an ARIES DTP application & interview

This week I met with an MRes student applying to the ARIES Doctoral Training Partnership (DTP). This is an amazing programme to be part of and there are currently tonnes of very cool projects being advertised. Check them out here! I wouldn't rank applications at the top of my skill set (or anywhere close!) but as I'd been through the ARIES process I was happy to try and help. I remember scouring the internet in a bid to learn more about the process when preparing for my own, so I figured this information might be (possibly, vaguely) useful for others too. I'm sure it varies between programmes but for ARIES it was really a three part process.

1. The application.

For me this involved a CV and a personal statement sent to my potential PhD supervisor. I'm sure there are a million and one ways of structuring something like this, and everyone will have a different opinion. I had an amazing MSc supervisor who is always happy to help, so thankfully she gave me lots of useful advice. Three main things came up for the personal statement; be concise (I was rambling), structure it clearly (I was rambling) and don't be shy. If YOU did something, make sure it's clear that it is YOUR achievement. I decided to structure mine beneath 4 headings, with each heading being a set of skills or experience that I believed was critical for that particular PhD project. I had a tiny intro and conclusion and I kept it within 2 pages. Generally I was writing about why I wanted to do a PhD, why I wanted to do that particular PhD, why I thought I was the best person for the job and why I wanted to be part of a DTP specifically. If you've got a mentor or previous supervisor that you're still in touch with, I would definitely recommend asking them for advice. Obviously it goes without saying that you should proof read your work 1 zillion times, and perhaps ask someone with fresh eyes to read it over. It's also worth remembering that the application deadline for DTPs are usually in early January. This timing is a bit awkward in terms of asking for feedback over the Christmas period, so keep this in mind..!

2. The first round of interviews.

Your application will be used by your potential supervisors to shortlist for the first interview. Depending on where you and they are based this may be in person or it may be via Skype. Mine was via Skype and was a panel interview with 4 interviewers, three of which were together on video and one that was calling in remotely. I generally try to block interviews from my memory once they're done but I do remember them asking me more about why I thought I was suited to the project, why I wanted to do a PhD, whether I had a realistic view of what a PhD was like and why I wanted to do THIS PhD. They were also interested in knowing where I saw myself in 5 years time and what environmental news I had seen in the media recently. I was also asked to expand on my MSc research and talk about the publication process I had gone through with my thesis. I guess at this stage its important for the supervisors to work out whether they'd like to work with you, whether you'd be a good fit for the project and whether you'd be competitive at the next stage of interviews. Remember this is an opportunity for you to find out about them too. Don't be shy about preparing questions as this may be your only chance to properly learn about their research group, their supervisory style, current PhD students or what their past PhD students have gone on to do.

I HATE interviews. I get nervous, I hate talking about myself and sometimes my mind just goes completely blank. I'm sure you'll agree this is never ideal when you're trying to prove that you're vaguely intelligent. If you feel the same, do not fear! Keep calm, try and be yourself and don't be afraid to take a few seconds to think your answers through. Also, if you have a Skype interview - have your notes in front of you!

3. The DTP interview

For this round of interviews you are competing for the funding. At this stage you will be the only student representing your particular project and all of the projects going forward will be very worthy of being funded. The next round therefore is really about the individual. To quote the advice of one of my current supervisors, now is the time to SELL YOURSELF!!! Everyone else will be promoting themselves to the max, so you need to too. To get into this state of mind I wrote a list of my achievements and things I was proud of, which sounds INCREDIBLY lame, but if you struggle with talking about things that you are probably quite good at, you might find this useful too.

The DTP interview is a whole day at UEA in Norwich. It's a weird format because you don't know what time your interview is until you arrive on the day. Everyone is asked to arrive first thing, but your interview might not be until 2 or 3pm. This means that you are spending the day with a room full of people you are competing with! However, try and forget about that and think of it as an opportunity to meet people you may be working with in the future, and to hear about a range of cool projects across the environmental sector. There were also some talks and tours dotted throughout the day, which is useful if you will be based at UEA and is an opportunity to chat to current DTP students.

The interview was a panel format again with academics from across the DTP institutes. My panel had 4 interviewers and we were in a really tiny office, which was a bit strange, but probably less daunting than being in a big lofty board room. They might ask a bit about your project (so its useful to be able to talk about this succinctly) but I remember the bulk of the interview being about my past experiences and motivations. I was asked a lot about my previous research so be prepared to defend your work, especially if its published, because they will have been able to read it in preparation! They also asked what my thought process was for selecting a journal to publish in. Are there specific journals that would be best suited for your work? Why those journals? They asked why I thought I'd be well suited to PhD study and what skills and attributes I thought I could bring to the table. Although some questions were very specific to my project (Why study amphibians? Who cares? Can management actually do anything to help mitigate amphibian disease?), there were also questions that I guess were aimed at gauging your wider knowledge. For me it was 'What do you think is the current most major conservation threat facing the planet right now?' or something along those lines. In the past I've also been asked 'How would you spend £1 million?' (you could talk about how to expand on your previous research, for example). You could also be asked to talk about a paper you've read recently (outside of the project topic) or something that has been in the media. They might also be interested in what skills you are looking to gain from the PhD. It is a DTP after all, and this is an amazing opportunity to learn techniques, approaches and methodologies that will set you up for your career in science. To me it feels quite unique - there are very few roles that enable you to concentrate on developing yourself professionally (& personally) in such an intense way for 3.5 years. This is the amazing thing about a DTP and I don't think it would be a bad thing to emphasise this in the interview! If there are specific analytical techniques you are excited to gain training in, or science communication opportunities you're keen to explore, then mention them! Check out the ARIES website for some specifics of the core training too.

This is really just an overview of my own thoughts and experiences. If you know anyone already on a DTP, then chat to them, or ask your future supervisors to put you in touch. I found it useful to chat to lots of different people to get an idea of the questions to expect and how to do as well as I could in interview. I think it's probably fair to say that most people HATE this process. It's not a natural situation to find yourself in, so remember that even if your peers seem super confident, this may just be their own way of getting into a positive mindset for interview. Either way, be yourself, prepare and GO FORTH AND BE GREAT!!!! Good luck!!