Searching for a Ph.D. position abroad: where to start?

Text by Julia Kolodiazhnaia 

Editing by Ksenia Kuznetsova

- Searching, preparing to apply, and applying for graduate school abroad is a complex and time-consuming project

- It is wise to divide this project into parts and work on it step by step

- Read about the steps we recommend to take when applying to a graduate school abroad

You are probably subscribed to study bloggers, who tell you on any of the social networks about their student life in the University of Tokyo/Toronto/Berlin/any other city. Contextual advertising endlessly allows you to go to some exhibitions of higher education abroad.

But for some reason, instead of a clear plan of action in your head, there is just fear and a feeling of helplessness facing a huge amount of information. Somehow, you have zero ideas on how to move from the stage of "it would be nice to go to study abroad someday" to find yourself excited about the acceptance letter to the international graduate school in your mailbox.

The good news is that you are reading this text, which means that you have at least thought through the fact that such a challenge exists in your life. So let's deal with it together one step at a time.

Step 1: Articulate your motivation to move abroad and make sure it is your motivation

Moving to another country to study is a project that requires a huge investment of time, effort, and money. And preparing for the move is also a project on its own. You will only be able to go through all the difficulties if you understand very clearly why you personally want to do all this. Try to honestly answer why you want to move. 

Here are some possible answers:

- You don't feel safe in your current country of residence at the moment or you don't see a future for yourself in this country in the longer term;

- You want to go to graduate school abroad because you want to start publishing in more prestigious journals;

- A foreign master's degree will open up new career prospects for you in your home country;

- You are not satisfied with your current quality of life, and moving will mean improving it for yourself;

- You think that you are made for life in country XX, and therefore enrolling in a master's or a postgraduate program at a university in YY city will help you with your move and integration. Or you are simply interested in living in this country XX for a few years;

- Many of your classmates/study bloggers/your mom's friend's son graduated from school/postgraduate school abroad, and you feel like you are just as good as them, and so you should also try it. An alternative but similar motivation might sound like this: "Studying at YY university/abroad is prestigious, and this way I can prove to everyone that I have achieved a lot";

- You want to make international friends and travel the world more easily;

- Any other answer that is valid and important to you.

Disclaimer: At this step, the motivation can be articulated rather vaguely. It is not that important yet how it relates to reality. It is not a hypothesis, not a list of criteria. You are just taking the first step from "someday going somewhere" to understanding why exactly you need to do this. Giving moral evaluations of your motivation is neither your nor our job right now, the most important thing is to be honest with yourself. Last, but not least, try to formulate the motivation positively to encourage further steps. For example, "I want it to be like this" instead of "I don't want it to be like this anymore". However, sometimes the motivation "I will do anything to never do action X again" can be very strong (tested by the author of the text personally).

Step 2: Transform motivation into a clearly articulated desire

To start looking for a job or a position in a graduate school, you should postulate a clear idea of what exactly you are looking for. Each Ph.D. position or graduate program is characterized by a set of parameters: geography (check for a guide on how to apply for a Ph.D. position in USA), university’s reputation, resources necessary to get this position (scholarship, training cost, exams), time to search for the position, and specific features of the graduate program or scientific group. It is important to understand which of these parameters are crucial for you, and which you can compromise on. 

The more parameters you prioritize, the fewer graduate programs or Ph.D. positions will meet this set of criteria. One way to figure out what you really care about is to look at your motivation again: the clue might be already hidden in the wording -  use it as defining criteria in the search funnel. Safety, internal values, visa reasons, your passion for a country, or your knowledge of certain foreign languages could determine the geography of your search.

Perhaps, you are interested in a specific scientific topic or an access to some unique laboratory equipment. Maybe you are interested in a graduate school with an industry collaboration. Either way, after this step, you should be able to articulate something more specific, such as "I want to move to study abroad because a foreign Master's degree will make it easier for me to build a career in the pharmaceutical industry, so I'll be looking for medicinal chemistry graduate programs with opportunities for industry collaborations."

Great, now you have your keywords for a Google search!

Step 3: Revise your resources

Before commencing your search, it's worth asking yourself what resources you have. How much time do you have available? Do you need the position right now, or do you have six months or a year to prepare? What about finances? Can you afford to pay tuition fees while studying abroad or do you need a scholarship? What about your visa status? Do you have a necessary passport, work permit, or residence permit? What is your current level of education and grade point average? What is your level of foreign language proficiency? Do you have certificates proving language proficiency at a given level?

When making such a list, think about which parameters are fixed (e.g. citizenship) and which parameters can be brought to the required level with a certain amount of effort (e.g. language skills or additional courses).

Step 4: Checking with reality, making a list of items

So, after step 2, you have a first version of an idea of what you are looking for. After thinking about step 3, you have an idea of your current resources, and you will use them as an additional filter. So, you're going to start looking for Ph.D. positions abroad! In steps 1 and 2 you specifically focus only on your goals and desires. Very often we limit ourselves because we think we are not good enough for something without even checking what it really costs to fulfill the dream. So now it's time to realistically assess your capabilities and check what Ph.D. positions you can realistically qualify for.

In this step, you will be making a list of desired and available options. It will have two sections: the "green" section - you have everything you need to apply for a given graduate school, and the "yellow" section - you could potentially apply for this position after some preparation.

Let's start searching using the criteria from point 2. Do such graduate programs or Ph.D. positions even exist abroad? What does it take to get into these programs? Check the list of requirements to apply for your dream position:

- visa requirements (What countries' citizens can apply for the graduate program or Ph.D. position? Is it necessary to have a work permit in advance?);

- financial requirements (Is this graduate program or Ph.D. position paid? Are there scholarships available?);

- language requirements (What language must be known and at what level? Do language skills need to be certified?);

- Academic requirements (If this is a graduate program, there may be requirements for a list of courses you took in your undergraduate program. Do you need a certain GPA? Do you have to take additional exams?);

- bonuses (priority for applicants with existing experience in a given field, availability of publications, belonging to a certain social category or marginalized group - sometimes this is also written);

- list of documents, deadline for applications.

Let's run the graduate program through the list filter from step 3. If you realize, you have everything you need to apply for the position - yay, this position can and should be put in the "green" section of the list of desired and available options.

You may find at this stage that you don't fit all the criteria on the list. This happens (it usually does, believe me, we have all been there), and it is good if you find out that you are missing something now and not at the very last moment - that is what the preparation phase is for. If you can't do anything about the parameter that is missing (for example, the position is only for EU or USA citizens and you are not an EU or USA citizen) - well, it's not meant to be, this position is not on your list. If you think that you can somehow make up for the missing resource - write the item in the “yellow” section and write next to it the missing item and the deadline by which this item must be addressed.

Repeat the operation until you have a list of 10-15 items. Perhaps during the search process, you will change your selection criteria priority. Perhaps you will find your dream position among the first positions and realize that you don't want to apply for any other graduate programs or positions. But even in this case, we advise you to check about 10 more options to make sure that this is the only right choice for you.

Now look at the resulting list. Are there any positions or graduate programs in it, the thought of which makes your heart beat more often? If yes, and these programs are in the green part of the list - hurray again, go straight to step 6. If there are such positions, but in the yellow part of the list, it's time to think about how to organize the acquisition of missing elements. Analyze which skill or resource acquisition will give you access to the maximum number of desired items.

Step 5: Plan your preparation

So, now you know for sure that there is a Master's program or your dream lab at University X abroad. The only thing that separates you from applying is the lack of (for example) an IELTS language certificate. From the previous point, you should also have an idea of when the certificate should be submitted (such deadlines are usually quite clearly spelled out in the graduate program or position descriptions).

Now you have a clear goal with a tangible result and a clear deadline. And a clear internal motivation to do your Ph.D. abroad will help you through the hard moments on the way to the cherished goal. Everything else is now a matter of technique and planning (find a teacher or courses, training materials, start listening to podcasts, schedule the exam).

Step 6: Prepare and apply for the graduate program

You have all the resources you need to apply for the graduate program and you know for sure that you meet all the criteria for the position. All that's left is to customize your CV to apply for the position or graduate program and write a motivational letter (you can ask us for help in our targeted consultations, or you can read our guides on CV and motivational letter when we have them).

All set? Congratulations, now instead of "go somewhere someday" you have a clear goal, a package of documents, and a set of resources needed to achieve it.

About Sci.STEPS

Are you a scientist seeking to work on your education and career abroad? Sci.STEPS scientific mentorship program offers valuable insights and guidance from experts all over the world in the form of long-term structured guidance or targeted short consultations. From refining your research skills to navigating the complex world of academia and industry, the program is designed to empower you with the knowledge and confidence needed to excel in your scientific journey.