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Is it possible to do two PhD's in the same field one after another?
I am PhD student in an area of business in India. I am dissatisfied with the coursework and research guidance available at my university and feel that I won't be a very good PhD post completion of this PhD. That is why I am thinking of applying to business schools in the US and Europe after completion of my first PhD but I am worried if they would even consider my application or look at it unfavorably as I will already have a PhD.I want to apply in the same area I study in my first PhD. Any thoughts on this are welcome.

In Europe, there are better chances than in the US.

Are you looking at actual knowledge or at knowledge acquisition skills? Missing actual knowledge is less significant if you are learning how to learn.

I think there is only a small chance of this happening. Educational resources are limited in general and people like to spread the opportunities. Many people reading your application might wonder if you are just wasting everyone's time, including your own.
Some universities will consider you, but others will immediately reject you.
A post-doc somewhere after your degree might be a better option if you think you have a chance of landing a good one. It gives you a chance to prove yourself and to build your CV.
Or, plan to switch universities prior to finishing. Either early or at some logical point. In the US a logical point would be after the required coursework or after an MS. Probably it would be different in India.

My chances of getting a post-doc might be slim as there are few post-doc opportunities in my field. It is a good idea to switch prior to finishing but my university does not grant an MS prior to 3 years of enrolling for a PhD in case of an early exit and by that time I might as well wait for 1 additional year and get a PhD.


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Does the symbol "&" in author list mean anything?
Is writing Author A & Author B the same as writing Author A, Author B in the author list?
To make it clear, this question asks about formulating the author list in the author section when publishing a paper.
The field is computer science. Is there a way to signify that Author A is the first author?

Why do you think there is a "first author" rather than a true collaboration?

If authorship order matters in your subfield (as opposed to having alphabetical as the default), most likely Author A will be interpreted as the first author unless explicitly specified otherwise (e.g., using a footnote to indicate that first authorship is shared).

The ampersand and the comma mean essentially the same thing here. The one who is listed first is the first author. (In this case, Author A is the first author in both cases.)
Clarification: The definition of "first author" that I am familiar with is the author who is listed first. In any list, there is always a first item; therefore, there is always one (and only one) first author. I am not familiar with using the term "first author" to mean "the one with the most significant contribution."

Mostly in CS we are happy with alphabetical listings.

@Buffy In theoretical CS only, I think?

@IslamEl-Rougy, not only, actually, but maybe not universally either.

I think you are making an assumption that the authors do not intend. Ask them. Otherwise you may be making an error as well as an assumption.

The list of authors involves me in this case.

Is writing Author A & Author B the same as writing Author A, Author B in the author list? (when publishing a paper)

You don't have a choice, the journal's style guide will do it for you. In cases where there is a list and not a block (or otherwise separated), an ampersand will be used for the last author in every case I'm aware of.

Original answer
In citation formats I'm familiar with (e.g. APA), using a comma with only two authors is never correct.
In other words, Author A., Author B. (2020) looks like a mistake, as if the third author (who would be separated by an &) were missing.
It makes no difference with regards to who is the "first" author.

Citation is not what the question is about, but it is a nice addition.

@user2679290 Oh, did you mean writing it that way in the references? My point would hold, it would still look like an error.

No, I meant writing like this in the author section of a paper.

@user2679290 Oh I see. You don't have a choice, it follows the journal's guidelines in any case (some don't have lists, and use blocks, where your question would be nonsensical).

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What could be a next thing after my theoretical physics career has not worked out?
Perhaps this question is about leaving the academia, but hopefully it's still in the right place. Given that many people have been there before, I'll spare you most of the personal details. Late in my first postdoc doing abstract theoretical physics (related to string theory) I'm seriously entertaining the idea that I should quit. First, I doubt that I'll be competent enough to keep up with the field and do the research at the level I want. Second, although I think I should be able to continue with another position somewhere, and then again, I'll hardly get to choose the places and people to work with, but rather the other way around. I never had plan B, so I'm inventing it right now.
Sure, there are a lot of jobs you can do with good mathematical background. Although I must say I have no specific skills beyond that. My problem is that I'm utterly non-interested in most practical things. The word "industry", for example, only rings a slight aversion in me. So the most usual routes people suggest just don't click. Maybe someone knows of a more science-oriented things one can do? My dream job would be to crack an artificial intelligence on a quantum computer at google, the only problem being that I have to particular skills in these areas and turns out I'm not as brilliant as I once hoped to be. But you see the point, right? The point is that I need to be disillusioned:)
So, what are some possible jobs to take that would feel like a pure research, be paid well, but have a less competitive market then, say, string theory, but require no special skills beyond that and be just as cool? Is there a list somewhere?
Sorry for the exaggerating tone, and lots of personal details in spite of promise given, perhaps I feel a bit nervous writing this:)
Added
Community decided that the question is too personal, and perhaps this is indeed the case. I will have no problem with closing/deleting it, but I would be very grateful for suggestions of other on-line resources I may try to consult with my questions.

Hmmm. Are you just in the wrong place? The stuff you do sounds like it requires a lot of synergy and a tight working group. Do you have that? Can you find that? Not a topic to be explored in an academic desert, I think.

When you find something let me know! :)

@Buffy Probably I don't and probably this was the biggest aspect of my academic life I neglected to improve. However, having only a minor network in my field, and having bad publication score during this postdoc, I believe that chances to land in a strong team are ghostly for me. And if I get to a place which is not the right fit, I expect things to only go downhill from there.

It's your life.  Figure out what you should do with it.  Talk to a career counselor if you think it helps.  Or get an acre in the middle of nowhere, grow your own potatoes and vegetables, and work some odd jobs.  It's certainly true that there are more physics PhDs/postdocs than permanent academic jobs for them.

Well, back in the noughties lots of string theorists went into financial firms and became "quants". I know a few who have done quite well for themselves.

What country are you in? In the US, the DoD and DoE do fund industry for R&D (and there are government researchers too). Both AI and quantum computing are hot topics.

@cag51 I'm in Europe, currently Germany.

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IEEE membership for academic and professional career
I am currently studying for a master's and I will continue my academic career to post-doctorate. I am involved in the research projects of my organization and I will continue my research and development on my organization as well. Now I want to make the IEEE membership account where I can access related research papers for research and development.

Which type of IEEE account is suitable for both an academic and professional career as in my case?
Can a student account also be used in professional research and development?

You should check out IEEE site: https://www.ieee.org/membership/index.html

Student membership is for students only. Once you lose that status, then you will require a professional membership.
Student members have access to the IEEE digital library through the library of their institution. Professional members have access also, but it requires fees, perhaps a subscription.
But one can gain access if the employer holds an Institutional Subscription to the library.
This is similar to the ACM which has its own digital library, available on similar terms.
But, otherwise, a student membership has most of the advantages of a professional membership but at a lower cost while you remain a student. There isn't really a distinction between Academic and "Professional" membership.

There are probably certain things a student can’t do (mostly involving voting?) but I can’t see why that’s matter enough not to take the cheaper membership for as long as one is eligible....


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How much time does it normally take to get certificate of participation in a conference?
I participated in a conference (oral presentation), It is my first conference ever as I am in my first year of PhD. The conference ended 3 weeks agp now and they still did not send me any certificate of attendance/participation. How much time does it normally take to get certificate of participation in a conference?
Note : the conference was five days long (Monday to Friday, about 10 partcipants each day).

I don't believe I ever got a certificate of participation at any conference I went to. Do you need it for travel reimbursement or something like that?

I never heard of such, actually.

Did you request it? If you didn't request it, then this probably won't happen until then.

Yes I actually need it for administrative issues. However I thought that it is given without requesting it. Especially, a lot of conferences I saw mention that certificates of attendance will be given ! Thank you all for the feedback. I think I will request it explicitly.

Not all conferences provide a certificate of participation. Some will provide such documents only by request. Many participants would not need such certificates at all, so it often makes sense not to provide them by default.
If you require a certificate of participation, write to conference organisers and ask for it.

Maybe worth clarifying that the only real need would be for reimbursement of conference/travel expenses if a policy requires it. No need for a certificate for, say, adding a presentation to your CV.

I've never seen the certificate provided by default.  Always on request.

@AnonymousPhysicist I have seen certificates provided by default at different conferences in different countries. I have also seen them provided by request.


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Why do some Thomson indexed Journals not have impact factors?
My paper was accepted in a conference, and among their journals there was this one:
https://portal.issn.org/resource/ISSN/0974-6455
And this one :
http://soeagra.com/abr.html#
And while inspecting their websites, I couldn't find their impact factor. is this sign of low quality or what ? Knowing that these are Thomson indexed journals.
Thanks

First things first, Thomson Reuters no longer manages impact factors; they sold the business to Clarivate Analytics.
Clarivate Analytics is not an index; they are a business. They manage multiple databases, such as ESCI (Emerging Sources Citation Index) and SCIE (Science Citation Index Expanded).
To have an "official" impact factor, you need to be indexed by the SCI (Science Citation Index). If you are indexed by SCI then you are in some sense "indexed" by Clarivate Analytics, but the converse is not true. The journals you mentioned are not indexed by the SCI, therefore they don't have impact factors.
Does this mean they are low quality? Not necessarily, e.g. it's possible for a new journal to not have an impact factor simply because it takes time to be indexed by the SCI. But it's certainly not a good sign.

I would add that other than journals indexed in SCI(E), also those indexed in SSCI have an Impact Factors.


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Teaching high school before PhD
I'm considering doing a 1-yr MST program and teaching high school for a few years before I do a PhD. Setting aside the cost of the program, is this a bad idea? Reasons I'm considering it are

to solidify my interest in doing a PhD (I hope to use weekends to read widely and try to get a better picture of exactly what research topic I'd pursue in a PhD)
to leverage teaching skills for when I apply to PhD programs, as well as for when I apply to academic positions
in the event I can't get an academic job, I can fall back on high school teaching and will have the credential, since what I ultimately want to do is teach in some capacity (ideally college)

Reasons I'm worried are:

my resume will appear "stale" or lacking in direction if I apply to grad school 3-4 years out of undergrad, with a master's already
rec. letter writers will forget who I am (I hope to keep in touch)

Is this path common or feasible?

What discipline?

Don't get a PhD unless you are absolutely sure you want a PhD.  Also have a plan for after your PhD.

"which is part of my motivation to taking time to figure out if the PhD is for me at all." I don't think spending time as a teacher would help with that at all, no matter how much reading you do on the weekends.

You have reason to be concerned about the reasons you give. It is possible to keep in touch. It is also possible to publish some things while you are otherwise working, but it is very difficult.
I doubt that teaching secondary school will give you any advantage in a doctoral program unless it is in a school of Education or in a program that is otherwise focused on producing teachers. Such exist, of course.
You can "fall back" to secondary teaching even without the prior experience, so that doesn't seem to be an advantage.
If your long term goals include a doctorate and you have the means to do so, then I think it is a (big) mistake to put it off unless there are other considerations not raised here.
Most places (not all) the cost of a doctorate is paid in some way. In the US, most students are TAs. In other places there are other arrangements. Also, in the US, you have some time at the start of a program to decide on a specialty.
You lose noting by applying and exploring the options directly, even if you do so in parallel with other possibilities.
But if your goal is really teaching secondary school, then an MST (Master of Science in Teaching) is a good choice.

Thanks for the reply. The only other consideration I can think of here is that all the deadlines have passed for PhD applications. And that with the MST I could have public schools open as a fall back, since typically certification is required. But you are probably right that it's better to pursue my first choice first.


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In mathematics, is it a problem if all research is joint with senior co-authors?
If a mathematics postdoc's publications are all co-authored with established senior co-authors (e.g. advisors), could it be a problem when applying for tenure-track jobs? I wonder in particular if hiring committees discount candidates who do not have either sole-authored work or work co-authored with peers. If this is a problem, to what extent can it be mitigated by letters from the senior co-authors?
Edit: I meant to ask about pure rather than applied mathematics.

Is this pure math or applied?

It also matters a lot whether it's a single senior co-author, or whether you have multiple collaborations with different senior co-authors.  The former is a little dangerous, but the latter situation is more neutral or maybe even a plus, since several leaders in the field want to collaborate with you.

It can be an issue, but it is doesn't have to be a large one.  If all of your work is joint with senior people, many people will wonder to what extent you contributed to these projects, and to what extent you were just following others.  Particularly at top schools, people want to hire leaders in their field, and certainly people who will be productive without mentors/advisors alongside them.
Who you're collaborating with (the very top people or virtually unknown people, just your grad school/postdoc advisors or people at other institutions, etc) and what the results are also play a role in how this is viewed.
However, this can definitely be addressed in letters, and thoughtful letter writers should address this issue.  Another thing that is helpful is if you go forth and talk to many people about math (at conferences etc) so that at many places where you are applying someone will be able to address how well you "know your stuff."


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Conducting research at my alma mater
I'm thinking about conducting a research at a specific division of the university from which I received my PhD. I had a negative experience while I was there. And I keep hearing that many other students there are going through horrific experiences of abuse. I'd like to conduct a study case and perhaps better understand what's going on there. I know many other institutions have similar problems, but, as I said, I'd like to do a case study and then perhaps go from there to researching other institutions.The problem is that I don't work there, I'm just part of their alumni. I work at a different university. So, basically, this would be an independent study. My question is, given that this is not a dissertation proposal, can I simply complete the IRB form as an independent researcher? Or do I have to write a whole proposal? I know each university is different, but can someone give me an idea of how this works? I'm new to this idea. Thank you.

Why would you want to do that if you're already at another university? And why would your old university want to make its facilities available to someone unrelated at no cost?

Because I had a negative experience while I was pursuing my PhD. And I keep hearing that many other students there are going through horrific experiences of abuse. I'd like to conduct a study case and perhaps better understand what's going on there. I know many other institutions have similar problems, but, as I said, I'd like to do a case study and then perhaps go from there to researching other institutions.

You should probably integrate quite a lot of what you say in comments here into the question itself. That information is quite essential to any answer.

Thank you for your suggestion, Buffy. Makes sense.

Since the other university is actually the subject of your study, then I think that the IRB of your current university is the better place to judge it. It avoids a conflict of interest within the other university.
Your former colleague at the other university probably shouldn't be a co-researcher, but could be integrated into the study in another way; say as a source of information. This lets them, also, avoid a conflict.
Proposing it to the Dean at that university may also be problematic. Your "want to help them fix the problem" will very possibly not be well received. You might get quite a lot of blowback.
If they recognize the problem on their own and come to you as a consultant, then it is a different story. Otherwise you will come across as an unwelcome outsider and a disgruntled alum.
I won't recommend against your study, but I think that you should keep it as independent of the other university's administration as possible.

Yes, I've done a lot of thinking and I do agree that the dean might not be very pleased to hear what I'd like to say. Thank you so much!

Some universities offer their alumni access to resources (and perhaps their old affiliated email address). If your university offers this to you, you can certainly take them up on it.
You are asking for more than just access to resources, you are asking for IRB approval (presumably) to conduct a study involving people/animals. This would involve the university's legal department, and some other researchers reading through your plan. Even if you agree to pay for the experiments out of pocket (I'm going ahead and assuming you're not asking IRB approval to dissect rats, because if that's what you're planning I hope you understand that the university won't endorse it), you are asking for the university's legal endorsement of your research activity, which is not be something they'd be willing to extend to someone not officially affiliated with them.
So the short answer is - the university is not likely at all to endorse your IRB (unless it operates in a vastly different way from most places I know).
If you have a good idea which you want to push forward, why not seek employment/studies in a university? Seems like you're ready to conduct research, seems like it might be easier, no?

Yes, I still have an email address that links me to it as a member of their alumni. One current professor working there has talked to me about feeling that "enough is enough", given that apparently what I experienced there was not unique. They keep seeing other students going through similarly negative situations. I would be requiring no funding. In fact, I'd like to propose this study to the dean, but I wonder if they'd take my request as something really odd. I want to help them fix the problem.

But that's something different: You state that you want to do research there. That is, as stated, not in their interest, and they're going to say no. Wanting to help them change (assuming they want to change) is not a research project, but a concrete work item for which they might want to hire someone -- but it's not research.

I still think it is research if I am able to conduct a case study and then provide them (and the academy) with the findings -- particularly if my co-researcher is the professor who has contacted me about the issue. I'm thinking about proposing this partnership to them. Thoughts?

You might want to update this answer in light of all the other info that emerged in comments here. There are important points made that weren't in the original question.


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Talking about the topics I have independently studied in my statement of purpose
I'm applying to PhD programs in physics. However, there are no good research opportunities at my school. I have produced no original results that I can talk about so far, and I'm worried that I will be competing with candidates who have several publications, original results, and so forth. However, I independently studied some subjects in depth. For instance, condensed matter theory topics, such as topological order, the quantum hall effect, the renormalization group technique which, I think, are normally studied at graduate not undergraduate level. Is it appropriate to elaborate in my statement of purpose at length about the topics that I have studied and the calculations that I have done even if these are not original results of mine? Otherwise, I will not have much to say about my academic experience.

What you want to do above all is to make your SoP about the future, not the past. Find a way to include your self study in your CV, say in a special section. Especially if you can say something brief but credible about it: online courses, work of authors x, y, z, correspondence with ....
Then, if you have some backup from the CV, and I don't think it needs to be a lot, then you can say in the SoP how that prior study supports your future plans.
Your admission to the program won't be entirely about your past. A large part of the considerations will be about people's predictions about your future and how successful you are likely to be. So try, as much as possible in the SoP to make that case, not your past accomplishments.
Try to balance it a bit between CV and SoP so that each covers what it is intended to cover and makes your strongest case overall.

Thanks. My personal background is very unusual I think, because my undergraduate degree is in medicine. I have not taken undergrad courses in physics or math. I studied physics by myself which enabled me to obtain good grades ``A" in the graduate courses I have taken latter. Should I talk about this in the statement or the CV?


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How to read effectively a research paper?
I am a student and I have been assigned to read a research papaer in the robotics field, understand it, elaborate it and write an essay about it. I have never done something similar, so I am a little bit lost.
How should I read a research paper in order to do this? Is there a particular way of reading a paper or I just start from the top and follow the order of the pages? And is there an effective way to elaborate it?
Thanks in advance.

This already has answers: https://academia.stackexchange.com/q/139080/75368

Read it from top to bottom, try to understand everything in it (that is, do the math on your own and check that you arrive at the same results), and try to write the essay without looking much at the paper.
At my department, we offer a course like this and the most common reason for bad grades are students who just copy-paste selected paragraphs from the paper.

There really is no particular "how to" for this. Read it the way you read anything technical that's new to you - a textbook or a conference presentation or a homework assignment.
Read the abstract. Skim the paper. Get a sense of the authors goals and achievements. Read again quickly. Think about how it connects to things you know well, things you've just heard about.
At some point start reading more closely - paragraph by paragraph, maybe line by line. Puzzle out or look up ideas referred to that you don't understand. Ask people for help.
You could keep a journal or running list of ideas for your essay. Check with your instructor about what is expected in that essay. What does "elaborate" mean? Should you stick to explaining what the paper says, or can your essay include the process of what you did to reach that understanding?

Thanks for your answer. I am sorry maybe I used the word elaborate inappropiately. What I meant is that I have to understand well the paper and then write an essay about it.


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I have done my PhD research without learning the numerical method details. How can I defend successfully?
I used a commercial software LS Dyna in my PhD research. My mechanical engineering PhD research was completely modeling based, no experimental. I have three journal papers, which are in surface engineering journals and not computational modeling journals.
I don't know all details about the software/numerical method I am using. I am not comfortable in teaching or explaining someone how the software actually does the calculations. I always used the software as a tool and thought that a superficial knowledge about the software would be adequate. That's the reason I focused more on research rather than taking courses to fill the knowledge gaps.
Now, I am about to defend and I am feeling that I will fail as the committee might ask me mathematical questions and I will not know how to answer. I am screwed.
I am doing my PhD in top 30 universities in the world. I did not have to take coursework during my PhD. I don't know what will I do if that's the reason I fail my PhD defense. I am freaking out. Sorry for the rant. How should I tackle this problem?

You should have had this discussion about understanding, or not, the numerical methods with your advisor long ago...

@SolarMike I had. She said it's fine to not know the inner workings of the software completely as ours is an applied field and we are using it as a tool. She said that, to do research one only needs the ability to use it correctly and mathematical development capabilities is not necessary. She said that can be developed later  She also said that I have done a good job in my PhD. Now I regret taking her advice.

@Jaggy : You have delivered 3 Journal papers. Now Your advisor will make sure you get the degree. Don't think too much and prepare only what you have done in research and not what you don't know.

That  down vote was mine. this is not really a question.

@RajeshDachiraju Thank you for your comment. I understand the downvote.

Related: https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/140410/how-to-overcome-the-feeling-that-i-dont-know-many-things-about-my-research-tool

Your advisor is giving you good advice. She presumably knows what is required here and will come to your aid if any issue arises. An advisor supporting a candidate in a defense happens in some situations. And the advisor probably knows more about all of your work than any other committee member.
But if you are using a standard tool in a standard way then it is unlikely that the tool has affected your results. Hopefully you can refer to other, published, studies that use the tool or even marketing material that point to its verification.
Your field isn't the development of such tools, but their use. Had it been tool development for ME then you'd have a problem. Your undergraduate education probably gives you a general basis for the underlying math/physics/dynamics/whatever.
Relax.

Note that my experience is in situations in which the advisor is either a committee member or sits as an advocate. I recognize that there are other traditions in which the committee is independent. But even then, you are unlikely to be strongly challenged for not having details of the tool at hand, beyond general ME principles of analysis.

I hope that I pass my defense. In my university, the committee is independent but the advisor has a strong role to play with the outcome of a defense. I am curious, what would be best way to say I don't know something incase a committee member asks me a difficult question?

Honesty usually works best. Trying to fake it is usually obvious. But falling back on principles is probably enough. But, you can say that the tool, for example is "standard" stuff. Like anything else, a defense need not be perfect in every detail to be successful.

+1 being able to refer to studies that show this tool is reliable


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Addressing "desirable" criteria that I do not meet in a job application
I'm applying for a permanent lectureship at a UK university. The candidate brief has a list of essential and desirable criteria. I meet all of the essential criteria, but not the desirable criteria. The application form however, requires some sort of response to each of these criteria (the text boxes are mandatory and the form cannot be submitted without filling them in).
What should I write when asked for evidence I satisfy some criteria that I do not?
Example criteria:
Evidence of working with industrial partners
Evidence of conducting outreach activity

How many don't you really have an answer for?

If you don't have anything relevant to write, and the electronic form is just not letting you submit with them empty, a simple dash - is a reasonable way to say you have intentionally left a field blank. You can also generally write N/A meaning "not applicable", though in this context perhaps that might be interpreted as meaning you don't meet that criterion, rather than just that you don't have evidence of meeting it.

This sounds like bad user interface design, but I totally understand why it could be really stressful.
If I were personally faced with this hurdle, I would be honest if I didn't meet a particular experience or competency, and say "I haven't had the opportunity yet, but would relish the chance to apply my research to an industrial context such as saving energy by predicting faults using my algorithm".
Perhaps it might be possible to put a nice spin on it and maybe show why you COULD do that thing, e.g. "No official outreach activity from academia, but I gave a presentation to a school class about my research into xyz (or wrote a blog post, contributed to an open source project, ...), demonstrating the skills to carry out outreach."

And, don't stress about not meeting a few criteria all that much - they are desired not required.

@JonCuster - good point, and it also doesn't mean the OP should give up. If they don't meet 3 reqs, maybe the next-best person fails to meet 4.

I agree with positive spin.  Another way you might consider it is by writing a thoughtful statement about how you might approach this in the future.  E.g. "I haven't had this opportunity yet, but I'm eager to try ... "

Speaking from a relatively "fresh" Lecturer position in the UK here, so have gone through a similar application process (numerous times) about 2.5-3 years ago.
It is almost expected that some (most?) of the applicants will not satisfy some of the desirable criteria (as opposed to the essential ones). After all, the positions are often advertised jointly at the Lecturer / Senior Lecturer level, and while it is quite possible that the applicants at the Senior Lecturer level will have some experience with obtaining external funding, this is less likely for straight-out-of-postdoc applicants for Lecturer posts.
However, scoring the questions asked on the application form is used by the interview panel to determine the shortlist. The scores are recorded by the HR (to be available in case of any future disputes or enquiries about the hiring process). Therefore I would strongly suggest not leaving those questions blank. The panel will try and make sure their scoring reflects their actual opinion of the applicants, but addressing every question in some way will make this much easier on them.
So, try and see how the question is relevant to the position you are applying for, and address this as well as you can.

Experience in obtaining external funding.
A good answer for somebody with no experience would be to talk about UK funding bodies for your relevant discipline, to show that while you haven't obtained grant money yet, you know how to go about it.

Evidence of working with industrial partners.
I would say the key here is the opposing goals and requirements of research vs industry. So describing a strongly application-oriented project could be a good fit. Lacking anything like that, maybe describing any interdisciplinary work might be a bit of a stretch but somewhat fitting if you focus specifically on how you addressed the contrary requirements / communication gap.

Evidence of conducting outreach activity.
There is a strong push in the UK that researcher should be disseminated outside of individual "research bubbles". So anything related to presenting your work outside of your direct research community would fit here. It does not have to be as involved as "Robot programming workshops at the local school" - blog posts or open source projects could both work here if your answer focused on the aspects of those activities they are asking you about.

Of course, providing such answers to the questions about desirable criteria won't put you ahead if your answers about essential criteria do not clearly show you are a good fit. But if they are, investing some effort into thinking about what skills the desirable criteria are supposed to check for and evidencing those skills should only look good and help your application.

Having sat on the other side of the table I think that this is good: especially the para starting "However". To put it slightly cynically, you must make it as easy as possible for the subject experts who want to appoint you to argue round the HR folks who are ticking boxes.

I've never done in academia, but it's a pretty common thing in the field I'm in.  An advertised job description will list (say) 10 essential criteria and 5 nice-to-haves.
If I come close, it won't stop me from applying (hey, if you are a perfect match for their specs, there won't be much opportunity for personal growth).
If, for example, I meet 9 of the ten essential criteria, I'll point out how I'm such a great fit, never addressing the one I miss.  I try not to make what I have and don't have very obvious (mixing up the order, or addressing the list in a non-uniform manner).  I work on the assumption that the reader probably won't notice the one I'm missing.
When you get into the nice-to-haves, it's highly unlikely any of the candidates they are evaluating meet every criteria.  If I do meet spec, I'll point that out.
Otherwise, I'll generally look at the list and try to figure out where I might come close, or where there might be an overlap between my skill set and something that they might want that's close to what they are talking about: "While I've never done puffin farming, I did work with penguins for two years".
What you want to do is get close enough to the specs to advance to the next step without resorting to any falsehoods.
That they have textboxes for each criteria seems a bit rude to me (ok, maybe not rude, but...).  I'd leave the missing "desirable" ones blank or mostly blank (perhaps with a note: "See my cover letter").  If there's a note anywhere with something like "if you need more space, please include an attachment", I'd just put "See Attachment" in each space and then create a hand-wavy attachment.

If you don't meet these requirements, it is best just to be up-front about that.  Those items then become an opportunity for you to demonstrate that you are candid, direct, and a straight-shooter.  Just be clear and succinct --- e.g.: "I have not previously undertaken work with industrial partners".

Since they are desired I would explain a reason why something was not possible if there is any (i.e. outreach was not encouraged by my former employer) and then explain how you would approach such a point in the future: e.g. making sure the group webpage is up to date, starting a twitter account etc. Same for industry: no opportunity was up yet, but e.g. you plan to reach out to company X because they just published something similar to what you are doing or e.g. you plan to be part of a conference where industry is an essential part of to strengthen connections etc.
Of course, if you do this for 10 desired criteria this might not sound credible. For those points that you feel you do not want to address I would go with Felix U's answer to demonstrate that you are capable to to this.

I'd advise against explaining why you didn't have the opportunity to do something.  It comes of as whiney to me.

Interesting aspect, would you see this in all situations or just particular ones? For me an explanation like e.g. "my employer discouraged publications" or "my University did not agree to collaborations" would not be whiney but a simple fact and something I could not change. Something like: "I did not have the time because I was busy" would for me actually also come across as whiney and for such cases I do agree with you.

All situations.  Don't offer excuses before asked for them.  It sounds weak.  If someone wanted pubs enough, they would have found a way to get them.  If you don't buy that, then there's the issue that it serves to highlight a weakness that might have gone unnoticed.


text:
How many hours per day do I need to work to become a very good PhD student?
I'm curious about how many hours excellent PhD students work per day, especially in science.
Are there any theoretical or empirical studies on the relationship between number of hours worked and success in a science PhD?

Three to nine hours.

Might I suggest the following wording: Are there any theoretical or empirical studies on the amount of work successful PhD students put into their studies and if this is different from less successful students?

All of them? :-)

Academia doesn’t really accept ‘hours worked’ as a currency, but it does reward availability, visibility, and effort. You want to be known, have interesting conversations with other professors and students, and do good work. You spend the time it takes, which for some is 6 hours/day and others 15.  Sometimes it’s 6 on Tuesday and 15 on Wednesday. Let it work itself out naturally.

if you are overthinking it, and spend a lot of time, PhD is not for you

Uri Alon has a lot to say on this subject. See from 6:00 onwards in this video, the whole of this video, and the first 2 or 3 minutes of this video (they are all from one talk broken into separate videos).
The way he once described it to me is this: According to the parento principle, you get 80% of the benefit for the the first 20% of the effort. But productivity doesn't just keep increasing if you work more.  If you do 0 work, you will fail. If you work 100% of the time you will also fail, because you will die. Thus there must be a curve with a peak in between 0% and 100%. Because its a peak there will be two x values (time spent) that give each y value (productivity): working slightly less that the optimal time will give you the same amount of productivity as being slightly to the right.
Thus it is always better to be slightly to the left of the peak as you get the same productivity with less effort. Where that peak is will be different for different people, and you will have to find your own peak, but many people stop working harder when they realize that putting more effort in is making things worst rather than better, and thus are on the right of the curve.
The other reason for being on the left is that if you are on the left of the curve, you wll have to reserves to give a little extra for a short term boost when its needed.
I don't know where your peak is, but for many people its probably at 40 hours or less a week. Remember this is actually time doing your work, not just being present in the office.  Just make sure you are working for those hours you think you are working, and you are taking proper time off in the hours you are not.


text:
Criteria for an external examiner for PhD viva?
My supervisor has asked me to compile a list (in order of preference) of potential examiners for my viva.
Subject area
How close to my own subject area should I look?
My thoughts so far are that I would like to be examined by someone who has done work that is as close as possible to the topic of my thesis. It's true that someone in a neighbouring field will probably see the flaws in  my work more keenly that another might do, and will certainly have no trouble calling me out if I have missed key literature. I do think the thesis is basically sound, and hopefully will pass the critique of such an examiner, and the corrections will be maximally useful.
Someone who's specialism is further away seems likely to ask broader questions. I hope I could answer them adequately, but I'd be less confident of it. It would be frustrating to get lost in aspects that where not really central to the work. I also wonder if the corrections would be somewhat less useful.
Academic esteem
Is there a good reason to want an examiner with high academic prestige? Clearly they need to have enough recent publications that I am clear on what field they work in, but beyond that, does it matter?
Distance
Normally this would be less of an issue, but as there is currently a pandemic, I intend to limit myself to people based in the same country as me. It would be preferable to avoid an examination over video link, even if that was possible. I would rather meet these examiners in person. (I saw this question, but the pandemic changes things rather)
Anything else
Clearly I cannot ask anyone I've co-authored the thesis material with (Or maybe I can, this question seems to think it's sometimes possible, but that seems weird).
Is there anything else that should be considered?
What is the most important factor here?

Why aren't you asking your supervisor this?

My thoughts so far are that I would like to be examined by someone who has done work that is as close as possible to the topic of my thesis. - Uh, yes?  This is the most important thing I think.  You were only asked for a list---why not make a list and see who your supervisor thinks is best.

What country are you in?  In Canada, for example, universities can have pretty strict rules (counter-productive in my opinion) on who is allowed to be an external examiner.

@Kimball I'm in the UK. The rules for my institution seem pretty relaxed, the external needs to hold the qualification level they are examining (PhD), and they cannot have been employed by the university in the last 5 years. Then there is a bunch of soft qualifications along the lines of "appropriate expertise".

@Kimball Apologies, I should have been clearer, my supervisor has asked for a list in order of preference.

@mmeent I suspect that the answer to this question will have relevance to many people besides me. Also, while I will be glad to have my supervisor's advice, and will of course ask it, I'm interested in what other people would have to say on this topic.

Added UK tag as this is probably mostly relevant there.

It will obviously depend on your subject and location. If you can, go for an old-fashioned British gentleman.

I think this question is somewhat opinion-based, and different people will weight different factors differently. Some things to think about:

Personality. Is the examiner someone who will take a broad-brush view of the thesis, or go through it line by line? Are they going to focus on the science, or take issue with your punctuation choices? Some people are notorious for insisting on a large volume of relatively insignificant corrections.
Reputation. Assuming the viva goes well, your external examiner may be someone you wish to use as a referee in job/fellowship/etc applications. Clearly, there may be benefits to having a 'big name' who is willing to advocate on your behalf.
Availability. Of course, you want someone who will spend time reading and thinking about your work, and who is available to do the viva on a reasonable timescale. This may be a reason to avoid the 'biggest names'.
Subject matter. You may be able to guess (based on their past work/interests) which aspects of your thesis a potential examiner is likely to focus on. If you wish to steer the viva towards (or away from!) particular topics, you should choose the examiner accordingly.
Known quantities. In the UK system, the external examiner wields considerable power: if they want to make your life difficult, they can make it really difficult. With this in mind, it's risky to pick someone who is completely outside your/your supervisor's professional network - you have no idea how they will approach the task. If you can, talk to other recently-viva-ed PhD students in your department - who did they have, and how did they find the experience?

I hadn't considered that they might act as a referee. Also, I see what you mean about availability.

@Clumsycat Of course, their picture of you will be very incomplete, so you will have to consider whether they are, overall, a good choice for a reference. However, for many PhD students the external examiner will be the only plausible referee who is neither involved in their supervision, nor from their home institution(s).

I don't know what things are like at your institution, but here, all viva's are currently over video link whether you like it or not.
Your external should be close enough to your field that they will have a real appreciation of what you are doing, but they don't have to be doing exactly the same thing. Its almost certainly impossible to find someone that will understand everything in your thesis, but then thats part of the test of a good thesis - a skill examiner in an adjacent field shuold be able to understand it without being exactly their specialism. Remember that there will also be an internal examiner that can cover any knowledge gaps in the external.
One reason for choosing a high prestidge examiner is that never again in your career will one person pay so much attention to your work. Its an amazing oppotunity to get close and detailed feedback on your work from an top academic. Its also an oppotunity for you make yourself known to them.

I would usually expect the external examiner to have far more specialist knowledge than the internal one.

Usually, yes, but often its just not possible to cover all the knoweldge in one person.


text:
What can I do when my coauthors submit a paper which uses our in-progress coauthored work?
Background:
My coauthors and I have been writing a paper together for quite some time. The project has not been the main focus of anyone in the group for the longest time, so it has been going very slow, but it is quite thorough with a lot of results and a lot of writing. The project was almost concluded a long time ago, with a draft that documents all the findings, but has been awaiting a coordinated effort to prepare the final draft and submit it for review. I am the first author of the paper, most of the methodology and writing is my contribution, and also a major chunk of the research design and conceptualization. Admittedly, I am also the main reason the nearly ready draft is still not completely ready for submission. That being said, the others did not take initiative to finish the job either.
I now noticed that some of my coauthors have submitted a draft for review, and also posted a preprint on arxiv, which uses some of the methodology that I actually came up with. It is nothing super fancy, but it was my design and it was discussed thoroughly and over a long period in our meetings and we did the same analysis (on a different data) for our project. They have also used a code that was developed by one of them for our project. I also suspect that in one part the data we collected is used based on the description in their preprint, although since they haven't released their data, I can't be sure about that, but I can claim that at best they have replicated the same data collection and analysis for that.
The problem:
The issue is that there is no mention of our project or me in their draft. I knew they are working on this topic, but I was never informed of the fact that they are using some of the same analyses. Keep in mind that our project far precedes the project they have submitted the paper on, and frankly, if my coauthors had the time to complete that project, I would expect them to at least get their tasks for our project done, some of which are almost identical to what they did for their paper, apart from the data used.
Question:
What can I or should I do in this situation? To be fair, I can't block them from publishing their work and ask them to wait because just I'm busy with my other commitments. Meanwhile, this is my work and the work they did for this project for which I am the lead author, and I think it is reasonable if I expect to be given credit for it. So, I would expect that they would either wait until our preprint is posted on arXiv so they can cite it, or just not use the same methodology. But what can I do right now about it?
Two options I could think of:
Besides just giving up and taking my chances with just moving forward and submitting our own paper as if the other paper hasn't happened and hoping the reviewers won't notice the connection and others in the field will cite my paper for the methodology instead of the other one (which seems unlikely), I could think of the two options below with the help of the comments. I would appreciate feedback and comments on them.

Ask my coauthors to not submit their revisions if they receive it, until we submit our paper on arXiv, then add a citation to our paper in their revised version. This seems reasonable to me, since in fact right now I have done my part of the remaining tasks and am waiting on them to finish their part, and after that with a proof reading and minor cleanups, we'll be ready for posting a preprint on arXiv. The issue with this, is that I'm not sure how to handle this conflict-free. Because of the power imbalance that I'll explain in "keep in mind", any tension is more likely to put me at a worse position. They have a strategic advantage, unless I can somehow find support from somewhere that would reduce the power imbalance.
Ask them to add me on their paper as a coauthor. There are multiple problems with this though which I explain in the comments. To repeat the main ones here, is first, I really don't want my name on that paper for both moral and career concerns, and second, even if I agree, a paper on which I'm a middle author is going to be cited for the methodology I developed for a paper on which I'm the lead author, which sounds very unfair to me.

Keep in mind:
I don't actually want to hurt my coauthors. They are also students like me, and I understand we all need the publications. I also still have work to do with them, a little work until we submit the draft for review, and after that probably a lot more for revisions. So, I don't want to increase tensions and create conflicts right now, especially since I'm very busy with my main PhD work and already have almost no time for this project.
I know the journal they submitted their paper for (not 100% sure, but at least 90% sure), and in principle I can contact the journal and let them know about this, but that seems like a bad idea to me in quite a few ways.
On the other hand, there is a terrifying power imbalance involved here: They have an experienced highly cited and well-published professor on their paper, while our paper only has a young (very successful) professor that is on the paper on a collaborative basis, so I, a simple PhD student, am basically the project leader, and have almost no support. My advisor is not involved in the project, in fact no one from my institution is, and I don't see why the professor who's our coauthor would have any incentive to get involved in this conflict.

The situation when two people write a paper together is such that each only has to do 90% of the work. Adding more collaborators usually only increases the fraction for each by a few percent. It's not your question. But it's important to be sure you really want to be in a collaboration before you start. And treat it as "businesslike" rather than just friends having fun.

@Dan I understand that NOW, but I was a very inexperienced 1st year grad student when I started this project and didn’t have much selection criteria other than “whoever wants to join”. And soon it became too late, and stopping the collaboration would hurt me the most.

Could you try talking to them? Is there a chance they might agree to add your name to the paper they submitted?

You could talk to them or you could largely give up a project and learn a valuable life lesson that way. Talk your expectations before you start anything together, from marriage to research proposals - the more on the line, the more thorough you should be. If your little collaboration ends up being uncooperative, well, you have learned the hard way. You still could establish primacy of your research, but that would mean entering a conflict. Another life lesson: always consider if you are willing to bite back.

Add an original though (best if relating to recent research) and publish under your name as an updated piece. You will likely get more attention.

@Stef I actually don't want that, given the other coauthors they have (this is a long story, but they have coauthors that based on my past observations engage in questionable practices, which are at best border-line research misconduct, and I don't want to have a coauthored paper with those). On top of that, I won't be the first author, and the methodology I introduced in a project I lead will be cited in a paper where I'll be a middle author. Also, I even doubt that'd be possible since they've already submitted their paper for review, and it's hard to argue I joined for revisions.

@Lodinn Giving up is an enormous sunk cost. The paper we have is actually a good paper, and despite its simplicity, it's on a popular, but vastly understudied, topic. It's a large scale project and we have a sound paper that has a high potential of becoming highly cited. Over a long period of time, I've spent hundreds of hours on this paper, plus all the trouble of leading a project alone with no help of a supervisor as a young graduate student, i.e. there's also an enhance emotional cost.

@AJKOER Sorry, I'm a bit confused about what you mean. Could you please elaborate?

So, if you do not want to be a co-author, what is it that you want? It does not sound like the methodology on its own is enough for a separate publication.

Well, I have a few less-than-ideal experiences where months of work just entirely fizzled because everyone moved on, no one bothered to actually publish or whatever. In your situation (and in general, really), either you are ready to spend time and effort defending your contributions or bear the cost of losing them to dubious ethics. It is a whole lot easier if you publish fast - unless your work was basically stolen and you can prove it, wait long enough and someone gets all the credit and you get nothing.

@Louic I just want to be cited by the other paper. They started their project, after we already had our first and even second draft, and the main authors of that paper are my coauthors whose tasks are what our paper is waiting for. So, I expect them to finish our paper first, then submit their other paper and cite ours.

Finish an acceptable version of your paper as soon as possible and send it to arXiv. If it appears within a few days/weeks of the other paper it may be considered simultaneous. That version can be imperfect, you can improve it later, just make sure there are no major flaws.
Cite the other paper while explaining the relation to your paper. Something like: "Our methodology has potential applications to X and Y, for example it was already used in the other paper to do Z."
Keep in mind that your coauthors have to approve the text before it is sent to arXiv.
As a diplomatic gesture, you might consider apologizing to your coauthors for the delay in writing your paper.
Ask the authors of the other paper to cite your paper in a future version. Now that your paper is on arXiv, they have no excuse not to do it.


text:
(When) Is it appropriate to give a "thank you" gifts to a professor who is not your advisor or teacher?
As a grad student (or postdoc), past taking classes, is it ok to get a thank you gift for a professor who :

has helped you with something (e.g. introduced you to someone for a collaboration or wrote you a recommendation letter for an application, or offered life-saving help with revisions for a paper without becoming a co-author)
is not directly involved in any official evaluation (i.e. is not your advisor, is not on your committee, and you do not and will not have any classes with them)

But

is in the same institution (and your "neighboring" department, e.g. say Physics and Math).
might, in principle, still collaborate with you on a project in the future (but nothing is planned or discussed and there is no reason to believe such a collaboration is particularly likely to happen)
might still recommend you for other opportunities (e.g. internships, collaborations, or fellowships) in the future
you might still be a TA for in the future

Which of the above (if any) would be a reason for such a thank you gift NOT to be ok.
I am not asking what is in agreement with the rules and policies of specific institutions, but rather:

What is the right, ethical, and fair thing to do in general, in such settings?
What is the etiquette (in the US, or wherever you know the etiquette for)?

When that gift is an EV Jaguar, and that professor is me. ;)

is not directly involved in any official evaluation

This is important - not good to give gifts that could appear in any sense to be a bribe or request for special treatment. It's extremely awkward for the person receiving.

What is the right, ethical, and fair thing to do in general, in such settings?

In the US, there is no ethical obligation to give gifts. People who help you out likely feel it is part of both their job and broader role in academia to help the next generation of academics. For help with a paper that is short of authorship, you could ask them if they are okay with you including them in the Acknowledgements section.

What is the etiquette (in the US)?

I'd say the etiquette is generally against gift giving to superiors in the US, at least in the Midwest where I am. Gifts may come from an advisor to a student to celebrate events, like a PhD student's graduation.
The best thank you gifts are the things that don't really have a monetary value: a note or card with some words that express your appreciation goes further than any material gift would, and can feel a lot more special than an email. I keep a stack of any such cards I've received (though these have always been from people who I spent months or years working with, not for brief help).
If you must give a gift, think things like small treats (candy, cookies, donuts, that sort of thing). I'd say no more than $10 worth, and if relevant I'd give it as a gift to the professor and their lab. But, for the examples you gave, I'd stick to just a note. For people who write you rec letters, it's nice to follow up later with your plans (e.g., a position you've accepted).
Giving something more or any gift that seems to be a hardship to you will likely feel very awkward to the recipient. If you're unsure, it's fine to give nothing but a "thank you".

One of my favorite "gifts" I received (as a grad student, not a faculty member) was a handcrafted card from an undergrad that volunteered for me that I then helped get other paid research positions. Cards are also nice because they don't take up space and add additional clutter to my life. I also once received a gift card as a TA, but even though the student was from a different department and only auditing the course (no grade involved), I still felt uncomfortable with the monetary aspect. The handwritten note that came with it was lovely, though, and meant far more to me than the gift card.

@anjama Yeah, I'd stay away from gift cards given to a superior: too much like cash given for a task that isn't meant to be paid for, which can feel uncomfortable or even rude. As a thank-you from professor to a TA at end of semester is fine, though, or for a departing undergrad lab worker. I've had students from other countries bring back a small treat from home when they visit, that can be an appreciated cultural exchange.

The university likely has a policy that would require the professor to turn down a gift worth more than a very small value, probably $10. And if it's actually money or a money equivalent like a gift card, they may be prohibited from accepting it no matter how small the value.

In Germany, any gift over 25€ (currently around 27$) in a professional setting given to an employee (which a university professor falls under) is considered inappropriate and there are even laws in place that say so. And even gifts under 25€ should be reported to a supervisor (although this is rarely practiced). The reasoning behind this is to prevent bribery and corruption.
Even though you mean well, giving a gift to a superior always has a sour note, as others who do not know everything who might observe you giving a gift might think the professor helped you in some (not completely fair and legal) way. And since this is not something that students regularly do, there is also the chance the gift-receiver might even get the idea that the gift is meant to convey some (unwanted or unintended) romantic undertone.
In the end, it is the job of a professor to teach and support students. Tell them that you really appreciated their help--often a good and sincere compliment will have more effect on a person than a small gift. And if you really feel like you need to give them something physical, a card is probably the best way to go.

In the UK this would be more or less similar to advice for the US. A card or note would be very much appreciated. Doubly so if you take the time to pick out a particularly nice or relevant card. This would all that is ever necessary, and is probably going beyond what is expected
Gifts are sometimes given from juniors to superiors as long as there is no possibly of it being interpreted as a bribe (this would usually be the case for a grad student, as such students are only ever really assessed by their internal examiner). It is not unheard of, but by no means required, to give your supervisor a gift on leaving, most commonly a bottle of liquor, or small item from your home culture (if you are not from the same country). But that is for a relationship that will have lasted years.
For other situations, if you felt a card wasn't enough, I'd stick to something small, probably consumable, with a value of less than, say £10. Cookies or pastry from a nice patisserie.  Perhaps a bottle of wine.
If your professional circle is  sociable enough your might offer to buy them a pint or a coffee the next time you are in a pub or coffee shop at the same time. Buy someone a pint is definitely part of British culture. But make sure it is just one - it is not the done thing for a student to get drunk with faculty these days. And don't be offended if they say no.

@trunk It's still very much part of wider British culture. Could  be that it's no longer such a big part of all academic cultures, although it is part of the culture in my department. Obviously there are caveats. I wouldn't offer a practicing Muslim or Mormon a pint. Buying coffee is at least as popular as beer these days. And I did say "depending on how social sociable the circle is". Never the less, as noted below 'I owe you a pint is such a standard expression, it may not even mean a post will be bought,  but is similar to 'I owe you one'.

@Trunk If one waits until "the next time you are in a pub or coffee shop at the same time" as this post suggests, that seems to qualify as sufficient secret survey that the professor's personal culture has taken them to a pub or coffee shop. I don't think anyone needs to study further whether they, an adult, actually want to be in that place they are in, and it's a simple and common matter to turn down the request. All that is important is not being offended by that "no", as the gift is more in the offer than the actual pint, which this answer has also already covered.

@Trunk In this case, they're in the pub.

Which of the above (if any) would be a reason for such a thank you gift NOT to be ok

It's inappropriate when the gift is excessive in comparison to the help.  In the UK, "I owe you a pint" is the typical reaction to being helped in some minor way, even if you aren't actually likely to meet them in the pub.  But that gives you an idea of an appropriate price tag for any thank you gift.
A small box of chocolates would be similarly appropriate, or a bunch of flowers, or buy them a coffee.  A larger box of chocolates or a bottle of wine starts to look excessive for minor help, although it might be appropriate for "livesaving help" on a review.  A bottle of really good wine or spirits is almost certainly excessive.
By the way, you may be noticing a trend here.  In the UK, this kind of thank-you present is normally food, drink or flowers.  Even if they don't personally eat/drink/arrange them, the gesture is appreciated, and those things can always be passed on to someone else if they don't like it themselves.  Anything more solid/permanent is a no-no though.  If it's good then it's too expensive to be appropriate, and if it's not good then it's not a worthwhile gift anyway.  Food, drink and flowers fill that gap nicely - not too expensive, not too permanent.

In my experience, a right gift at the right time makes people happy. Also, knowing how to gift properly is a great life skill. This is not restricted to academic environments but to life in general.
Just don't overdo it. Try to put yourself in their shoes: if some acquaintance shows up with a nice card and a box of chocolates, would you be happy? I guess so. If they show up with a dodgy envelope full of money, would you accept it? Most probably, not.
Then of course there are countless nuisances, which are part of the art of living. I used to interchange bottles of wine with my PhD advisors, who both come from cultures which accept alcohol (France and UK). This has always been really nice and enjoyable. But of course I avoided alcohol gifts to practicing Muslims, preferring, for example, fine olive oil. Also, avoid any gift that can be misinterpreted; for example, it is generally a great idea to offer flowers, but be sure they will not be mistaken for an unwanted romantic pass. Choose another kind of plant: a succulent worked great for me in several occasions.
All of this is basic common sense, more than academic etiquette.

It can be considered inappropriate to give a gift. A card with a nicely worded thank you and how they have helped you is gratefully received. Teaching academics can use these sorts of things for promotions and appraisals so you're giving them something useful in return.

As a former part-time lecturer in QUT's MBA School, my view on this is that it is very rarely appropriate.  If you did decide to give a gift, it should be something appropriate to the circumstance - like a subscription to a journal that the person is likely to be interested in.

according to me the best time to give a thank you gift to your teacher or adviser is when they are teachings are got helpful to you such a few if you were a coder and you build it some good app that worked well you must thank you professor who told you how to code

i can't because i am on voice control mode only and the voice recognizer is kind of bad

My experience.  Graduate students from China and Korea want to give gifts.  Presumably, it is the custom where they come from.  As noted in other answers, this should be discouraged when they are in the US.  If there is an "orientation" for incoming students, it should tell them that no gifts are expected.
Let me second one of the suggestions already made:  Send them a note thanking them.  That would be more meaningful to them than a box of chocolates, by far.

The main issue is avoiding causing, or causing the appearance of, abuse of authority, or even of engaging in behavior that is not easily distinguished from such. That is, ethics rules are based on avoiding such situations, even if as a result of the rules, people are prohibited from doing something that, in the particular situation, is acceptable; ethics boards don't want to be trying to decide whether special exceptions apply to each case. Clear rules such that everyone knows when they've stepped over the line take precedence over bending over backwards to be narrowly tailored.
Another important principle is the lack of dual roles. If someone is your professor, then they shouldn't also be your dating partner, employer, employee, therapist, family member, etc. (the last one might be allowed in small colleges, but if there's enough professors teaching a course that you can take it from someone unrelated to you, you should).  This principle is somewhat subordinate to the first one, in that the idea is that their interests in one role might provide an incentive to abuse their position in the other role.
So for the example of writing a letter of recommendation, there is the issue of abusing authority. While a LOR may not be an official evaluation, it is an evaluation, and it can be a very important one. It certainly would be unethical to give a LOR solely because of an expectation of payment, or refuse to give one to students who don't pay. Even if LOR are not part of the official duties, it is something they're being asked to do because of their position (and if you don't have any classes with them, why are they writing a LOR?) Introduction to a colleague also is an implicit recommendation, so professors should avoid any situation that could give the impression that they are being motivated by personal gain.
As far as helping with revisions, that's less of an issue. Technically, if you're giving a gift, then effectively you're paying them for their labor, which makes them your employee. Besides the question of whether they might be uncomfortable with this implication (depending on their cultural norms, they might even take offense at it), at some point this would raise ethics issues as a dual-role matter.
If you are going to give a gift, it helps for it to not have much monetary value, especially not much resale value. The less it looks like "payment", the better.

Speaking from an ethics perspective, it would depend heavily on whether the gift would create a conflict of interest, because that's what an ethics panel would use to determine if there had been an ethics violation.
In the case raised here, a conflict of interest would be determined based on two factors. Firstly did the professor have reason to expect a gift in return for their assistance, and secondly on whether the professor was rendering a service that was in conflict with their professional position or which might influence their judgement.
For example, could the gift be determined as payment for services rendered, and could the gift unduly influence a professional decision such as the awarding of grades or access to facilities. Either at this time or in the future.
I personally would not render a violation on someone who gave a relatively generic box of chocolate to a professor at the end of the semester for proof reading a first draft of a paper if the professor had no influence on the actual receipt or grading of that paper, but I would if the gift were a $100 gift certificate because that might effect the judgement of the professor if they were ever in a position to grade something produced by the student at some time in the future.
Check whatever written guidance is provided by your institute under ethics and\or bribery. If you are still in doubt after reading the guidance then consider whether the professor might fell awkward at a personal level receiving a gift.
As a rule of thumb, keep it affordable, keep it generic. Seats at a sold out concert that were really hard to get are a hard pass, convenience store chocolates of flowers are usually acceptable.

"for proof reading a first draft of a paper if the professor had no influence on the actual receipt or grading of that paper" - OP is certainly talking about academic papers, as they refer to co-authorship, not papers written for a course assignment.

@Bryan Krause, Yes, but you'd need to raise that with them specifically as I'm not involved in this particular issue beyond posting an answer on this website. I have no real world connections to it. If you have a problem you may be best served by approaching them or their institution directly. I'm not able to assist with either.

"Firstly did the professor have reason to expect a gift in return for their assistance" Ethics rules aren't based on proving that in a particular case, someone's behavior was affected by a gift, they are based on whether the gift can, or even can be perceived as affecting the behavior. If I were a dean of a school, and I found out that one of the professors had accepted a $100k car in exchange for giving a glowing recommendation, that professor would be fired, regardless of whether they had "expected" the car.

@Acccumulation, I cannot speak for your particular institution, but presumption of wrongdoing based on perception of wrongdoing shouldn't be what an ethics committee is for, that's standards and practices. If you accept federal funding you may also need to verify whether you can operate on a presumptive system at all.


text:
I did not secure a postdoc position this year. When should I start to apply again?
I defended my PhD recently. I don't have a good CV to start with. In 5 years of my PhD, I managed to publish just 2 (first author) decent papers (I.F ~2.5 & 3.1). I applied for several postdoc positions this year, but did not get any positive response from the PIs.
Now, I am going to join my PhD advisor as a postdoc. She offered me a short-term postdoc position (~6 months) with a possibility of extending it to a year starting February next year.
I have couple of manuscripts ready to submit. I am hoping to submit them by mid-January.
I would like some advice regarding when should I start applying for postdoc positions again? 6 months will go by in a flash. I just want to secure a position where I can expand my knowledge and publish more papers.
I will start to apply for tenure track positions after 1.5 years. I am 30 years old now, so, I would be still eligible for positions with 35 years old limit for assistant professor position.

Where do you get the idea that there is an age limit for assistant professors? I think someone fooled you on that one.

@Buffy: A little Google searching turns up a rumor that such a limit exists in India, and also officials saying it isn't true: https://telanganatoday.com/fake-news-being-circulated-on-social-media-ugc

You should also keep in mind the possibility that you don't get a tenure track position and apply to some outside-of-academia positions. The worst that will do is give you an ego boost if you get a job offer at some company.

@puppetsockreinstateMonica yes, I am doing that too. I am open to all options.

Actually, I'd recommend that you start now. And also that you apply for tenure track positions in parallel. There is no reason to wait for either.
Make sure that when any position in your field gets opened, that you know about it. Don't focus your search too narrowly.
And so some things that give you visibility in addition to submitting papers. Attend conferences, as a presenter if possible, or as a workshop participant. But anything that introduces yourself to others in the field.

But my chance of getting a position is similar to what it was 6-7 months back. Only thing changed is that I have a degree now and the submitted paper got accepted. So, my profile is as bad as before. Should I still apply for the positions or send cold mails to professors? I was thinking of waiting till February end and start mailing again once I have got the manuscripts submitted. What do you advise?

Look for announcements. Cold emails are unlikely to give you much success. Apply for any positions that are reasonable. Cold emails from your advisor might be effective, but less likely if direct from you. And, your profile is improving. Keep it up.

One big thing has changed: a lot of other people already got postdocs and are no longer competing with you.

Generally, failing to get a tenure track position by age 30 can seriously hamper your ability to succeed in my field. I don't know if we work in the same general area, but I would be seriously concerned with graduating so late with such a small number of publications.

In many countries/systems, it is more or less impossible to get a PhD by the age of 30.

@Mark How would that work? The typical progression for non-mature age students would be high school by 18, bachelors by 22, then either 5 years for a PhD or 2 years for a masters and 3 years for a PhD, right?

It’s actually quite common to take a year off after high school, and sometimes petiole can take 5 years instead of 4 years to finish undergraduate studies for many different reasons. From what i’ve seen, a masters typically takes 2 years, but you don’t get tome shaved off of your PhD because you have a masters already, so the PhD can take 4-5 years on top of the 2 done for masters. Accounting for that, you could be at the age of 30-32 by the time you finish a PhD.

@D.Gray  4 years undergraduate, 2 years masters puts you at 23, assuming you start college at 18. That gives you 7 years before you are 30. That much more than is actually needed. If you are still doing a PhD when you are 30, you either need to reassess your suitableness for the role you are preparing for, or get a different adviser.

@the_src_dude Sure, if you're on that path of a 4 year undergraduate and 2 year masters, but it's incredibly common for people to take longer, take breaks inbetween etc. The point being is that there is nothing inherently wrong about doing a PhD at an older age. If, however, you are dragging yourself through school, that's a different issue.

This certainly does not apply in my field, where time in industry is viewed very positively (and thank goodness for me, because I won't be finishing my PhD until 30 at least). Can you add more detail about what field you are in, and why your answer holds true?


text:
For articles with more than 7 authors, is it compulsory to shorten it or just suggested?
I have quite some articles with more than 7 authors. I read here that when an article has more than 7 authors you shorten it in the reference list. So for example:

Hampel, H., Y. Shen, D. M. Walsh, P. Aisen, L. M. Shaw, H. Zetterberg,
  J. Q. Trojanowski, andK. Blennow. 2010. Biological markers of amyloid
  β-related mechanisms in alzheimer’s disease. Experimental Neurology,
  223(2):334 – 346. Beta-amyloid and tau protein abnormalities in
  Alzheimer’s disease

becomes:

Hampel, H., Y. Shen, D. M. Walsh, P. Aisen, L. M. Shaw, H. Zetterberg,
  ... K. Blennow. 2010. Biological markers of amyloid
  β-related mechanisms in alzheimer’s disease. Experimental Neurology,
  223(2):334 – 346. Beta-amyloid and tau protein abnormalities in
  Alzheimer’s disease

if I'm correct.
Do I have to shorten every reference with 7+ authors this way? Or is this just a suggestion for if the article has an excessive amount of authors (as here where the citation took up half the page)?
Thanks!

Getting the bibliography formatting right on the first try is not your job (at least not usually in mathematics). Either the journal will have editorial assistants that do it for you at the final stages of the process, or you'll receive specific and concrete guidelines about what to do. In the former case, your job is to give enough information on each reference that the editorial assistants will get it right. (Hint: DOI.) In the second case, sit back and relax until you get told exactly what to do.

This depends entirely on the style sheet you are using. For example, MLA demands "et al." for three or more authors; APA for six or more. The right thing would be to familiarize yourself with the house style of the publication you are targeting.

In addition, if you use a reference manager like BibTex, you can automate this process by using a bibliography style appropriate to the journal.

@ObscureOwl I actually use BibText (in Overleaf) and it didn't automate this for me, therefore I got quite confused. It also didn't change full first names to just the letter. I use APA.

@Luca Then it sounds like you used the wrong bibliography style.

There are multiple LaTeX packages supporting the APA style, which is one of the more anal-retentive bibliography styles, e.g., apacite. Take a look at this TeX.SE search.

Or use latex with pandoc to generate a bibliography using an APA CSL style-file: https://tex.stackexchange.com/questions/69267/citation-style-language-csl

@S.Kolassa-ReinstateMonica I think Luca says that they are USING APA as style, not that they NEED APA --- I think it's just a default, inherited from an example they started from. So it's a matter of checking whatever destination journal/publisher prescribes. I find many book publishers have a styleguide that doesn't go into this depth so you can choose; more technical journals can often tell you exactly what bibtex style and options to set.

NOTE:  I think APA style now suggests initials and names for up to 20 authors, up from 7 in the past:  https://www.scribbr.com/apa-style/apa-seventh-edition-changes/

A small addition to @henning 's answer which I agree 100% with:
sometimes, depending on a particular journal and style guide, it also depends whether the citation is in-text or in the list of references, and even the referenced publication origin. In some cases, the style guide phrasing can be suggestive, and for some – compulsory.
Moreover, different journals have different standards on applying their recommended or compulsory guides in practice.
Take IEEE Transactions as an example.
For in-text references, according to Section IA of IEEE Reference Guide (2018):

NOTE: Use et al. when three or more names are given for a reference cited in the text

For the reference section, according to Section II of the aforementioned guide:

If there are more than six names listed, use the primary author’s
  name followed by et al. For non-IEEE publications, et al. may be used if names are not provided.

With this example, I wanted to demonstrate that the rules can be very different and unexpected; therefore, one must get familiarized by a style guide used by a particular journal, and maybe some recommendations that are specific to only this journal.

Presumably you are going to submit a paper to some journal. It may be that they have their own rules for this, so you should check. And, it may also depend on the field.
There are publications in some sciences in which the list of authors is longer than the article itself. Things done at CERN, for example might have this characteristic.
And whether you use ellipsis as you show in the example, or the first (couple of) authors with "et al." also depends on the field depending on how important the last named author is.


text:
How do I report a ratio?
I want to report a ratio in my thesis. The ratio is 16:84, but I also want tot report which number represents which class. Can I report that like this:

The data was not evenly distributed with a ratio of 16:84 (CN:AD).

Or should I put the CN:AD in square brackets? And is it clear if I report it like this?
UPDATE:
Now reported it as:

The data were unevenly distributed with a ratio CN:AD = 16:84.

Thanks for the suggestions!

Is this a ratio, or an N? That is, does 16 represent 16 data points or 16*X?

Looks fine (as long as the gentle reader knows what CN, AD is all about).

The way you have written it implies that the ratio was not 16:84. You need a comma, or better yet use the word “unevenly”.

@DavidKetcheson thank you! Will apply your suggestion

@BryanKrause it's a ratio. N would be 52,507 data points versus 9,828 data points.

As pointed out by xLeitix, there aren't really any standards on this. Another possibly clearer way to report that ratio is:

The data were not evenly distributed with a ratio CN:AD = 16:84.

I think this is about as standard as it gets...

I don't think there are really any standards for this kind of thing, but what's wrong with writing?

CN and AD were not evenly distributed (ratio 16 to 84).

Your version would work for me as well, but my proposal feels maybe a tiny bit clearer.


text:
Work with a professor from non-PhD-granting university in the US to earn PhD?
I'm new on this website and am not sure how much of higher academia works.
Suppose I wanted to work with a professor in a particular field of mathematics at a research university (not necessarily a PhD-granting university) to possibly write a dissertation in that field. Must that university be a PhD-granting university? If not, how would I go about working in a particular field?
I'm currently working on a master's degree in mathematics. I have found that most of the researchers in the field I would like to pursue are employed at non-PhD-granting universities. Does that mean I won't get the chance to pursue research in the field?

You should state which country or countries you wish to do this in, because I suspect this is something that will vary a lot with the country. For example, in the U.S. one applies to a specific university's graduate department, take classes and such for 1 to 2 years, pass your qualifying exams, then get admitted to candidacy (which might require at this point selecting a supervisor), and begin more advanced work/research leading to a dissertation. It's usually possible to also work with someone at a different college/university, but I'm pretty sure your supervisor has to be at your university.

You can work with them, but you can't likely have them as a phd advisor in their own institutions. But you should be able to have them as a coadvisor. If you have a particular person or people in mind you can try to see if any of their collabrators are in the particular area you are interested in. Maybe their universities grant phd's and those two people are interested in co-advising you.

AFAIK, almost every Ph.D. granting universities requires your supervisor to be employed at that university. The only workaround for your situation is to have your desired professors from other universities as your co-supervisor or co-advisor. Please note that this is something to be decided by your supervisor, not by you. Also, you need to convince a professor from another field to accept your not-related application in the first place.


text:
What should I cut out from my SOP for master's programs?
I have written my Statement of Purpose (SOP) for the graduate programs that were Ph.D. or M.Sc.+Ph.D. (the American doctoral programs), but I am also applying for some only M.Sc. programs. They often require a shorter SOP, and even if they don't explicitly mention a word limit, my presumption is that they find a full 2-page SOP (just below 1200 words) to be too long. I am wondering what are the least important points for an M.Sc. application, so I can cut out those parts from my SOP.
Given the programs I'm applying to, it seems to me that they care a lot about the courses I've done, and not only a few important ones, but almost all relevant coursework. I also know that they don't really expect any research experience, but I thought my research experience is what could make my application stand out in the pool of applicants to those M.Sc. programs (a lot of whom have little to no research experience). There is also a part about my interest in the subject and my long-term plans, where I explain my research interest (since I'm definitely going to do a Ph.D. after my M.Sc. and pursue an academic career). I don't know how necessary it is, but I think they might care about why I wanna do a master's degree at all (this is separate from the part where I write about their program in particular). The rest of it is about my educational background and skills.
Which one of these parts do you think is the least important so I can exclude it?
(I list the paragraphs here: )

My interest + view on the subject + long-term goal
Background from college 1
Background from college 2 (I've
transferred from 1 to 2)
Skills and other important points about
my background
Research experience 1
Research Experience 2
(I've briefly described the project too.. is it necessary to do that
for Master's programs?! )
Short-term plans
Why this particular master's program

This is impossible to answer without seeing your SOP (which you should not post here). I'll give some general advice about what's important and not in an SOP.
Your mileage may vary of course, but on average, SOPs are very poorly edited. For the average student in your position, they could keep all the content and save 30% just by eliminating unnecessary detail. Common offenders:

Stuff that's in the CV.
Pointless stories about their childhood
Lectures about their love of their chosen (sub)-field, or pontifications about how important the subfield is
Complicated verbiage (a good editor can really help you here, but can be hard to find).
Technical detail -- choose one or two specific challenges you had and how you overcame them, don't describe everything you've ever done
Therapy sessions about a traumatic experience they had (unfair professor, etc.) -- SOPs are not the place for this

To your paragraphs:

My interest + view on the subject + long-term goal

Your first paragraph should be an attention getter (bonus points if it's humorous). Make sure you aren't pretentious about your "view on the subject." You should state your research interests -- what you've researched and what you want to do next. If your long-term goal is to be a professor, omit this (everyone would like to be a professor in the same way that every basketball player would like to be in the NBA).

Background from college 1
Background from college 2 (I've transferred from 1 to 2)

Good, focus on challenges, in particular program-relevant challenges (lab work, most difficult/enjoyable class, etc.)

Skills and other important points about my background

Skills should be in your resume. "Important points about my background" sounds a little suspicious, but of course I do not know what you plan to say. If you keep this section, it should be about any major accomplishments during college that do not fit elsewhere (teaching, sports, career, etc.).

Research experience 1
Research Experience 2 (I've briefly described the project too.. is it necessary to do that for Master's programs?! )

The project should be on your CV. Here you should describe what you did, what you learned, challenges/highlights of the project, and how it affects your career trajectory (e.g., interest in doing more, wanting to do something else).

Short-term plans

I assume your short-term plan is to go to the master's program, not sure what you plan to say here. Consider omitting this unless there's something really interesting.

Why this particular master's program

Yes.

About my short-term plan, I explained what I'm going to do from now until the start date of the program I'm applying to. This includes a brief reference to the research project I'm going to work on this summer. Do you think it is unnecessary?

Hard to say, but in general, it might be better to mention it with your other research (if it is related) or just to list it on your CV. Exception would be if it's something awesome you want to draw attention to (e.g., working at NASA).

By way of background, I am an admissions tutor for a competitive MSc and read around 400 personal statements each year. @cag51's answer is great and already says most of what I would offer as advice. Especially, it's worth repeating: avoid biopic fluff about your earlier years. Sorry, but if I have to read 400 of these statements in 2 weeks then I don't care that you enjoyed your first chemistry set.

What I would add to @cag51's answer is that

It might be helpful to think of your personal statement as a piece of evidence of your suitability for the programme.

The key question is how can that that evidence be made more convincing? One important way is to minimise the amount of cheap talk and maximise the content that is specific, verifiable, and credible. Cheap talk is something anybody could write, regardless of whether it is true or not.*
For example, suppose that you are trying to evidence the claim 'I have a long-standing deep interest in the subject matter of the degree'.
A story about how the subject has been your lifelong passion since childhood, however well written, is cheap talk. You could have made the whole story up to try to schmooze your way onto the degree. There's no evidence! On the other hand, if you write about how a couple of specific papers/books you read shaped your thinking then there is verifiable evidence that you have engaged with the topic before. Someone who isn't interested enough to make time to look at the literature couldn't possibly have written about what these papers say.**
Another way to evidence the same point would be to write specifically about interesting things to have come out of your earlier academic experiences. For example, maybe you had a lab internship where an experiment produced some unexpected results. Writing about what you did about this, how you reconciled the results with your expectations, etc. is verifiable evidence that you have been actively and intellectually engaged with the subject matter, whereas writing in general terms about 'how great the internship was' is cheap talk.
Likewise, if you want to argue that 'I am invested in the idea of continuing on to research in the future', how might you provide evidence? Talking vaguely about interesting topics is cheap talk (anyone can say it's interesting to study lipids or the spread of fake news without putting any thought into it). But talking about specific research questions you'd like to answer, methods that might be used, or gaps in the literature you'd like to fill is evidence of individual thought. It would be impossible to do that unless you genuinely spent time thinking about what the interesting open questions are, so it is a credible way to signal that you are serious about research.

*Ironically, my claim to be an admissions tutor is cheap talk.
**You'd be amazed how many people who already have an undergraduate degree in a subject can't even do this in a cogent fashion!

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/


text:
Should I cite a book that I read to prepare for a talk but did not directly use it?
I have used a few books and articles to prepare for a talk, but I only used some of them directly in my slides. The slides also include parts that are made based my knowledge (background knowledge plus what I learned from reading those sources) but are not new information and could be found in those sources.
Should I cite all of those sources in my references slide? If yes, do I need to reference each piece of material on the slide, or just citing the sources at the end would be enough if I didn't use them directly?
NOTE My question is not a duplication this because that question is asking about referencing for presentation in general, but my question is not about referencing the sources I used directly, but those I read to build up my knowledge for the presentation but did not use directly.

@HermanToothrot Definitely not a duplicate. That question is asking about referencing for presentation in general, but my question is not about referencing the sources I used directly, but those I read to build up my knowledge for the presentation but did not use directly. I'm decided on how to reference those used directly and don't have a question about that at this point.

Would you mind explaining where in that question you mentioned the answer is?! I think the difference is very clear!

What is the purpose of your talk?

If you are reporting progress of your work, focus on your work. In that case it is typically not relevant which general resources you used to brush up your understanding of the topic.
If the purpose is at least partially teaching, I'd put them into a "Recommended Reading" slide / part of a slide at the end of the presentation.

Could also be titled “further reading”...