For the last two summers the Mathematical Institute has run a programme of mock interviews on Friday afternoons for graduate students and postdocs. This summer we will be repeating this programme. We'll circulate details of some fictional jobs for mathematicians with PhDs, including roles both within and beyond academia, and DPhil students and postdocs are invited to apply.  This will give you an opportunity to practise producing a job application and being interviewed. There will be mock interviews, with interview panels including both senior people with experience of recruiting in those roles and postdocs looking to develop their own experience. The whole point is that this is all done in a familiar and friendly environment, with constructive feedback offered at the end, to help you when you're applying for real jobs.

The draft programme for the summer is available online.

For these jobs you will be expected to provide at least a CV and a cover letter (more in the case of academic jobs), but no references.  There are links to tips on writing a CV or a cover letter on the webpage.

There will also be interview training for postdocs, in particular for those interested in being part of an interview panel, in June (date tbc).  Please contact Frances Kirwan if you might like to take part in the training and/or one or more interview panels.

Interviews for the fictional jobs will take place on Friday afternoons, in the Andrew Wiles Building. Each afternoon will conclude with Happy Hour (to be confirmed) for everyone as usual, regardless of whether they've been involved in the training/interviews.

Nearer the time the adverts for these jobs will be released along with details of what you need to provide to apply. Please note that even if you don't feel that you fit all of the essential criteria for a job it may still be worth applying for it; many of the skills you will acquire from the process of applying and interviewing are transferable so will be helpful in any future (real) job applications. While we've tried to have a range of jobs from employers who are keen to employ mathematicians with PhDs, necessarily we can't include everything. We'd like to encourage you to get involved for practice, so just pick the jobs you think are most relevant for you, even if it's not exactly the job you'd apply for in real life, or you're not sure you meet the criteria. The interview panels will understand this.

If you have any questions about any aspects of the mock interview programme please email Sara Jolliffe or Helen McGregor.

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