A CV (or resume) and a cover letter make the bulk of the PhD application and have a major impact on the potential supervisor for the position. It essentially shows how qualified one is for the said doctoral position, and how dedicated and motivated is one to work in the particular subject. It can be said that the chances of getting an invitation for an interview are entirely dependent on these two documents. So, let’s get started with CVs.
CV, or curriculum vitae, is basically an academic track record -- all educational qualifications, every research experience should be included within the CV. There are generally some widely accepted norms while making a CV --- please make it neat! Every section and item in it should be identified clearly; it is of no use if no one can read it. Furthermore, all of the items should be arranged in reverse chronological order, meaning, the more recent thing should be on top.
There are several tools that can be used to make a good modern CV. A more professional way is to use LaTeX; an online LaTeX tool for compiling TeX documents like Overleaf can be used to make a decent resume. There are several resume templates available on Overleaf, which anyone can use and make a CV for themselves. Another interesting online tool for building and crafting a better resume is Creddle -- here one only needs to input the necessary information, and one can then craft a CV from a variety of templates and thereafter customize them according to one’s needs. An additional advantage for using Creddle is that the same template which is used in making the resume can be used in making a cover letter as well --- though this can be achieved using LaTeX also, it may need some skills with LaTeX.
Since the CV is being made for a research position, all the information that is vital for this position should be on the first page of the CV. For example, a list of publications, research experiences etc. is strongly recommended to put on the first page. It is suggested that instead of just putting the name of the research activity in the research experience section, writing a short description of the projects would be a good idea. The next thing that should be present in the CV is the programming skills --- in astronomy, the knowledge of at least one programming language is almost required. A widely used language is Python and maybe C (or C++). The final thing that must be in the CV is the academic record, again, in reverse chronological order.
In addition to this, one may add several other things in the CV, like, outreach, hobbies, etc., but they are not mandatory.
This concludes the CV part of this article; the author believes that this should help make a better CV. Now, the attention would be paid towards making the cover letter for the PhD application. A cover letter is the first thing that will be read by the recruiter, and in many positions, that is the only thing they ask besides the CV. Hence it is quite important to make a cover letter good.
One thing to keep in mind while preparing a cover letter is that it is not a CV, therefore, there is no point in writing anything that is already in the CV. Instead, one should try to elaborate on the facts that are in the resume with appropriate examples when possible. However, one should be careful with the words, since usually, the length of the cover letter should not exceed one or one and a half pages. Since it is one kind of letter, it should be written like the one: addressed properly (to the selection committee, or the person responsible for the position), a clear aim for writing should be mentioned, and all.
As already mentioned, the first paragraph of the cover letter should be dedicated to the reason for writing the letter, maybe something like this: “I am writing this letter to show my strong interest in a PhD position advertised by [institute name] in the field of [name of the field] with the project entitled [name of the project] under the guidance of [name of supervisor].” (Yes, feel free to borrow this sentence). That being said, the next paragraph can be used to emphasise the prior research experience in the field. This opportunity should be taken to show how the candidate is motivated, or what inspired the applicant to work in that particular field. Remember to make it brief considering the total length of the letter. This builds the base for the application -- it says that the applicant is quite qualified for the position. Now comes the part where the motivation to apply for the project should be written. This may contain sentences on why the candidate wants to apply for the project, why the applicant wants to work in the institute or with that particular supervisor etc. It is advisable to first go through the webpage of the institute and then write this last part. This creates an impression on the reader's mind that the writer has taken enough care in making the application. Finally, one should write some specific words for the project itself -- e.g., why did the one choose the project, why the project is important in the context of the recent development in the field (this is important, because, it says that the writer is familiar with current research topics in the field) etc. This is a good place to argue that the skills developed in previous research are relevant to the present thesis work, and how it makes one a strong candidate. It is much better if one can draw a link between the project and one’s prior or present research work.
So, this is more or less what a good cover letter should look like. The rest is the Statement of Research. This is the document where one describes their research experience --- for obvious reasons, the exact structure of this document could not be given like it was given for the cover letter. However, here are some tips to write it better: the statement should be started with a scientific context of the research and then slowly moving towards the main research. It is important that the document demonstrates a researcher's skills and capability in doing the work. Make an appropriate heading for the document and do not hesitate to use figures where necessary.
It goes without saying that it is a good practice to show these documents to one’s Master thesis advisor for a review after completing them.
One thing to keep in mind while writing cover letters and research statements is to avoid too much technical jargon because not everyone (save the potential supervisor) who read these documents would be an expert in the field. The language and the material of both of these documents should be understandable to a typical astrophysicist (or a master student).
This is more or less contains sufficient information on writing a good cover letter and a research statement.
All the best!