This the first in a series of blog posts about advice I would give aspiring and/or current doctoral students. It is based on my experience in a graduate program in history at a Canadian university. While certain details may differ in different contexts, I feel this advice can be broadly applied and reflects advice I have given many graduate students who have asked me over the years.

You are in the middle of a master’s program in the humanities. You are enjoying it, getting intellectually stimulated by reading new authors and you’re enjoying your research. Someone then asks you about doing a PhD. You start to think about it some more. You get to continue doing some research on a topic of interest. The dream of becoming a tenured professor flashes in your mind and you realize, hey, that wouldn’t be so bad.

So you take the plunge to do doctoral studies. This blog post is going to give you some information of some of what I feel you need to consider to help you meet that goal of getting into a PhD programme. It does presume you have already made some decisions such as determining the research topic of your potential doctoral studies and figuring out which schools may be the best fit for your topic.

But first, let’s make sure you REALLY want to do a PhD.

 

The Big Decision

Unfortunately, the academic job market is VERY competitive. A quick Google search will lead you to plenty of articles lamenting the job market in academia. It is also hard to predict and a number of factors come into play in determining whether even adjuncts positions are available. Never mind if you want to chase the unicorn that could be that tenure-track job. Even if you believe you may be this superstar, it is very difficult predict the job market four years out (likely more) and you could end up with a PhD, struggling to find any teaching positions. There is nothing wrong with wanting this to be your ideal goal, but unless you are willing to be exceptionally patient, rely on a bit of luck, work hard, and be willing to move, unfortunately, success is unlikely.

I always suggest to any potential PhD student to have a reasonable goal along with that ideal. Why do you want to do a PhD? There are two reasons I typically stress as good ones.

1) You are looking at employment in a field that values a doctorate, that’s NOT academia. A government position, for example.

2) You enjoy researching your topic so much that you are willing to devote significant time to your passion.

In both cases, they hold some personal value with the added benefit of being a motivation you can hold onto when inevitably you become stressed or disappointed or frustrated with the entire experience. Even though I will happily note I loved my doctoral experience, I had days where I questioned every decision I had made to that point, whether I should have even done the PhD and whether it was worth it. Reminding yourself of your end goals and believing in them is crucial!

 

Do Your Due Diligence

So you have decided to still take the plunge. You do some research, surf the web, and decide on a handful of schools that would be perfect destinations or have the perfect program for your topic. Each option is has either a good graduate program or someone who could serve as a good supervisor. Now what?

Applications cost money and before you start working on them, there are a couple of things you really should do before you start.

1) Make sure you have the necessary documentation to complete the applications.

Assuming your marks are good enough, make sure you have enough people to write you good letters of reference. Do not be afraid to ask any potential letter writers if they can write a “good letter of reference” explicitly. Aim to have your master’s advisor and at least one individual who can comment on your research and writing skills to be your two base letters. This step is where taking some time to get to know your professors can be invaluable as the better they know you and what you bring to the table in a research and teaching environment, the stronger the letter they can theoretically write.

Some schools require three letters of reference. Become familiar with each application you intend to make. Organization can save a lot of headaches during this process. Nothing is more stressful than misreading an application and finding out you need an additional letter of reference days before the deadline. In Canada, make sure you also complete any governmental funding applications (such as SSHRC in the humanities). Prepare a writing sample that can be used to judge your abilities. Usually this is a strong paper written during your Master’s year for one of your classes or your major research paper/thesis/cognate if you apply after you have completed the Master’s program.

For your plan of study, make sure you have done some research on your planned topic. Have an idea of what you want to do for your future dissertation and determine how you plan to go about doing your project. It should act as a starting point and show that you have given some thought about your topic and have the potential for a good thesis. Chances are your project will greatly alter over the first couple of years of your doctoral studies as your supervisory committee advises you or you identify new interests through comprehensive exams or doctoral level courses, so focus on clarity, writing, and identifying a need for your research. Also be prepared to write it in multiple different lengths and yes, this is exceptionally annoying.

2) Contact potential supervisors before you apply

In my opinion, these are the most important steps of the entire process. For any program to which you intend to apply, contact the person you want to be your supervisor. Inform them of your interest, tell them your topic and ask them point blank if they would be interested in supervising you. In doing so, you can find out some important information. Do they have too many responsibilities or are unlikely to take on any new students? Do they have no interest in supervising the topic? Do they have any interest in supervising a graduate student that year at all? Are they going on sabbatical or taking on a new departmental role, meaning that if they agree to be your supervisor, their time to supervise you will be limited in that first year? Finding out this information can help you save some money, and avoid unnecessary time and effort in putting together an application only for it to likely result in rejection.

If they reply positively, ask if you can either arrange to speak with them. This is crucial. I recommend everyone applying to a doctoral program find some way to speak with their potential supervisors, whether in person, by phone or online. More importantly, I suggest that you only spend a few moments discussing your topic. Ideally, you want to ensure they are on board with the topic, hear any concerns they may have, take note of any suggestions they give you, and also note if they get excited about the project. For me, however, the conversation is more about figuring out whether you are a good fit with that supervisor.

In a doctoral program, your supervisor is your mentor, your teacher, and your critic, but can also be your support and your advocate in the department. If you have an issue with the program, chances are they will be the first person you go to. If you have an idea for your research, you will be bouncing ideas off of them. If you have any personal challenges during your studies, they will be your immediate institutional support system for better or for worse. Knowing that you feel comfortable enough with them that they will offer whatever you may need in their position as a supervisor while undertaking your doctoral studies, a 4+ year commitment, is an important consideration and one not to be taken lightly. I suggest that applicants try to get some small talk in when talking to their potential supervisors and see if you can have a casual conversation. In my case, when I was applying, I spoke with several potential supervisors. In each case, I was able to feel confident in knowing with which one’s I would have a good relationship and trusted that he or she would be someone I could go to if I had a problem. It added an important consideration when comparing school offers and immediately put a few schools above the rest.

When talking to these potential supervisors, you can also ask about other information important to you. What would your potential committee look like? Can you talk to those professors too? Do you want to teach? Do they have some additional funding that they could share with you to offset costs, employing you as a research assistant? Do they have connections they are willing to use to help you get new and exciting opportunities? Do not be afraid to be upfront about what matters to you. You are planning to spend years in your program. Your personal goals are important. It is a significant decision and many potential supervisors, especially if they want to supervise you, will happily speak with you and answer any questions you have. Furthermore, if they are excited about supervising you, they likely will advocate on your behalf when graduate applications are evaluated.

Also, do not be afraid to also ask if you can speak to current or former doctoral students of a given program. Your graduate cohort will make up another support group and often graduate students will give you another perspective on the program and the department. Furthermore, it can help you gauge the general atmosphere of the graduate program. Do other graduate students in the program support one another? Is it cliquish? Is it hyper competitive for opportunities? What issues do graduate students have at a given school? Especially in light of the competitiveness for academic jobs and opportunities, having a graduate community that is the right fit for your personality is important too.

 

There is no right or wrong choice

If you have done this due diligence and gotten the information you want, hopefully you have been successful and have the opportunity to choose between multiple programs. Make the decision based on whatever is right for you. Maybe you want fit with a supervisor or a graduate community more than anything else. Maybe you want to be close to home. If you are in a committed relationship, you may want to get your partner’s thoughts. Maybe financial incentive is the most important factor (Don’t be afraid to negotiate your stipend too! You may be unsuccessful, but it does not hurt to ask!). Maybe you want to just have a new experience and thus attend a new school. Maybe you want to live in a bigger city or a smaller one. But the decision and application process is about more than finding a school to do your future dissertation.

Prioritize what is most important to you. You are essentially signing up for a 4+ year term of employment. Treat the decision in the same way.

Hopefully this was helpful in giving you some items to consider when applying to a PhD programme and you enjoyed reading this blog. Other topics in the coming weeks will include how to tackle writing a dissertation and how to network and conference as a doctoral student. Of course, I am also open to suggestions, either in the comments or via twitter.