‘I Almost Didn’t Apply’: Tips and Advice if You’re Thinking of Applying to our PhD Scholarship Competition
We have been providing scholarships for doctoral research for more than ten years, and to mark the launch of the 2020 competition we asked some of our current Scholars to think back on their experiences of applying. Here are the thoughts of Alborz Dianat, University of Edinburgh (SAHGB Scholarship 2019, supported by Graham Child); Danielle Hewitt, Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London (Andrew Lloyd-Webber Foundation Scholarship 2018); and Kirsty Wright, University of York (Scholarship in Heritage Buildings 2019, supported by the HB Allen Trust).
To learn more about the application process, we’ve produced a Guidance Note with tips, FAQs and Terms and Conditions. To submit your application, click here. Submissions are currently being accepted, and the closing date for this year’s competition is 28 May 2021.
What were your expectations and worries about deciding to apply?
Alborz: My main worry was about the interview element. Other applications I’d done were just a matter of sending in an application and hoping for the best. But in hindsight there really wasn’t too much to worry about. I think the interview was the best part of the process and a really good chance to convey your project idea and outline through a meaningful discussion. Also if you don’t end up getting the scholarship it is still a good opportunity to talk about your project and get feedback for future applications. I think it’s quite rare to get that kind of interaction with people who really understand your project. I remember afterwards going back and reflecting on something that was brought up in the discussion and using that input.
Danielle: I almost didn’t apply because some people who I sought advice from didn’t think that the SAHGB would favour my kind of project, that they might be looking for projects about a building or an architect. My project is more about materiality. I looked again and thought they were wrong, and my supervisor thought I should apply. My worries were about whether I had the right type of research, but they were ill-founded.
Kirsty: I was quite worried about having to do a presentation, because I hadn’t done one at the start of a project – I’m used to doing this at the end of something. So I was really worried that I would get questions that I wouldn’t be able to answer, because the content of my project was quite new to me and I was quite new to architectural history as well. This proved to be unfounded, you’re not being asked about the content because you haven’t done the PhD yet. It was more about my approach, my thinking, why I thought I could be the right person to work on the subject, what direction I might take it in, how I might explain the research if I was talking to a wider group of people. Once I got into it, it was actually quite enjoyable!
Alborz Dianat
What were your strategies for applying and getting to grips with the application form?
Alborz: Get as much feedback as possible on your application. I got my proposed supervisor and people outside the architectural-history world to look at my proposal. I’d never done an academic CV before, so I got some feedback from my intended supervisor to check that what I’d done looked right.
Danielle: I found it quite useful having to write a shortened proposal. You can spend so long writing the proposal for the university application, to make this more concise version was reassuring and affirmed a lot of things that I thought were good about my proposal. I took points from my university application about ‘original contribution to research’ and found that making my funding application about that – reminding myself why this was original. and what material hadn’t been used and written about before – was useful. It gave me confidence that, yes, this is worthwhile research. I’d been teaching in academia for a few years so I had a CV but I felt a bit nervous because I had been teaching in design schools, so I didn’t have publications and conference papers in the area.
Kirsty: Having a plan for keeping track of the different parts of the application really helped. There’s quite a lot to keep track of, so I set aside time in the day when I would write the proposal, or the personal statement, so I had a list of things to do. The application is a bit more about the bigger picture, where your proposal is going to fit in in the academic field, how does it relate to the SAHGB’s interests? I had friends doing PhDs so I asked around about how they had structured their CVs. Mine felt a bit sparse in comparison but they said it was about using stuff that you had done and showing how it related to academic skills, even if the things you have done weren’t strictly academic, so I think talking to people helped me a lot.
How did you prepare for the interview and the presentation?
Alborz: It was daunting at first, coming to interview. In the end the thing that made me calmer is that it is short, and it is about getting your message out, so you can work on that. I practiced with other people, and it took me out of my comfort zone, but I got opinions from people who weren’t architectural historians, and it helped to think about what they wanted to know more about. Don’t feel that you have to have the answer to everything – you haven’t started your project yet! I tried to be adaptable in thinking about how to address the possibilities of a question rather than having a fixed answer.
Danielle: I felt intimidated, it seemed more formal than my previous experiences – job interviews I had had were smaller. I felt nervous about not knowing what to expect. I feel much more confident about something if I can tell myself that I’m very well prepared, so I made notes to take with me. That sounds obvious, but they were very structured with bits in bold to remind me – I felt confident that I wouldn’t miss the main points that I wanted to say. Like Alborz, I talked to people about the interview, and when I spoke to them about my research topic, they would say what they found interesting. I realised that part of the task was that if I was excited and thought that my research was interesting, then I could sell it to the panel. So having confidence and faith in what you are doing, and realising you might be the only cheerleader for it, is important.
Kirsty: It is a nerve-wracking experience, but I think practising is key for the presentation, so you get comfortable with it. Talking to people who weren’t necessarily in the same field gave me time to justify why my project is important, why my work matters. I agree with Danielle that notes were really important – they give you a safety net in an unpredictable situation.
Kirsty Wright
Scholarship in Heritage Buildings 2019, supported by the HB Allen Trust. Kirsty is currently doing a PhD in history at the University of York, and her work looks at St Stephen's College and the Palace of Westminster during the period 1601 to 1794. She was the co-organiser of the Society’s Architectural History Workshop in March this year.
What would you say to people thinking of applying?
Alborz: Keep going, treat it as part of the process you are already in about applying for funding from other sources. If you think you have a project you are really passionate about, keep pushing on.
Danielle: Even though you haven’t done your PhD yet, the amount of work you have already done to get your proposal together means that you are already quite an expert! So draw confidence from that and realise that you have an area of knowledge that people on the panel will be interested in.
Kirsty: The most important thing is to back yourself and back your project. I’ve been rejected from other funding sources, so keep working at it and you might find a group of people who think it matters too.
Edited transcript of SAHGB Scholars discussion on 27 April 2020, facilitated by Susie West, Education officer, SAHGB.
