PhD interview is a crucial part of the admission process. To help you prepare, we’ve put together a list of the best PhD interview questions! Check it out!
How do you get admitted to a graduate school? In most cases, there are at least two stages. In the first stage, you need to make an official application to your grad school and answer their questions. Then, in the second step, you may be invited for a PhD interview during which a panel, usually comprising your supervisory team, will be asking you interview questions.
If you want to become a successful PhD student, you really need to nail these PhD interview questions and use this interview as an opportunity to showcase your motivation and dedication to your academic career.
I know there is quite a lot of confusion about what PhD interview looks like and what are common PhD interview questions. Are you wondering how to prepare for a PhD interview? Let me share what I look for when I’m interviewing prospective PhD students.
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Structure of a PhD interview
Before I’ll talk about the most common PhD interview questions, let me briefly outline what you can expect during the interview itself.
Depending on the graduate school and the preference of the prospective supervisor, the interview can be very formal or quite informal. The structure of the interview may also vary depending on your area of study, as the focus in social sciences will be different than that in environmental science or engineering.
Regardless of this, there are similar stages that you need to go through before you can be offered a place on the PhD programme.
In many cases, the PhD interview starts with a short presentation that you give in front of the interview panel. This will likely focus on your background and your PhD proposal. If you apply for a specific project, then the focus of your presentation will likely be on how do your knowledge and skills align with the scope of that specific project.
Once you are done with your presentation, which by the way is usually between 10 and 20 minutes, then the panel members will start asking you the interview questions.
These questions aim to help the panel assess your:
- understanding of what a PhD degree is about and what’s required to successfully complete a PhD
- current skills and knowledge and your ability to further develop your academic and technical skills
- ability to manage projects under uncertainty
- understanding of novelty and original research
- understanding of what being a PhD student means and how demanding it is
- ability to deliver the research project within given time scale (and budget)
These are just a few areas that the PhD panel will quiz you about. But remember, this isn’t just about them asking you questions – you can also do so! If you want me the share the best PhD interview questions to ask as a prospective PhD candidate, please do let me know in the comments!.