If you’re applying for a PhD, you will most likely need to submit a CV and personal statement. I really struggled with this back then since it had been a while since I last had to submit any application materials (especially for an academic role!). Since then, I have worked with the university Careers Service to support other students with their application materials – here I present to you my top tips and tricks for PhD CVs and personal statements! 

CVs

Firstly, what is the point of a CV? It is a list of your relevant experiences, meant to be a quick way for the reader to get to know you as an applicant. Therefore you want to try and make it as effective as possible. Make sure to follow CV conventions e.g. in the UK, the CV is usually only two pages long as a maximum. Make it easy to read with the formatting of your document so the reader can pick out relevant information. Bold parts of your experiences that link to essential/desirable qualities mentioned for the programme/project you’re applying to. This is great because you’ve tailored your application to the role! Make your CV neat using different headings and consistent formatting, it is attention to detail that will make your CV stand out. 

For the purposes of a PhD application, your focus should be on your academic work. Include your educational experiences in reverse chronological order (most recent first) then focus on research projects e.g. dissertations and any associated awards, presentations, and publications. Your extracurriculars won’t be a prominent section of the CV but make sure you include information on transferable skills that will make you a good PhD student. 

Once you have a draft of your CV ready, make good use of support from your university. For example, Manchester’s Careers Service does appointments where you can show someone your CV, personal statement or cover letter for feedback. Most universities have similar support services and resources to help you improve your CV. 

Personal statements

And now to the dreaded personal statement. This was my least favourite part of the application because I found it very difficult to sound genuine without sounding like every other PhD applicant. I think a good personal statement should be specific – if you say you’re interested in cancer research, tell the reader about the module/paper that inspired it instead of making generic statements. This is what makes the statement personal. Depending on the specific programme you’re applying to, you might need to include why you’re interested in specific projects – for me, I included parts on why I wanted to do an intercalated PhD and how I selected my first and second choice projects. 

Getting started when writing a personal statement is tough. Instead of worrying about how the full statement will sound, I just start writing whichever section that comes to mind. I then start joining sections together when I go into editing mode to make everything sound more fluid. Like with the CV, make good use of support from your university as there will likely be resources available to guide you. 

That is it for my tips on CVs and personal statements. As always, good luck with your applications! 

Jean