Possible Interview Questions for Competition Funding

I've applied for a PhD in Mathematics/Environmental Science and they've put me forward to some sort of independent funding panel. There are about 15 funding spots for around 30-40 projects and so the panel will chose the best applicants for funding. I don't really know what sort of questions they're going to ask or how they will determine who is the ''best'' because surely that will vary from project to project. I'm sure some of you will be in a similar situation or may have gone through the process before so if you have ANY clue what sort of question they're likely to ask please let me know!

So far I've been advised on two types of questions which I will call ''General'' and ''Scary'' (you'll see...). My supervisors suggested the general ones but I've heard that some funding panels can ask some of the scary ones.

General Questions:
1) Why are you interested in the particular project
2) Why is the topic important
3) Why do you want to do a PhD?
4) What are your long term aims?
5) What particular skills do you bring to the project?

Scary Questions:
6) If you had unlimited funding what would you do with it?
- I would have no clue how to start with this one. Does unlimited funding basically mean unlimited resources?
7) Tell us about a recent paper you've read/What's your favorite paper.
- would it have to be related to your chosen PhD topic?

Thanks in advance!

Reply 1

Klix88

My thoughts, for what they're worth:

Original post by StackingOdds

6) If you had unlimited funding what would you do with it?
- I would have no clue how to start with this one. Does unlimited funding basically mean unlimited resources?

From the question, I would infer that unlimited funding would purchase you unlimited resources. When answering the question, you can always state that you're making this assumption when you begin your answer. They'll then have the opportunity to correct you if necessary.

7) Tell us about a recent paper you've read/What's your favorite paper.
- would it have to be related to your chosen PhD topic?

It might be a bit odd to start talking about a paper which is unrelated to your topic. Depends how unrelated I suppose. It's possible for reading to go off at a tangent sometimes, and that can lead to interesting avenues. I'd stick with something directly related to your topic, but if you have something a bit left-field you could always add that on at the end if you feel that you need to demonstrate a rounded reading background.

Reply 2

StackingOdds

[QUOTE="Klix88;46134993"]
From the question, I would infer that unlimited funding would purchase you unlimited resources. When answering the question, you can always state that you're making this assumption when you begin your answer. They'll then have the opportunity to correct you if necessary.
[\QUOTE]

I think that answering the question via stating all assumptions is certainly a good idea. But I don't really know how far I can take these assumptions. Say I wanted to build something that created energy through nuclear fusion. If I throw my unlimited resources at this project and it ends up costing more energy than I get out of it then it really is a pointless venture. I guess I could go down the avenue of unlimited computational power, but once again I would have no idea what to do with that.

It's an independent panel made up of people who aren't in the research group I'm joining, I don't think they're going to know much about the project. Also I have never done anything directly related to the research topic and to get this PhD I had to demonstrate an interest in the research area and an advantageous skill set but I did not have to know anything about the actual topic. So even if I had read a research paper on it I wouldn't feel adequately qualified to discuss it. I guess I'll see if I can find anything that's pitched at my level. Just seems like an odd question to ask.

As I say, I doubt they'll ask something like these anyway (from what my supervisors say) but it's the first time they've allocated funds in this way so they don't really know what to expect either.

Anyway, if you have any more ideas on what they might ask, please let me know! And thanks for the advice.

Reply 3

ZakV

To be honest the questions that at first seem a bit random are all to allow you to demonstrate a real depth of understanding. I've also applied for a PhD and just look at everything through the lens of your proposal, the panel wants you to demonstrate that what you hope to research is what you are most interested in.

For the research paper question for example think about the paper then think about your own research interests and attempt to cut them across one another to see what can be learnt.

If I was asking the questions I'd drop bomb-shell questions just to see how you react and respond, it's better at revealing understandings and interest than structured questions that almost guide you through. E.g. Just "why are you here?" and sit back :P.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 4

StackingOdds

Hi everyone, if any of you are interested (and for any future reference) the interview went really well and I got the funding :biggrin:

The questions they asked me were fairly standard. However they did quiz me on every aspect of my project: my undergraduate, my future goals, how my project fits in within the wider scientific area, whether or not I really knew what I was talking about... etc

I found this really useful as well http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=854635

I think generally it's just best to be as transparent as possible. I bought up that I had failed a course at university as well, they asked me why that was and what I'd learned from it and stuff. It didn't seem to work against me at all. I think they really appreciated the honesty.

Anyway, hope that'll be useful for others in similar situations.

Possible Interview Questions for Competition Funding

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