Sudden bout of insecurity

[katiegud]

I have been contemplating a PhD for a long time. I have two masters degrees, excellent grades, and currently work in a research oriented job. However, I have never conducted research in the area that my PhD proposal is in. I've worked in scientific labs, non-profits, and government entities, so I know I have the skills to do research, I'm just starting to freak out that schools will write me off because I've never studied this topic. Or they'll think I look flaky because I have worked in so many different areas (literally molecular biology to tax reform). Is this a valid fear? The schools I'm applying to are primarily in the UK, and not all of them even require a SOP, just a research proposal. Can I plug my research skills in a proposal? Or does that need to be strictly about the project that I'm planning? Any advice is appreciated! Thanks! 

 

(The reason for the new topic, btw, is that it is of personal interest. I've always studied whatever a boss or committee wanted me to study in the past - hence the variety - but I want to study something that I am personally interested in for my PhD.)

[gellert]

From what my current boss/PI tells me, any research experience is a good sign, because it means you're learning about methodologies, ethics, design, analysis, etc.  HOWEVER, people with experience directly related to the field of interest will have a huge advantage over those who don't.

 

Is there a way to connect, even tangentially, your other experience to your current interests for SOP purposes?  Or to use it as a tool to explain how you became interested in your current topic?

Edited September 19, 2013 by gellert

[Cesare]

Can't you list your research skills in your CV?

[katiegud]

Not all the schools even ask for a CV. It's transcripts, research proposals, degree certificates, and references. Maybe somewhere on the online application it will ask for additional skills?

[fuzzylogician]

You can find out about submitting a CV even if one wasn't asked for. I ended up submitting a CV to all my schools and if remember correctly, it wasn't required by any. 

 

You can and should also talk about your research experience in your SOP. Any research experience will go a long way because people's interests often change during their PhD studies, so the important thing is to know that you are prepared for the PhD and you know what you're getting into (and can get yourself to the other side). The topics may not have been what you want to study in your PhD, but maybe you can find ways to connect what you've done to what you want to do - talk about skills you've learned, how your interests have changed and matured, how they changed the way you think about your field or guided your choice of research questions, how they helped you decide you want a PhD to begin with (and why). 

[katiegud]

You can find out about submitting a CV even if one wasn't asked for. I ended up submitting a CV to all my schools and if remember correctly, it wasn't required by any. 

 

You can and should also talk about your research experience in your SOP. Any research experience will go a long way because people's interests often change during their PhD studies, so the important thing is to know that you are prepared for the PhD and you know what you're getting into (and can get yourself to the other side). The topics may not have been what you want to study in your PhD, but maybe you can find ways to connect what you've done to what you want to do - talk about skills you've learned, how your interests have changed and matured, how they changed the way you think about your field or guided your choice of research questions, how they helped you decide you want a PhD to begin with (and why). 

 

The SOP thing is the problem. The schools I'm applying to (only have 2 so far with potential supervisors) do not ask for an SOP. They want a research proposal, but that seems like it should be focused on the project I want to do, not how I got to that point. Do you think I could work it in somehow?

 

The biggest connection between everything I've done is that it tends to be policy related. Aside from some biological work early on, most of what I've looked at has been about public policy or social policy, and those are the departments that I plan to apply. 

[fuzzylogician]

Research proposal sounds like a non-US requirement.. am I right? If so, you should take everything I say not just with a grain of salt but a whole teaspoon.

 

For a research proposal (what length?) I'd say the majority of the text needs to be a detailed proposal of the project and not how you got there. Your ability to propose a project that is both detailed and feasible will show that you have the training and background that is needed to carry it out. Since that is often missing in an American SOP -- you don't even need to propose a research question, let alone sketch some lit review and explain how you'll go about answering it -- you need to be much more explicit about your background and preparation for the degree you're proposing to undertake. 

 

I'm less familiar with non-US degrees but if it's a European degree my best advice at this point would be to try and contact someone in charge of admissions at the schools you're applying to and ask if/how you should explain your non-traditional background. I can imagine several solutions, including some explanations in the CV, in a supplementary document or in an appendix to the research statement, but the people who will read your proposal might have a preference and you should try and find out what it is. Another solution is to have one or more of your recommenders address your background, if they are willing to do so -- that one may be a good idea even if you have some explanations of your own as well, it sounds different when the explanation comes from a letter writer as opposed to you yourself. I wouldn't be surprised if there are quite a few people with unusual backgrounds in your field, so I'm sure you're not going to be the first person to ever ask this question.

[katiegud]

It is a non-US thing, I'm mostly applying in the UK. The proposal is supposed to be 1,000-2,000 words (depends on school). I have been corresponding with a professor from one of the schools, so I asked him if he thought it would hurt my application to have an unrelated background. He seemed to think it would be fine (social policy program, so most people don't have a directly linked degree). I'm not sure all schools will feel that way though. 

 

Having the recommenders address it is a good idea. I'm sure one of them would be willing to work it into a letter for me. That might allow me to submit a normal application without a lot of extras. Thanks!

[runningincircles]

I haven't applied to Ph.d's in the U.K., but I was going to before I moved to the U.S. The most important part will be the proposal, working in your experience and how that experience can help you address your topic, will be very useful. But having a solid research proposal will give you the most sway with them. To be honest, I don't think it will matter too much that you your experience is somewhat unrelated. Focus on getting your research proposal as clear as possible. They want to see that you are ready to jump in to doing the research the minute you get there. Ph.d is much more research immediate in the U.K. And you're much more on your own than in the U.S. As long as you have contacted the department and know that there is someone there that is going to be a good fit with your research, and you have a solid proposal, you have a good chance of getting in...you know they don't provide funding for the most part..right?? Maybe your program is different, but when I was considering it, the funding issue was a big deal.

[juilletmercredi]

It depends on how far ranging it is.  For example in my field (psychology) - if you have research experience but none of it is in psychology, you wouldn't be a competitive candidate.  Perhaps you could be competitive if your research experience was in a closely related social science and you planned on studying that in grad school (i.e, behavioral economics, social psychology in a sociology department, decision-making in political science).

On the flip side, I don't think they'd really care that you've worked in a variety of fields as long as you have related experience to YOUR field.  Lots of people work before they go to graduate school.