PhD or not? Listen to My Aspirations and Experience

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About Author

Name: SYED KHALIQ SHAH

Nationality: Pakistan 

University: Southeast University

Major: Transportation Engineering

The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Because the brick wall are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough. They’re there to stop the other people.

“It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all in which case, you fail by default”

The aim of this article is just motivation for other MS or PhD scholarship aspirants.

Q1: Tell us about yourself?

Bahram khan.

I am from swat district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan I did my schooling at Abdali School. After that I did my FSC from Government College, Peshawar, then I graduated from Comsats University and got my Master's degree from Bahria University Islamabad.

Q2: PhD aspirations happen when you are doing a master’s degree so share some ups and down moments during your study in the university, within details?

In the last semester of my Bs Electrical Engineering due to some up down in my life I disturbed too much "life is like an ocean. It has up and down”. I challenged myself, I have to top the class in master studies and to do high-class research, as I was with weak muscles during engineering studies, I was neither a good programmer nor I was among in the top three of my class. I was that time has one thing in mind how to sharpen my skills in the field of Engineering, I have started the struggle from zero and for that purpose I have started the study in a research lab from 9 am to 6 pm daily regularly with full passion.(Sometimes I used to go so early in the morning I had to wait for the lab in charge to arrive).

Q3: Tell us something about your research background?

About my research background really I am very thankful to Dr Syed Ali Hassan from NUST IPT lab and Dr Atif Raxa Jafri from Bahria University and all other Teachers from COMSATS Attock and Bahria Islamabad, they have shared different techniques ideas simple is that the way he guided me was remarkable regarding research,  in return for the hard work of my teachers after that hard work, I got best result/GPA and two publication in IEEE during my master studies.

Q4: Tell us your story in your own words about what you did and how you did in getting a scholarship?

During my master's studies I was also in contact with the scholarship network Facebook group every night it was my job to read the comments of the different posts in the scholarship network to train myself to find the way toward the best scholarship opportunity. I started emails to different university professors, I sent emails more than 3000 related to EEE to Korean, Chinese, Japanese, Hong Kong, UK, Taiwan, Italian and many other professors and have given more than 12 interviews through Skype, I also have applied to different university for admission like Italy, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Taiwan, Japan, Turkey and to many other universities but was rejected everywhere. I did continue my struggle and didn't achieved a single opportunity, received a lot of rejection emails, I further professionalized my motivations letter and resume.

Furthermore During those difficult and jobless situations, I got a job offer letter after test and interview from Pakistan Air force research unit, but I deny that job because my dream was to do a PhD. I was in search to find the opportunity of  PhD anywhere in the world with scholarship and have continued the struggle for more 8 months after that I got two acceptance from  Korean professor's, 5 acceptance letters from chines professor’s for CSC, one for MEXT Scholarship university track, letter for commonwealth and the final one I got Europe union Marie Skłodowska Curie actions scholarshipwhich (https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon  2020/en/h2020-section/marie-sklodowska-curie-actions) is competitive and very prestigious scholarship in Europe.

Q5: whenever a person travels internationally, so the visa is a mandatory requirement so what difficulties did you have to get a visa?

I agree with you that Visa process is difficult but not impossible at that time Pakistan was on the FATF grey list and As Portugal embassy in Islamabad is not operational so I sent email to Portugal embassy Iran, Qatar and Dubai, I requested them to process my visa, I got respond from Qatar visit visa is free they give visa on arrival to a Pakistani passport holder.

After a month, I request the university to write Doha Qatar in my admission letter instead of Islamabad Pakistan, then I packed my bags with very high ambitions, I was thinking that they are giving me Visa in 5 to 7 days or maximum in 20 days, I thought, I will stay there in Qatar then will going form Qatar to Portugal after 20 days but the situation was completely different, they submitted my all original documents and told me to go back to your home country and after 3 months we will call you (I was shocked), which was too much disappointing for me, and was very difficult to go back to home with no achievements and packed bags, I backed (people were laughing at me even my educated friends!) and then I waited for more than three months but doesn't receive calls and I by myself thought that they are not giving Visa. I Sent them emails, a lot of calls to Portugal embassy Qatar also to Pakistan embassy Portugal for help but was not responded.

my Professor sends them email, calls much time  I started my classes through Skype but finally after 4 months of wait I got Visa, receiving the visa accepted/collection email make me 10 years younger and passionate, then I went to Qatar and collected my Visa and started the journey of  PhD.

Alhamdulillah!

Pakistan zindabad ( Long Live Pakistan)

Below is the Profile and project explanation of Bahram khan the  project has got 2nd position from Europe union they will soon share the position detail on their website.

ESR7 (https://teamup5g.webs.tsc.uc3m.es/research/esrs/) 

15 ESR from different countries and Bahram khan is one of them from Pakistan.

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