Most important thing first: read the job description and person specification and tailor your application accordingly. I have to use a shortlisting form based on the JD and PS. No matter how great you look, I cannot shortlist you if you don't show you meet the requirements! 2/
Some applicants I was pretty sure, based on the titles of their MSc projects, that they probably could do (say) cell culture, but is it fair to assume that? Maybe not. And it certainly put those candidates at a disadvantage vs those who explicitly said "I can culture XYZ cell" 3/
One applicant wrote a cover letter in which each paragraph was headed with a line from the PS. Then they wrote a few sentences underneath showing how they met each requirement. I thought that was great. 4/
Speaking of cover letters... they can be a really useful way to show how you meet the requirements of the position and point out anything you have "extra". 5/
The other way to do that is to rejig your CV for every job you apply for so the relevant information is easy for the recruiter to find. This is pretty boring (for you!) 6/
If you are writing a cover letter.... my name is right there in the ad. People who used it made a much better impression than those who began "Dear Sir/Madam" or (and I got TWO of these!) "Dear Sir" 🙄 7/
A couple of cover letters mentioned having read this or that paper relevant to the project, and those letters really got my attention. 8/
Some people also emailed me informally ahead of applying, asking what papers they could read to learn more about the project, or asking pertinent questions. I kept an eye out for their applications. 9/
But emailing informally can be a double-edged sword. Be sure that the answer to your question isn't right there in the job ad. I kept an eye out for those applications too (although not for the same reasons...) 10/
That said, I did shortlist a couple of people who convinced me entirely using their CVs that they were excellent candidates. 11/
I also shortlisted a couple of people who met the essential (but not the desirable) criteria because they met the guaranteed interview requirements. We do take this seriously, so please do tick the box if it applies to you! 12/
Finally, I should say I saw some very good candidates who could do a really good job as an RA, but maybe not on this project. Or they could do a good job on this project but I had enough applicants to only shortlist those who had both "essential" and "desirable" criteria. 13/
I hope those people won't be too discouraged. Although I have had the "sorry your application was unsuccessful" email (or worse, deafening silence) many times myself and I do know what it feels like. 14/
PS. In case any of the applicants are among my followers, you will hear about your application through Imperial's jobs portal (not directly from me) which I think may take a couple of days at least.
