Thanks everyone. If it is because I've not finished, then I guess that's more bearable than if I had and wasn't getting anywhere.

For the record, yes, I'm Oxbridge and the posts are all Oxbridge Junior Research Fellowships- that's all there is going at the moment! What does annoy me is that these are advertised as being for EITHER those with a completed PhD or in the final stages of their thesis. And yet, I'm not getting a look in.

I am producing my CV in academic format, and had it approved by University career services.
My order is as follows-

1: affiliations- so my ivy league fellowship is the first thing they see as it's most recent, then my PhD, master's, and undergrad

2: prizes and awards - the 11 scholarships/ how much they were worth

3: publications- full referencing

4: conference presentations

4: teaching done

5: university service- committees etc.

What would really upset me is if I was getting knock backs purely because I hadn't finished in three years. My work is pretty decent, and I've always been successful in things I've gone for, including my Ivy league fellowship. I'm just not sure what else it could be, really.

Thanks for feedback and suggestions. I just wish my supervisor had told me applying now was a waste of time- I've slaved over these applications for nothing!:-(

======= Date Modified 16 Jan 2011 07:50:54 =======
THanks, chuff. Yes, I've got some other stuff to add to this too.

Teaching for one term
plus giving a lecture

then- extra curricular/ university community work

Voluntary work with access- encouraging non-privileged applicants to apply
working with disabled students
honorary life membership of my students union fro contribution to life of town and gown
chairing departmental staff-student committee
elected rep heading up all graduates in my subject and representing them at Faculty meetings
sitting on my college equal opportunities committee
sitting on a university wide access committee
fundraising- over £2,000 raised for a local hospital


dunno what else I can do to be honest!:-(

======= Date Modified 16 Jan 2011 00:31:10 =======
Hello. Just wondered if anyone else is experiencing anything like this.

I had AHRC funding for my Master's and PhD (PhD isn't finished yet- aiming for this year)
Have 7 publications
1 Ivy-League Visiting Fellowship
11 scholarships/prizes to date
a research proposal which other contacts in my field (literature) have said is exciting and easily publishable

...and today I received my 6th rejection in a row. I'm not even making any LONG LISTS let alone a short list. I asked one Cambridge college for feedback and they told me they'd had a hard time deciding whose applications to read....which makes me think, they may not even have read my application?!

My biggest worry of all is that my health is affecting my prospects. I had time out earlier in my thesis due to ill health which I've recovered from now, but it makes my phd look like a 5 year one, even though I've only done 2.5 years on it and my referees point this out.

What am I doing wrong? Don't know what else I can do to my applications to make them stronger, and neither, it seems, do the places to which I'm applying.

Gutted/:-(