Harb and Chandra Chekuri
CS 498QC
Introduction to Quantum Computing
Fernando Jeronimo
CS 498TC
Computational Geometry
Jeff Erickson
CS 583
Approximation Algorithms
Chandra Chekuri
CS 598TLR
Build your own Proof Assistant
Talia Ringer
ECE 534
Random Processes
Olgica Milenkovic
ECE 543
Statistical Learning Theory
Dimitrios Katselis
IE 511
Integer Programming
Karthik Chandrasekaran
IE 598GTO
Game Theory and Optimization
Jugal Garg
IE 598OU
Optimization under Uncertainty
Grani Hanasusanto
MATH 595SMC
Semi-Random Methods in Combinatorics
Abhishek Methuku
MATH 595QL
Quantum Learning Theory
Jacob Beckey

Theory Calendar

Theory Seminar meets weekly on Mondays, 10-11 a.m. Central Time in Siebel 3401 in the Fall semester.
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Resources & Information

Advice for New Students

Recommendations from current theory students and faculty on navigating your first years, building connections, and getting started with research.

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Recommended Program of Study

Course recommendations and academic planning guidance for algorithms and theoretical computer science students.

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Qualifying Exam

Complete information about the Theory Qualifying Examination including format, preparation strategies, and expectations.

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External Resources

Newsletters, blogs, and community resources to stay connected with the broader theoretical computer science community.

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Theory Group Activities

Join our seminars, reading groups, social events, and mentorship programs. Discover the vibrant community life in our theory group.

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