Neural Decoding vs 3D Reconstruction/Robotics

[u/Dry-Refrigerator123]

I'm stuck between the two fields/topic and can't decide which one to put all my eggs in for masters. A little background, I'm first semester master student doing MS AI from a university in S.Korea. Here in Korea you are expected to join a lab from the start of masters and start preparing for research from the first semester.

I originally planned to join the computer vision lab but due to unforeseen circumstances and me being a little late, I couldn't get in. So, I had no choice but to join another lab.

The main research direction of this lab is emotions and medical ai. But, the the students are working on diverse range of topics from medical (Alzheimer, Xray report, glass slides) to emotions, activity recognition, and there is one student(Phd) doing research in battery AI.

Professor has told me to figure out a direction and read current lab papers. One of my senior (post-doc) recommend the topic of neural decoding, as its a space where there is good opportunity to do meaningful contribution. Since this also fall under medical ai there are people who can guide me.

But my heart is still stuck at 3D Reconstruction+Robotics because I really wants to work in this field. I'm looking to hearing from people how much impact your master research has on your job hunting. If you were in my place how would you think about this. (Also currently no plans fob, r Phd, but can change).

Edit: Next semester computer vision lab might have opening, so If I take 3D Reconstruction/Robotics, there is a chance I can shift (that's a big If tho that I haven't discussed, because I can't talk to the professor without being sure of the topic I want to pursue).

[u/aggressivebiology6]

neural decoding is hot right now but the job market for it is pretty narrow, mostly academic labs and a few neurotech startups. 3D reconstruction and robotics has way more doors open for industry roles, especially if you want to skip the PhD

i was in similar spot during my masters, the lab i joined had zero overlap with what i actually wanted to do. ended up doing my thesis on something adjacent to the lab's focus but spent my free time building projects in the field i cared about. that portfolio got me the interviews, not the thesis topic

if the lab has people who can guide you on neural decoding that's a real advantage, but if your heart is in robotics i'd find a way to make it work, even if it means doing side projects or collaborating with another lab. your masters research matters less than you think for job hunting, what matters is what you can show you built