Hi,

In my forthcoming studentship interview, i am required to give a informal 5 min presentation (no media allowed) on my research proposal. I am guessing they will have all read it, so it feels a bit weird to just condense it in to 5 mins and I am worried about just repeating what I have already written in detail...

Any tips would be gratefully welcomed!
Thanks,
Lizzie

Any thoughts, welcome...

I am no expert but I would say:

What I want to do
Why I want to do it
How I am going to do it

A minute on each with 30 seconds intro and 30 secs conclusion. That gives you a minute spare to breathe between sections and smile.
Although I presume they will have read it, this is your chance to give them an idea of how passionate you are about the topic, and how well you cope under pressure. Hope it goes well xx

I would echo what ApolloBullit said. Five minutes is a very small slice of time so yes, they would presumably want to see your enthusiasm and possibly, make sure you're the one that actually wrote the proposal.

I wish you luck with it!

Basically it is like a "Elevator speech" Good luck

Hi Lizzie

I would think about how to flesh out what you've written, the way you would do if you were giving a powerpoint presentation - i.e. give them a little more information and personality than the content that would be on the slides. At my first PhD interview, I was invited to speak 'informally' about my proposal, and that turned out to mean that they all pitched in with questions as soon as I started speaking, so maybe try thinking about what they might like to know having read your proposal. Good luck!

Thanks so much for your advise, it was great and I did it! A 900 word , 5 min presentation!!!! Found out I didn't get it today. I am totally gutted tbh. It is the only available funding...so another year to wait to apply again...ahhhhhhh.

You won't have to wait a year probably. PhD opportunities are available throughout the year and I find a lot are often posted in March and April, so keep looking.

Sorry to hear that, Lizzie. I hope other funding opportunities come your way soon, and that the experience of the interview and presentation will stand you in good stead.

Thanks Tree of Life and Chickpea! I think just doing the first one was a huge hurdle. Pity it is the one I really wanted! My deadlines were throughout Jan (for humanities) - Uni studentships and research council. I really hope more come up - I really want this. But hayho. I really appreciated all the advice and support! Lizzie x