Here are some of the questions we have been asked regarding applying for the PhD project “What Lurks Beneath: Integrating the physical and chemical signals of magma ascent for enhanced volcanic eruption forecasting”.

Please check this list regularly as more will be added as they come in!

What type of previous field experience are you seeking?

The field experience would be the type that would typically be undertaken in an accredited Geology undergraduate degree, involving work on outcrops and then also planning a field campaign for the undergraduate mapping project. So any experience with these types of things, and with igneous geology in particular, would be worth highlighting in an application.

How do you define numeracy/computing skills?

The numeracy/computer skills might be evidence of doing well in quantitative assessments in your degrees, doing some analysis of datasets, experience using particular programming software such as Matlab or Python for example.

Would the funding be helping with living costs, or just tuition fees?

The funding indeed covers a stipend which is paid directly to you to cover your living expenses. It is matched to NERC PhDs and is a comfortable amount to live on. There are also additional opportunities to do paid work for the department as a demonstrator for undergraduate classes.

Is there any specific lab experience aspects you were looking for?

The project is multidisciplinary and combines analogue modelling with petrological analysis. The laboratory experiments involve careful preparation of analogue materials and designing an imaging setup (basically some high tech cameras recording what happens in the experiment). It is unusual for analogue modelling to be taught during degrees so any general lab work where you've run your own experiments and kept a lab book would be worth highlighting.

How long the field work would last?

For the fieldwork we'd expect to go for 2 weeks or so in year 1, and depending on how that goes we may need to repeat this in the second year. All project costs would be covered in the research support budget.

How do I apply for the PhD?

The deadline to submit is 24th January 2025 and we’d be looking for a cover letter which includes a motivation statement for PhD study and the particular project, then a CV and information we can use to contact academic references. You should submit your application using the University of Liverpool portal. We will not be reviewing applications until after the deadline. https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-research/how-to-apply/

Is there more information available for the fieldwork in La Palma?

The detailed fieldwork plans will be co-developed with the PhD student during the first few months of the PhD. We envisage the trip would be for 2 weeks or so in year 1, and depending on how that goes we may need to repeat this in the second year. It would focus on sample collection for petrographic analysis and may involve trips to sites on neighbouring islands such as El Hierro or Tenerife depending on the outcomes of a planned literature review.   

Is there more information available for the placement with the USGS at the Cascades Volcano Observatory?

This would take place between May and September either at the end of the first or second year of the PhD. The duration of the trip is not yet defined and would depend on opportunities available at CVO, which are subject to change. We envisage the placement would involve assisting with the deployment/maintenance of a GPS network.

How would you describe your mentoring style (hands-on or hands-off)?

Every PhD student and every PhD project is different, and so we aim to create a supportive and open environment whereby we discuss what supervisory arrangement best works for you and supports you in your development. This can be reviewed as time goes on, with less frequent meeting or more frequent meetings depending on what is happening in the project. Sometimes it is more appropriate to meet more frequently especially in the early stages of the PhD and when publications are being written up. The University of Liverpool requires formal supervision meetings happen once per month for full-time students and once every two months for part-time students, and we always meet or exceed this.

Every 2 weeks we have a group meeting with the MAGMA Lab members, and these meetings are led by different group members each time with a planned schedule set out at the beginning of each term. They are an opportunity to share research findings, catch up with the rest of the team and ask questions inbetween supervisory sessions.

We are also have a regular Volcanology Group lunch which is an informal opportunity to catch up with volcanologists across the School and some other Liverpool universities.

Do you have any preferences on the ideal length and focus for the cover letter?

We would expect this to be one A4 page but you can extend to two A4 sides if necessary.

Would a formal email with a cover letter and CV suffice for the pre-interview application stage?

No, we will only be able to consider information included with your formal application. You will need to complete the online application using the University of Liverpool portal available here: https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-research/how-to-apply/ All submissions will be reviewed after the application deadline (24th January 2025).

As part of the application on the Liverpool portal, a research proposal is required. I’m unsure whether this step in the application is expected for all students or just students without an already defined project?

This section can be left blank, or just write a sentence there stating the title of the project you are applying for. We have requested that a cover letter is included which includes a motivational statement. You could use this ‘Research Proposal’ section for your motivational statement instead, just make sure it is included somewhere.

Will the analogue experiments used be similar to those written about in the reference papers (Chalk and Kavanagh, 2024 and Kavanagh et al., 2017)?

Yes, although we will be using a new technique we have developed in the past few months to image the entire surface of the model to measure displacements (my 2018 paper includes some experiments where we measure the displacement along a linear transect, so our new method is a step up from that and very precise using our new LaVision setup). Plans for the exact setup, materials and imaging method would be co-developed with the PhD student at the start of the project.

I found the Albert et al., 2020 paper incredibly interesting, will the geochemical analysis and petrology involved in the project be similar that described in their paper?

Yes we hope so! Our recent work on shear thinning fluids (currently in review) presents a new model which our previous Newtonian fluid models could transition into due to the growth or bubbles and crystals in the magma. The Albert et al. paper does not consider that transition in fluid rheology, but we think it could be important for the crystal record. We have some target localities in mind in the Canary Islands where we can hopefully analyse crystals from a lava flow and its connecting feeder dyke.

What will the balance be like between the geophysical and the geochemical aspects of the PhD project?

This balance will be agreed with the PhD student at the beginning of the project depending on their interests and skills set and how the project evolves. Considering both and physical and chemical processes is quite novel and so we are keen that both are used in the project, but the balance is not set in stone.

I'm filling in the PhD application form at the moment and have gotten a bit stuck on what to put for the finance section of the form. What do I need to put for type of studentship and the reference number as I can't find them on the website? 

In the box ‘please indicate the type of studentship’ please enter “Faculty of Science and Engineering studentship awarded to Janine Kavanagh”. We don’t have a reference number for it so I suggest you add the PhD title there instead.