Interview Tips

Guidelines for Interview

Attention prospective TIGP aspirants !

TIGP (Academia Sinica) has started contacting candidates who have been shortlisted for their PhD scholarship program. Now the second phase of selection, i.e. Interview has been started.

So, If anyone of you have received their email, start preparing for their interview. They conduct normally a 10-15 minutes interactive Skype interview. Here are few questions which they will ask mostly and also some tips by following which you can do your best insha Allah

Q1. Please describe your profile briefly?

Tip : Here you would be required to tell about yourself. Since you would be having 3-5 minutes to explain about yourself, so prepare well already for it. Tell them about yourself, your educational background, discipline and anything which you think would be valuable. Try to cover all minutes, don't stop early.

Q2. Why did you apply for TIGP ? and why should you be selected?

Tip: I think you already know what to answer so you should be very clear about giving answer to this question. Go back and put careful attention to your SOP.

Q3. Why did you preferred XYZ program? Why XYZ why not any else?

(Here. XYZ refers to any of the program among 12 TIGP-programs in which you have applied for)

Tip: You know already what to answer, just review your SOP and proposal. Just be sure, that you read XYZ program website thoroughly and be very clear about the nature of XYZ program, its research and particularly their associated research areas.

Q4. Tell us about your education? / or Please explain about your thesis / final year project or any other research you conducted?

Tip. Answer this question by first giving introduction of project, it's objectives, significance, results achieved, conclusion and followed by an overall summary. Try to discuss more about research methodology and any technique used such as analytical instruments, like PCR, NMR, Crystallography etc used.

Q5. Your future / long-term goal ?

Q6. In some TIGP programs the selection panel usually give a research paper abstract to the candidates, allow them 5 minutes to briefly go through it, then they ask questions from that abstract. The main purpose of this task is to judge your analytical thinking ability and research approach so try to read it very carefully and note down the important terms, results and methodology / instrumentation (technique) used.

OVERALL TIP :

The entire interview is interactive so they normally put question from your SOP, proposal and the answers you will give them, so try to study your SOP and research proposal thoroughly as you have to legitimate in same manner as you have to justify your candidacy.

The more or less their all questions are related to above thematic questions I mentioned. So start practicing for above questions from now. Specially, give your more time to your preferred program website particularly and TIGP website in general. Go to your respective program website and read the research areas along with some faculty profiles, particularly those which are related to your field or match with your area of interest. They may also ask you the name few P.I's (Principal Investigators) means simply researchers, in whose labs are you interested to work. So you should better do this homework before. As these things count the motivation level and seriousness of the candidates.

Finally, speak slowly and clearly, dress well and keep smiling, don't be nervous at any moment, and you would be IN, insha Allah. smile emoticon

If any further question, comment below

Good-luck !


Prepared by
Asad Ali Siyal