Haven't received a reply from POI in 9 days, is that a long time?

[dem]

I wrote an e-mail to my POI (I wanted to paste it here, but I am afraid that it would be too revealing). I started with mentioning that we've met before at a conference 2-3 months ago and which presentation was mine (my presentation was just okay, not stellar, and she was there to see it, and then my conference paper got rejected from a journal which lists her as one of the three editors, so I kind of lose here, but I thought I would give my application a try anyway). I then went on to describe my background in a paragraph and one project that I am working on right now in my free time, that I would like to do as a PhD student. 

 

The research questions aren't very clear, but I explained to the best of my abilities. In the last paragraph, I also mentioned two other research ideas in one sentence and wrote that I was still working with my supervisor on developing my PhD proposal, so the topics I've mentioned aren't set in stone, but that I just wanted to ask whether it seemed like a topic she would want to supervise.

 

She still hasn't replied (I did write on 26th of December, which was obviously an awful idea, and all this after reading extensively about how to write to professors, I completely forgot that Christmas isn't the best time to contact professors).

 

How long did it take for ou to get replies from potential supervisors? Should I be worried? This is for a UK university, where they specifically say that you should make contact with at least one potential supervisor before application and then mention them on your application. Otherwise, I wouldn't have done it, since the things she do are so similar to what I am interested in (I've read all her papers, although I am pretty sure it wasn't evident at all from my e-mail) that I wouldn't have thought it would be necessary to get in touch. I don't know why I freak out so much about things that aren't under my control, I just feel like there is no point in applying if she isn't going to reply. 

Edited January 4, 2013 by dem

[iowaguy]

I initially reached out to a couple dozen POI's at numerous universities, which is recommended for PhD applications in my field.  Some got back right away (day or two).  Others I had to send another email in a few weeks ("not sure if you received my earlier email but I am very interested in working with you", etc).  Some never responded to the first or second email so I crossed them off the list.

 

Out of around 24 initial POI inquiries, through email, phone conversations, and in-person visits I whittled it down to 4 very strong ones (at 4 different universities) with whom I have an excellent fit.  YMMV.  Best of luck!

[dem]

Wow, 24!! That seems like a good strategy, though, I am glad it worked out. The problem is, I am only applying to one university, I could try and get in contact with other professors in the same department who are working on related stuff, but it is only 2 weeks before the application deadline, I am afraid that it would look like a last-minute thing (which it is, but I don't want them to know that )

[iowaguy]

You're definitely in last-minute mode here, but if it were me, I would go ahead and reach out to other professors at the university you're applying to.  It sounds like you need to list potential professors as part of your application, and if your main POI doesn't end up responding or isn't taking on graduate students for fall 2013 (which is a realistic scenario), then you're screwed if you don't have some "backup" professors that you've also contacted (assuming you have a strong research fit with them as well).  Best of luck!

[theregalrenegade]

The same thing happened to me when writing to a POI at a UK university. I wrote two emails over a span of four months and never heard anything back. I wouldn't have fixated on it if my application didn't specify contact with a potential supervisor prior to applying. This university's history department director stressed how eager their faculty was to interact with prospective students on their departmental website - so I wrote to him explaining the situation. It ended up being the best thing I ever did. Not only did he finally track down said professor (who ended up being too busy to take students and not necessarily in line with my interests anyway) but he also helped me get in contact with a couple of others in the department (and outside of it for a possible collaboration) that were more suitable and really excited about my research. 

 

The moral of the story: Email the head of the department. They are there for a reason. They know their faculty and can help you make important connections and future decisions. 

 

If I end up at that university, he's the first one I'm going to visit 

[Datatape]

Nine days is not a very long period of time, especially around the holidays.  I wrote to POIs at every school I applied to and while some of them got back to me right away, one in particular didn't email me back for almost three weeks.  He was very apologetic when he did so (it had been a particularly busy semester for him and he was working his way out from under a mountain of emails) and gave me a lot of good information and encouragement when he did.  So I wouldn't mark this one off just yet - give her at least a couple of weeks to get back to you and if you don't hear from her by then, start asking around for other professors in the department.

[CarlieE]

Just to add to Datatape's post... 

 

I don't know how it is in your field but in mine most professors travel over the winter break (internationally) and so emailing and keeping in contact can be pretty tough depending on where they go. Just something to keep in mind... 

[dem]

Thank you for your replies! I just got an answer, and I have read about people analyzing professors' replies, so I thought I might ask whether this is a neutral, encouraging or discouraging answer. Obviously, one would need to know the personality of the prof to make that judgement, but I don't know much about her personality, except that she seems like an very kind and humble prof, who is also pretty young. 

"Dear XXX

 

Yes, I remember our conversation at the XX conference, and yes, I’ll be happy to supervise your work should you get admitted to our DPhil programme.The admissions process is very competitive so my advice is that you try to clearly distil in your proposal what makes your research unique and original, and what makes you stand out from other applicants (we are receiving an increasing number of applications with similar research topics as yours). I pay special attention to the methodology, and how it aligns with the theoretical questions posed: I like to see that students have a clear roadmap of how they will deliver their research targets, and how they will deal with possible contingencies (i.e. difficulties in obtaining the appropriate data etc). Make sure you highlight how your past experience and background make you a unique candidate!

 

Good luck and happy start of 2013,"

 

I think it is a kind e-mail, which answered my question of whether she would supervise me if I worked on a topic that I proposed, which wasn't outlined very clearly. I also told her that I was working with my ex-supervisor on making my proposal a lot clearer, since it was very unstructured right now. I definitely think that her reply will help me a lot in writing my proposal, but I don't know whether she is politely telling me that I don't really stand a chance.

 

I can't believe how stressful this is, every time I open my inbox, I am just scared that something will go wrong, it doesn't help that I am only applying to one university...

[CarlieE]

I think you're reading the email rather negatively; it's actually very positive. The POI basically told you what she wants you to say and what to focus on. She gave you a road map of what to say and how to phrase it. 

 

If she were politely telling you you have no chance she would not have bothered to write such a long and detailed email. 

 

It can be very exhausting writing SOPs and proposals. We have to get used to it; I wrote one for a grant the first semester of my PhD and it was just as tough. Maybe MORE so since I couldn't email the committee and ask them anything at all. The piece of advice consistently given to me by Profs was this: Keep it positive, succinct and just answer the question they're asking. In your case, the POI gave some very instructions; if you answer the questions she's put to you, your proposal will be super. 

 

Look at it this way. The POI is asking you:

 

WHAT - what is your research topic? WHAT is it on? WHO are you studying? WHY are you studying them? WHERE will you do this? (and WHY did you pick this WHERE?) [this should be up front so that when someone reads your SOP they can immediately place you in their mind as to what sort of scholar you are or what region you are studying or sub-field etc.]

 

WHO - Who are YOU? WHAT have you done that makes you suited for this? You can "read" someone (to a degree) from the theories they tend to like. In my field, you can tell if someone is more post-modern than someone else and that's an indication of who they might be as a personality. 

 

HOW - How are you going to do the research? This is clear in her methodology query? Even if you have no clue HOW really, put down your favorite theory or a method you THINK will be suited for this research. You aren't expected to KNOW the answers, but you are expected to show that you know how to THINK about HOW to GET TO the answers. Show that you can think intelligently through the process. She seems to focus A LOT on this so you might want to really show your stuff here. 

 

She also seems to say that she wants you to honest and to be humble. In my SOP I said I was going to do my field work like this-n-this-n-this way but I also said that I expected to come across obstacles such as this-this-this-n-this. 

 

WHEN - Why is this research pertinent to us NOW? Why NOW? Is there some larger global issue? Some human need for it? 

 

WHY - Linked to the WHEN, but WHY is this research important to YOU and important to US and to THEM?

 

Hope this helps. I went to a couple of proposal/SOP writing workshops and this "formula" really worked for a lot of people. I'm still waiting to heard back on my grant. 

 

Good Luck. 

[dem]

You have no idea how helpful your post was! I agree that she was pretty detailed in her e-mail, but I thought it was because she seemed like a genuinely kind person (based on my 8-10 mins interaction with her, which isn't much, but she just so obviously seemed like such a decent person, that it made me even more enthusiastic to work with her) and also because I tend to get quite pessimistic. But the instructions she gave me, plus your post and the help I am going to get from my ex-supervisor makes me a little less scared of putting together a proposal. Thank you so much! I hope you'll get some good news about your grant application soon!  

[CarlieE]

I'm glad it helped. You're going through a rough time and it can be really easy to let you bring yourself down. Try not to let it get to you and keep positive!  

 

On that note - and this is just my 2 cents - you might want to consider applying to more than 1 place. That's a lot of eggs in one basket. I'm not saying you should apply to other places, just for the sake of applying BUT it can be risky... According to the Chronicle of HIgher Ed, the past 3 years have shown increasing numbers of graduate applicants, with significant increases each year... It's very competitive and even if you ARE qualified, there are only just so many spots.. Most Phd programs have single-digit cohorts, but of course, this may be different in your field. In mine most of the schools I applied to took in 5-7 people. And my cohort was 9. 

 

Good Luck!