Written by Shayma, PhD Genomic Medicine
The journey to apply for a PhD can feel daunting and protracted. Nevertheless, with the right direction, it can transform into a seamless and even exhilarating journey, aiding you in clarifying your ambitions and passions. Here’s a basic outline for locating a PhD that aligns with your interests, drawn from my personal encounters of discovering, selecting, and applying for a PhD at Imperial.
Why aim for a PhD?
Before embarking on your PhD journey, it’s essential to comprehend your reasons for wanting one. Pursuing a PhD is a significant commitment, and verifying that it resonates with your aspirations and interests is vital. A PhD equips you with the training required to become an independent researcher, a skill imperative for the career I aspire to achieve.
Apart from the technical training, I was drawn to the research autonomy and inventiveness that academia provides. My enthusiasm for science has its limits if I am engaged in topics that don’t captivate me and performing experiments that fail to inspire me. Thus, I selected a PhD project that I was truly eager to investigate. The ability to steer my project in the direction I envision is also a considerable advantage for me and ranks high among my favorite elements of pursuing a PhD.
Therefore, as straightforward as it may seem, I recommend creating a pros and cons list concerning pursuing a PhD prior to commencing your search, ensuring it’s genuinely what you desire to undertake – what do you believe a PhD will offer you?
The PhD application journey
The application journey usually comprises several phases:
- Identify a PhD
- Submit your initial application
- Shortlisting
- Interview(s)
- Conditional or formal offers
- Funding considerations
Interviews often center around your reasons for applying, your grasp of the project, your previous research experience, and your approach to overcoming challenges. When I was getting ready for interviews, I revisited my application, reviewed pertinent literature, and contemplated my experiences to discuss them clearly and confidently during interviews.
Locating a PhD
Identifying a project begins with comprehending what type of research energizes you, what working environment you flourish in, and what skills you aim to acquire during your PhD. Some resources to assist you in finding your PhD are:
- University websites, such as Imperial’s – seek out particular departmental pages where they list all available PhD opportunities
- Centralized PhD portals and job boards like FindAPhD
- Research group and supervisor webpages
- Academic networks and referrals from lecturers or supervisors
- Websites of funding agencies and doctoral training centers
My application experience may vary slightly from yours. For my PhD, I secured funding from my home country, therefore, I merely had to discover a research group engaged in a project that piqued my interest. To achieve this, I navigated through the Imperial website, located lists of researchers and research groups, reviewed their research descriptions, and examined their research outputs.
As I was already a Master’s student at Imperial while searching for PhDs, I also consulted my lecturers about which research groups they believed would suit me well. I found my current project supervisor from a compilation of research groups my MSc course leader had provided.
The crucial element is to converse with EVERYONE and gather as much feedback as you can. I know a fellow PhD student who discovered their project by chatting with a stranger in a pub who introduced them to their current principal investigator (PI) and PhD supervisor.