Issues faced by the Candidates along with Solution
Issues faced by the Candidates along
with Solution .jpeg)
Candidates
from Pakistan, Iran, India, Bangladesh, Africa, USA, China and Canada. We noticed
a number of issues in applications from Pakistan. Here are my suggestions.
1) DO NOT apply if the position is
clearly not relevant to you.
It is a waste of your time, and it is a waste of Professor’s time. Perhaps, it
only takes less than a minute of your time to send those applications. But
believe me, Professor will spend less than 15 sec on those applications.
2) DO NOT write irrelevant email or
cover letter. It
will make sure that professor will not even read you complete email/cover
letter, let alone opening your CV. For instance, email for PhD position in
biomaterials telling me that they have 2 years of work experience in SNGPL or
PARCO or ENGRO makes sure that I will not even open your CV (Remember he/she
has to go through hundreds of applications!). However, if you tell me what
steps you have taken to prepare yourself for this PhD position, or how your
educations/accomplishments/experiences are relevant, I would love to go through
your application carefully!
3) If you think you are brilliant
candidate and are
really motivated to switch fields, explain that in the email in a way that
he/she is motivated to open your CV.
4) DO NOT forget to change your
“Research interests” section to match the job
description. Do not send your application for Biomaterials position with
research interests in solar cells, Li ion batteries, automation, etc.
5) DO highlight your accomplishments
in your email (briefly). Were
you a gold medalist? Were you top 5% of students in your class? Do you have
great GRE score? Were you awarded some sort of scholarship? Any thing that can
help to distinguish you from other hundreds of applications is going to help
you a lot.
6) DO prepare some questions to ask professor in the interview,
if you are selected for interview. Do not say “I do not have any question”. It
shows you lack curiosity, and curiosity is important for PhD!
7) DO change the name of the
professor in your email :We have saw several applications
where I was addressed as Claudia, Mark, Wang Zei etc. Actually, if you forgot
to change the name of the professor, you really need to get it together!
Minor point:
How beautiful your CV looks has
NOTHING to do with you being invited for interview. In fact, I would prefer an
old-school plain and simple CV compared to the ones ‘crafted’ using softwares /CV
websites. Spend time on the contents of the CV, not the design.
Here
is the list: Make sure you
(i)
apply
for relevant position.
(ii)
stand
out through your email
(iii)
Edit
your CV to make it relevant
(iv)
Demonstrate
deep interest in the research program of the lab
(v)
Focus
on quality vs quantity of applications.
All the best
for your application!