Contacting a supervisor RE PhD advert

C

There is PhD project I would be interested in. Email address of the supervisor is supplied to answer questions. There are no publications listed, no methodology used. I obviously looked at their lab page but still dont know what methods will be used.
I want to contact the supervisor but dont want to look silly. Can I email him and ask him about more info about the project? Do I mention I have looked on his website?
I would attach my CV and introduce myself.
Is this something that should be done or are they not expecting to be contacted?
Thanks guys:)

C

Have you tried looking for their papers in WebofScience. Googlescholar or Pubmed to see if you can get an insight into their work? They wouldn't supply their email if they didn't want to be contacted so of course contact them and ask for more information and you won't look silly. I did that when I applied and it was good as it struck up an email conversation about the project which really broke the ice and made the interview stage much easier!

C

Thank you for your advice. I have looked at his publications and can see what methods he normally uses. I will contact him and ask him about this project, will see what happens:)

M

My philosophy is 'if you don't ask you don't get'. Just be nice, polite, and show genuine interest, about the PhD topic AND the supervisor.

C

Is this ok?

Dear Dr...

I am a final year Biochemistry undergraduate at the University of XXX and the reason I am contacting you is because the PhD programme vacancy you are currently advertising matches my skills and academic interests. I have familiarised myself with your work and I would appreciate it if you could tell me more about your proposed project and the methods that will be used.

I have attached my CV so that you can assess my suitability for this PhD project.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours Sincerely

C

Yeah that sounds good to me. Good luck =)

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