At PhD interviews or any interview in general, an odd and unexpected question can shut you down like pufff! and guess what happens next.. You find yourself almost like sitting on a hot sit.. In this article i’ll be throwing light on ”A Phd Interview Question That Can Throw You Off Balance” and what to do when faced with this particular question.
“What are your weaknesses?”😩🤔🤔 Like seriously, weaknesses? Why will i be asked about my weaknesses..?
This is one question many interviewees struggle with. Here is how to address this question in case you encounter it at your PhD interview or any interview anywhere..
First understand that they are not asking you this question to paint you in a bad light but just to see how honest you can be and intentional you are about your growth as an individual.
Therefore, avoid mentioning a strength in disguise as a weakness. People think that saying things like “I am too hardworking or I am a perfectionist” properly addresses the question, but NO!
In addition, you should also avoid mentioning weaknesses in an interview that are personality traits like, “I am a very impatient or disorganized person”. These are traits that are a part of who you are and might be difficult to change, moreover, if it is a PhD interview, you should avoid mentioning qualities that people look for in a PhD student as a weakness.
So, WHAT IS A WEAKNESS in this case?
A weakness is an issue or concern that occurs in a certain context that you have improved and continue to improve on.
Therefore, an example of a good weakness to mention would be this:
Lack of knowledge about advanced statistical techniques in your field (except you are being interviewed for a PhD in statistics )
OR
Lack of computational biology skills due to mostly wet lab experience (unless you are being interviewed for a PhD in genomics or bioinformatics)
After mentioning either of these two weaknesses, you can mention how you are currently working to improve on them.
One thing you could mention is “I have identified a couple of statistics courses offered by the school that I believe will help strengthen my statistical skills (mention the name of the course (s)). I have also been taking some online courses as well”
Wishing you all the best with your interview!! You’ll do great!
