Supermassive Games PhD Studentship – How to Apply
Applying for a PhD can seem daunting. This guide hopes to break down the application process (and what you need to do!) in easy-to-follow steps.
The process
1. Apply for the PhD online by 5pm Monday 28 February 2022. Important: To ensure your application is routed correctly, please ensure you do the following:
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Under ‘programme choice’: When asked to select a faculty, choose ‘Faculty of Social Sciences and Law’. When asked to choose a programme, choose ‘Sociology (PhD)’. When asked when to start, select ‘September 2022’.
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Under ‘Funding’: When asked how you intend to fund your studies, please tick ‘studentship’ and write ‘Supermassive studentship’ in the free text box. Please ensure the spelling is correct so that your application is routed correctly.
You will also be asked to upload:
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A ‘Studentship Application Form’ . You can download this here: Supermassive PhD application form (Office document, 32kB) (Also see notes on this below)
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Your transcript or marks from your undergraduate degree/ master’s degree
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If relevant, any letters of support from partners you intend to collaborate with on your project
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References
2. Your main supervisor (Susan Halford) will then review your application alongside a Sociology lead (Sveta Milyaeva)
3. The top 4-5 candidates will be invited to an interview with Susan, Sveta, and one community organization actively working in the field of diversity and inclusion.
4. You’ll hear the results shortly after the interview, and successful candidates will start at the end of September.
How to write the best possible application form
This PhD had been framed in its broadest terms.
However, it’s up to you to define the exact focus questions and approach, and tailor the research to your own interests and expertise. This is a real opportunity to take forward your ideas and passions, to make connections in the gaming industry, and to contribute novel research to the field.
Here’s how we suggest you start:
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Think about your ‘angle’
What is the question or issue you’d like to explore? Why? What about gaming futures do you think would be interesting to explore? What kind of evidence or knowledge would be helpful to understand or resolve the issue?
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Do some light reading
PhD research has to have a degree of novelty. It’s worth spending some time reading around to explore whether anyone tackled this issue before. What’s missing and how could your new work help?
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Jot down your PhD in a paragraph
Once you’ve started reading, jot down the basis of your idea to get it clear in your mind what your interests are.
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Contact your supervisor
It’s a good idea to test your ideas at a reasonably early stage with an academic supervisor. Professor Susan Halford, Co-Director of BDFI, will be one of your supervisors, and is a great starting point. It can feel daunting getting in touch with a professor to share your ideas, but be assured that we always love to hear great ideas from enthusiastic people. It’s also really important for you to feel like you could work well with the supervisor – you’ll have a close working relationship for the next 3 years, so we really advise scheduling a short call. You can reach out at susan.halford@bristol.ac.uk, or, if you’d just like to talk through the process and get some reassurance, you can contact the Institute Manager Hayley.shaw@bristol.ac.uk
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Refine your idea and seek out a second supervisor
Based on your discussions, start working up your research proposal in your application form. All PhD students at Bristol have two supervisors, so start thinking about who else does relevant research, and approach them to see if they’d be interested in co-supervising your project. Susan may also be able to make helpful recommendations.
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Don’t feel that you can’t reach out for advice
The SWDTP are a hub for advice and student support. The SWDTP Directors have confirmed they’d be very happy to offer application advice to anyone considering this opportunity. They will not be involved in the formal assessment and so can offer impartial guidance and support to anyone unsure of the process. .
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Try to give your supervisors the opportunity to comment on your proposal before you submit it
If you have time, send your supervisor a draft of your research proposal before you submit. It’s a great opportunity to gain any final advice and secure buy-in before it’s reviewed by a panel.