Hi all
I hope this is not too much of a simplistic query,
I am a current Masters Student. So far, a high 2.1 grade is likely.
Additionally, I have an area which I would like to form a proposal for Phd

What is the appropriate way to contact a potential supervisor?
Furthermore, how concrete does the proposal need to be prior to initiating contact?
(My MA Thesis proposal will form the bones of my PhD proposal also)
Regards

Hi Lopaka
I'm in the same situation. My present supervisor suggested a couple of people to contact and I sent them a brief (about 200 words) outline of what I hope to do. They all wrote back really quickly with useful comments. I think it needs to be pretty concrete and precise. You know, the question, how you're going to do it, and what you hope to find out. One potential supervisor who wrote back said "You say you're going to 'build' on the work of x y and z.' But how? Can you be more precise." So I don't think vague outlines go down too well.

By the way, on most universities' websites, it suggests contacting the postgrad administrator first. Both my supervisor and the Postgrad Admissions Tutor at my Uni suggested contacting potential supervisors from the outset. That certainly worked for me.

Good luck!

Hi Looby Loo
Many thanks for that - a real help.

Your comments about PhD thesis proposal were helpful as you appear to have a strong grasp on what you wish to do.
I was looking at expanding on my masters thesis, however Im in process of structuring it.

Just also out of curiousity? if I went into an MLitt or an MPhil as the "first" year of my PhD
do you think I could get funding for each subsequent year?

I really don't know about that, sorry. Funding seems to be very difficult to find (at least in my area - music/sociology - which some people think is "useless"). However, I know of people who have been refused funding in the first year and applied again in year to and got it then, so maybe your idea would work.