IRCHSS

RonMexico

Thinking of applying this year for the first time. My Ph.D is in English. Anybody got any advice or useful links?

Cheers :cool:

Fragglefur

The IRCHSS run training days at various universities, try and go when it comes to your university. Otherwise get someone with a proven track record to read it and offer advice (in an ideal world this would be your supervisor, but it may not always be the case!)

brianthebard

www.irchss.ie

LordOctane2009

Bottom line is that it all comes down to your topic and not your application. I would also agree that your supervisors position also plays are role, but more in terms of their status than their reference.

You only need to look at the projects that have been funded in the recent years and you will see that the vast majority of them have a specifically Irish focus or have an Irish slant.


I would agree that you should put a fair bit of work into the proposal but unfortunately it does not mean that it will be rewarded in any way. The main benefit I got out of the work that I put in to the proposal is that it helped focus my ideas and my methodology. Just don't expect to get a reward for your hard work.



This might sound very depressing but I am speaking from experience in dealing with the IRCHSS for the last 2 years.

ThePirateGay

LordOctane2009 wrote: »

Bottom line is that it all comes down to your topic and not your application. I would also agree that your supervisors position also plays are role, but more in terms of their status than their reference.

You only need to look at the projects that have been funded in the recent years and you will see that the vast majority of them have a specifically Irish focus or have an Irish slant.


I would agree that you should put a fair bit of work into the proposal but unfortunately it does not mean that it will be rewarded in any way. The main benefit I got out of the work that I put in to the proposal is that it helped focus my ideas and my methodology. Just don't expect to get a reward for your hard work.



This might sound very depressing but I am speaking from experience in dealing with the IRCHSS for the last 2 years.

It's nice to see you're not bitter in the slightest.:pac:

LordOctane2009

Not in the slightest:D

LordOctane2009

I am sorry, the IRCHSS process has also thought me that if at first you don't succeed . . . just send another letter. Just this month I forced them to give me my Alpha grading and ranking for my last two applications and I also got the guidelines given to the correctors for the last two years. All of which I was told I would not see but God bless the power of the letter and the Freedom of Information Act.:rolleyes:

ThePirateGay

LordOctane2009 wrote: »

I am sorry, the IRCHSS process has also thought me that if at first you don't succeed . . . just send another letter. Just this month I forced them to give me my Alpha grading and ranking for my last two applications and I also got the guidelines given to the correctors for the last two years. All of which I was told I would not see but God bless the power of the letter and the Freedom of Information Act.:rolleyes:

Sounds like a bit of a nightmare to be honest. Better off studying abroad I reckon!:o

gravensteen

only thing about studying abroad:
IRCHSS give funding freely to any student in Irish universities, but won't give you the time of day if you're an Irish person studying abroad. €16,000 a year is a hefty prize and worth pursuing. In England, AHRC funding is much harder to get.

LordOctane2009

I would agree - I would go abroad but I have looked before and there are not many funding opp. about especially in my area. At the moment I have part-time work and good teaching hours so I am lucky in that respect. It just has the very bad habit of eating into any time that you might have for the Phd.

scop

I got it this year and it was my second attempt so do send off an application.

Things they seemed to like:
* engagement with other disciplines, a non-insular approach and a topic which might form the basis for other projects
* a strong methodological basis and proof that one has a project that extends beyond their thesis
* a thesis with a definite goal, a clearly stated timeframe to finish and has a solution at least provisionally outlined

Good luck. Well worth it in the end.

theredletter

I've been a registered MLitt student all year but have already decided to go on to PhD (which was suggested by my supervisor). I'm still VERY early days into my research. Due to teaching obligations from another scholarship, I've had very little research time this semester (having read maybe three articles and two or three books!). I know what my topic is in very general terms but I think that this would be a cool topic for the IRCHSS. I don't think I'll get it but my supervisor has a good standing in the field and I have a good academic record with a rough outline of the topic I want to tackle.

My question for your guys would be in terms of the point you are at in your studies. Although my topic, as I mentioned, is in a zygote stage, I will ensure that the application is air tight in terms of methodology and frame work. The application itself, as previously mentioned, will force me to sit down and figure this project out, but I'm just a bit nervous about how little I've done up to this point, particularly as I have basic knowledge (as it stands) of the topic.

What you guys think? I'm going to apply regardless and see what they say. My Dad applied awhile back and they gave him some great feedback. He ended up deferring his PhD, but his project was pretty groundbreaking. It didn't get through on one issue - the project was being co-supervised by two separate departments (English and Business). They couldn't find anything else wrong with it. So maybe you guys should think about that!

R

brianthebard

scop wrote: »

I got it this year and it was my second attempt so do send off an application.

Things they seemed to like:
* engagement with other disciplines, a non-insular approach and a topic which might form the basis for other projects
* a strong methodological basis and proof that one has a project that extends beyond their thesis
* a thesis with a definite goal, a clearly stated timeframe to finish and has a solution at least provisionally outlined

Good luck. Well worth it in the end.

Could you expand on the points about the project extending beyond the thesis, and the solution that should be outlined?

RonMexico

I am kind of torn regarding this. I have only a small window of time left to apply but I am still not sure about the whole thing.

1: My thesis is about as far removed from anything Irish as you can get.

2: I have only one year left but work as a tutor. I find the experience invaluable and IF I got this I wouldn't be able to work as a tutor next year.

Then again getiing the scholarship is potentially €16,000 and a bit of prestige...

Decisions, decisions....:eek:

Ostrom

brianthebard wrote: »

Could you expand on the points about the project extending beyond the thesis, and the solution that should be outlined?

My feedback said (I dont have the exact text of it here) that they were encouraged by my mentioning that the framework could be applied beyond the subject matter of the thesis (I'm in sociology, my thesis was on precapitalist agriculture and I had outlined in a closing paragraph on the 'significance' sub heading that it could tie into the contemporary re-feudalisation debate on Latin American fruit production).

It is difficult to argue the significance of a project beyond your empirical contribution unless the area is vast and your phd will only scratch a small proportion of it. If you can talk it up as developing a new analytical approach to the area in question, as well as an original empirical contribution, I would imagine they will look more favourably on it - this is easier to do for some disciplines.

RonMexico wrote: »

I am kind of torn regarding this. I have only a small window of time left to apply but I am still not sure about the whole thing.

1: My thesis is about as far removed from anything Irish as you can get.

2: I have only one year left but work as a tutor. I find the experience invaluable and IF I got this I wouldn't be able to work as a tutor next year.

Then again getiing the scholarship is potentially €16,000 and a bit of prestige...

Decisions, decisions....:eek:

You can tutor up to three hours per week, unless it has been changed since mine (2007)

brianthebard

That's cool, I have those things covered so. You can't tutor for the first year in which you're receipt of the IRCHSS scholarship, maybe that was different back in the day but I'm sure that's the case now. After the first year you can begin to tutor a bit.

LordOctane2009

As far as the tutoring goes - it is great experience and I really love it but you should grab a scholarship with every limb you have if get the chance. You will get a job because of your PhD and your publications rather than your tutoring experience. The thing is that once you have your Phd there will be plenty of time to tutor.

I have 6 years of tutoring and the other thing I have found is that tutoring eats into your time like nothing i have seen before.

Hope this helps:pac:

scop

RonMexico wrote: »

I am kind of torn regarding this. I have only a small window of time left to apply but I am still not sure about the whole thing.

1: My thesis is about as far removed from anything Irish as you can get.

2: I have only one year left but work as a tutor. I find the experience invaluable and IF I got this I wouldn't be able to work as a tutor next year.

Then again getiing the scholarship is potentially €16,000 and a bit of prestige...

Decisions, decisions....:eek:

It does not have to be on an Irish topic. Mine is on a German philosopher.

The IRCHSS is worth a lot more jobswise than tutoring. In fact I'm amazed anyone would consider tutoring over a scholarship. We've all tutored and it makes no difference if you've tutored for one or two years. You would be mad not to apply on this basis.

scop

brianthebard wrote: »

Could you expand on the points about the project extending beyond the thesis, and the solution that should be outlined?

Extending beyond the thesis: show that your project is long-term. You will wrap your thesis up nicely but continue to develop the insights. This means you will be referring back to your IRCHSS thesis for years to come which is more or less what they want.

Solution: You should know how the thesis is going to wrap up. You have the problem solved but you just need to structure and refine the argument. For them this means you will finish and in a decent amount of time.

Hope that helps.

cunniny3

I have a simple question about the style of the application. Is it permissible to use the first person? For example, should I say:
"I propose to investigate..."
or
"This research will investigate..."

Thanks

camperspampers1

Hi all, im new to this but thinking about doing a research masters maybe but just wondering will there be a second round of IRCHSS this year?? I know that IRCSET only have the one, but I dont think I'd be able to get referees together by the 11th Jan. Thanks in advance!

theredletter

you're getting mixed up there - IRCSET have two rounds, IRCHSS only have the one a year. If you haven't organised a referee at this point, it is unlikely you'll be able to apply this year, but do try! They may be on break, but a lot of supervisors won't mind coming in for a half day to give you a hand, although they might be a bit apprehensive.

camperspampers1

Hi thanks for the reply. I'm 100% sure IRCSET have only the one round this year its on their website. i know they usually have two but its due to all the cutbacks. Was just wondering if its the same with IRCHSS because i cant seem to find out if they have only the one round this year?

theredletter

It is DEFINITELY only the one round. If in doubt contact them on info@irchss.ie, but they will just tell you it's one round only. Logically if IRCSET got a round pulled from them, it's very unlikely there will be a second IRCHSS round, seeing as there hasn't been a two-round system in operation up to this point.

The reason I know is that you can only apply twice to the IRCHSS now and they keep saying if you don't get it for 10/11 then you can reply for 11/12, but they don't mention a second round, and their deadline is the 11th of January, not the 11th of January and second round in May or whatever.

You're out of luck, bud. You'd want to get started on your application and give up hope for the second round. You could still make it, most important thing is getting your supervisor's reference.

brianthebard

camperspampers1 wrote: »

Hi all, im new to this but thinking about doing a research masters maybe but just wondering will there be a second round of IRCHSS this year?? I know that IRCSET only have the one, but I dont think I'd be able to get referees together by the 11th Jan. Thanks in advance!

Don't you have a supervisor?

dr. comic

hey just wonderin is anyone in the same boat. i'm being co-supervised and irchss say only submit one referee. yet on ther faqs they say submit one reference from each and also later contradict themselves sayin only send one. any ideas?

is it just me or is the phd gonna be easier then the irchss form?:D

brianthebard

dr. comic wrote: »

hey just wonderin is anyone in the same boat. i'm being co-supervised and irchss say only submit one referee. yet on ther faqs they say submit one reference from each and also later contradict themselves sayin only send one. any ideas?

is it just me or is the phd gonna be easier then the irchss form?:D

There's no contradiction, it says to chose one supervisor for a referee, who will then have to fill in a separate form. Part D of the application form also has to be filled in by your supervisor, but if you have two then obviously they will have to both fill it in, since the question is what support they and the dept will provide the applicant. Print off the whole form and read through it and you'll understand.

breedie

dr. comic wrote: »

hey just wonderin is anyone in the same boat. i'm being co-supervised and irchss say only submit one referee. yet on ther faqs they say submit one reference from each and also later contradict themselves sayin only send one. any ideas?

is it just me or is the phd gonna be easier then the irchss form?:D[/quote

+1 on the last bit. It's driving me crazy!!

theredletter

Deadline put forward to next Friday! Thank God!

brianthebard

theredletter wrote: »

Deadline put forward to next Friday! Thank God!

Where did you hear that?

edit; nevermind, looked up the site. sweet.

Ostrom

breedie wrote: »

is the phd gonna be easier then the irchss form?

Yes

Esmereldina

dr. comic wrote: »

hey just wonderin is anyone in the same boat. i'm being co-supervised and irchss say only submit one referee. yet on ther faqs they say submit one reference from each and also later contradict themselves sayin only send one. any ideas?

is it just me or is the phd gonna be easier then the irchss form?:D

PhD will definitely be easier :-) Most stressful experiences I can remember have been putting together IRCHSS applications!

brianthebard

Anyone know if the word count that you include in the bibliography is the entire word count for your question 14, or just a word count of the bibliography? Its very unclear in the application form and none of the answers on it in the FAQ explicitly tell you either way.

breedie

I could be wrong but I don't think that the bibliography has anything to do with any word count. It's in addition to any word count. As long as it doesn't go over two pages you're sorted. Or is that just me?

theredletter

I was under the impression that it was apart of the overall word count per question (so for example if you make four references to texts for your study the bibliographic word count counts toward that part of the question). Best to have a hundred words less that the word count so either way you'll be covering yourself.

Finally got mine in... Still has to be signed by the Dean who is currently snowed in. But it's done! I am very doubtful I'll get it, but it really has gotten me a lot more focused on my project. Getting some feedback would also be beneficial. I'm applying to an apprenticeship and a traveling scholarship as well.. and currently hold a scholarship, so I can't be greedy!

brianthebard

theredletter wrote: »

I was under the impression that it was apart of the overall word count per question (so for example if you make four references to texts for your study the bibliographic word count counts toward that part of the question). Best to have a hundred words less that the word count so either way you'll be covering yourself.

Sorry but I haven't a clue what you mean, could you clarify perhaps?

theredletter

Sorry, I was just thinking that I made no sense there.. Thanks!

To clarify, if you are writing up the methodology part (which is supposed to be 600 words, if I remember right) and you reference a text, let's say 'Methodologies in the Humanities' and you write 550 words for that question. The bibliographic citation of 'Methodologies in the Humanities' in part 15 will add to the overall word count. So O'Brien, Seán. 'Methologies in the Humanities'. etc. will be added to the 500 word count. Does that make sense now?

breedie

If that's the case then why does the form itself (Section 14)say that
"A bibliography (of no more than two-pages in length) should be included in Section 15 of the application form and is in addition to the stated word limits"
From your explaination you seem to have interpreted it as an integral part of the word count. But you have yours finished and I'm still tearing my hair out over some sections so you're probably right and I'll be penalised for exceeding the word limit. Right now I just want to smash the computer with a hammer and send the whole lot to IRCHSS in a jiffy bag (postmarked before the 15th of course)

theredletter

Yeah but I could have done it VERY wrong. The way I look at it, try to keep 100 words below the word count, and keep your bibliography short and sweet. The talk that we had on the application form told us not to let section 14 'read like an essay', you shouldn't need a really extensive bibliography, anyway. This is only a proposal, it's not the thesis, and I've a feeling they'll extend the scholarship again. If secondary schools and primaries are being told to shut down, they'll hardly expect us to travel to universities looking for our institutional stamp.

breedie

Ok. I keep hearing about this thing of not having it "read like an essay". What exactly does that mean? Should I just put the whole thing in a bulleted list and ask them to send the cheque by return of post?

And I'm not so sure about another extension but I hope you're right. I keep putting off the journey to get mine signed because of the weather but would also like to see the back of it one way or the other.

brianthebard

theredletter wrote: »

Sorry, I was just thinking that I made no sense there.. Thanks!

To clarify, if you are writing up the methodology part (which is supposed to be 600 words, if I remember right) and you reference a text, let's say 'Methodologies in the Humanities' and you write 550 words for that question. The bibliographic citation of 'Methodologies in the Humanities' in part 15 will add to the overall word count. So O'Brien, Seán. 'Methologies in the Humanities'. etc. will be added to the 500 word count. Does that make sense now?

You think so? I was a little confused about the whole footnoting issue so used the Harvard system for a change, so that's already included in my word counts. I wouldn't stay 100 below just to be say, most of my answers are close to the max.
Also I'm guessing at this stage it differs from person to person but the advice I was given was to fill up the bibliography. They don't expect you to have read everything its supposed to be an indicative biblio afaik, rather than a list of things you've read.

breedie wrote: »

Ok. I keep hearing about this thing of not having it "read like an essay". What exactly does that mean? Should I just put the whole thing in a bulleted list and ask them to send the cheque by return of post?

And I'm not so sure about another extension but I hope you're right. I keep putting off the journey to get mine signed because of the weather but would also like to see the back of it one way or the other.

Not bulleted, just specific answers and clearly laid out rather than reading as a piece of prose. Although obviously some of my form has bullet points.

Ellajane

Hi guys,

Just sent in my application and ohhhh what a relief!! Roll on June ;-) Everybody keeps telling me it's a lottery and I'm sure to some extent it is because I know lots of people with great PhD topics etc who didn't get it... but here's hoping!
Best of luck to all

Ellajane

Just read the above posts - listen I wouldn't get too hung up about prose / bullet points - it seems as if they like you and your topic you'll get it... if not then you won't.

My supervisor let me see an application he did last year (and received funding for it) and it was riddled with grammatical errors and unfinished sentences!!
I know it's a different scheme but I guess it just goes to show that they've probably given a brief on what is "hot" to research - i.e. what's going to benefit them - how are they going to get their moneys worth out of what and who they fund and what will be useful to them in the long run so fingers crossed they like what we're researching ;-)

LordOctane2009

Ellajane

I completely agree and the same problems go for this scheme as well.:mad: It's a real pity but the only upside is that the process of filling the form is a great way to focus your ideas

LordOctane2009

Ding Dong IRCHSS is gone!!!!:D

SD1979

Hey folks! I came on this forum for info a couple of times and found it very useful...anyway, I just wanted to say I got a proposal finished and posted in the last 24hrs....thank god! What a relief...and as others have said I guess at this stage its just a case of hoping that it catches someones eye and forgetting about it till next June. They let you know via mail yeah? Also can anyone elaborate on the collection of the scholarship if you are successful. Do you get it in one bulk amount? Installments per month or how does it work? Also do the government skim some off through tax?? Best of luck to everyone who managed to send in application!

PanicStations

I plan to post my IRCHSS application tomorrow. If I do so, will it be postmarked "15 January"?

I finished the application a couple of days ago but didn't post it just in case I got some mad flash of inspiration and wanted to add something. Now I am beginning to think that I made a huge mess up and that tomorrow is too late to post the damn thing.

Can anyone confirm for me what date the postmark will be if I post it tomorrow? I'll be posting it in Dublin.

SD1979

From what I understood on the app form - as long as the post mark on it is not after tomorrows date then you should be grand - maybe register it just to be sure you can prove the date you sent it.

PanicStations

Thanks SD1979, I might be getting completely paranoid here, but does a letter get postmarked the day it is posted or does it go to some mysterious sorting office and hang around for a while before it is posted? I'll definitely get it registered anyway, thanks for that.

scop

It gets postmarked on the day its posted.

PanicStations

Thanks, maybe I'll be able to sleep tonight after all