A question born of paranoia...

[ridgey]

I'm going to be reapplying to PhD programmes later this year, and one of the major changes I'm making from my previous applications is to talk about my ideas for doctoral research in some detail in my SoP.

I'm having second thoughts about this approach, though, because - don't laugh - I'm worried somebody who reads my application might be intrigued by my research ideas, but not my application as a whole, and decide to do the research him/herself. So not only will I be rejected, but I'll have been "scooped".

How much detail are you going into in your applications?

[katanianQ]

Man, Ridgey.. more stuff to worry about.

I think to some degree that's a legit fear, but I don't really see any way around it.. An intriguing idea is prob what you need to set yourself apart from the crowd..

I've heard horror stories about people's advisers stealing their work and publishing it.. you just gotta hope for the best. I'm sure 98 percent of the people out there are honest..

[thepoorstockinger]

Dude, if your shit was so brilliant that tenured faculty members are going to risk stealing it (keep in mind that more than one person at each school will read your SOP) then you would not be re-applying.

[socialcomm]

I understand your concern, but I think the approach you're taking (discussing your research ideas) is the right one. You need to garner professors interest in working with you. Use the energy you have being paranoid to spend more time worrying about other parts of your application.

[Summit_Bid]

Definitely talk about your research. Schools need to know what your research interests are to make sure that you are a right match for your program and faculty there will be able to work with you and advise you properly. Schools want to see that you know what you want and are focused and telling them exactely what you want to do will help you get in.

[belowthree]

If they're interested in your research they'll be interested in you.