portfolio_2.1

Paul Apivat Hanvongse

PORTFOLIO

Products

PhD Purpose

Telecom Connectivity Prototype

Teaching & Workshops

This guidebook, launched earlier this year, is

my first online product created for aspiring scholars. I’ve spent a decade

helping people craft their

statement of purposes for graduate school and competitive scholarships, allowing me to see patterns where people need the most help.

PhD Purpose

Product Lifecycle

Empathy Process | User

Insights

Prototype & Testing

Content Creation

Distribution Channel Testing

User Feedback | Iteration

Empathy Process | User Insights

Worldview

•  I need to impress admissions officer with fancy words

•  Having trouble distinguishing ‘showing off’ vs. ‘show, not tell’

•  Unexamined motivations for getting advanced degree (i.e.,some don’t actually like research)

Pain

•  People don’t understand how a statement of purpose for the PhD level is different from other levels

•  People have a hard time writing about their research interests and preparation for research with precision

•  People do not have a qualified sounding board in their networks

Concerns / Fears

•  Where should I start? I don’t know where to start.

•  Anxiety around writing Statement of Purpose

•  How will my statement of purpose compare to someone else?

Pantip.com, a popular message board used by my Target Users

Prototype & Testing

Early efforts involved rapid prototyping, feedback, and iteration

Informed by data, the guidebook

takes users step-by-step to writing their first draft.

Content Creation

Step 1

(2 wks)

Step 3(2-3 hrs)

Step 2(1 day)

Step 4(2 hrs)

1a

3a

2a

Step 5 5a

Step 6(2-3 days)

1b 1c 1d 1e

1f 1g

2b 2c

3b 3c

5bEstimated

Time Frame2.5 Weeks

Copyright©2016PaulApivatHanvongse.AllRightsReserved.

Distribution Channel Testing

Guest Blogging (Thailand, India and

UK blogs)

Not much traction. Site owners will not go out of their way

to promote your online products.

Various Local Message Boards

Generated many views (250 – 500)

but little conversion to my blog.

Linkedin

Generated limited conversion.

Created Own Facebook Page

Posting on related Facebook pages

Most Effective Strategy

Posting a comment on new competitive

scholarship announcements.

Generated disproportionate

conversions

Additional Channels (In Progress)

Facebook PageBooster

Facebook & Google Ads

Twitter Promoted

Tweets

User friendliness was

a key design consideration.

User Experience

This guide is meant to help you get from a blank page to Draft 1.0. Once you get to draft 1.0, you can breathe a sigh of relief because you just finished the hardest part. Making something out of nothing. No more whitespace and a blinking cursor. Each section is design to get you thinking about all the elements that make a good PhD statement of purpose. But to make it great you’ll need to go through several iterations and edit. We’ll have time to make it great, but first let’s get to a good solid draft 1.0. The following is a list of elements that make up the PhD Statement of Purpose, listed in order of importance.

The Ph.D. Statement of Purpose Essay§  Research Statement: your vision, literature review, the problem you want to solve

and gaps you want to close, methods you want to use.§  Your Research Experience: Research you’ve already done; papers you’ve

published (if applicable); conferences you’ve presented at; research Labs you’ve contributed to; and/or courses you’ve taken;

§  Why this particular School/Program?§  Career Aspirations: Why get a Ph.D.? Why this particular field? (Career

aspirations should be research-related) Explaining Difference between BA vs. MA vs. PhD Statement of Purpose From the above list of elements, you’ll notice the emphasis on research. That’s intentional because that is the biggest difference between Statements of Purposes you’ve written in the past (BA or MA) and the PhD Statement of Purpose is the emphasis on research. I explain in a blog post the main differences between the BA/MA vs. PhD degrees: http://phdpurpose.tumblr.com/post/135164038920/the-phd-is-a-different-animal

How to Use this Guide


The final chapter provides users with a quick win –

a completed first draft – upon which they can further improve.

User Experience

[SAMPLE] Use this template for tying all the previous sections together. You will use responses to the exercises from Steps 1 – 5. This template is simply an example structure to get you started. After you’ve written it down, you can change the structure and move the wording around to best suit your tone.

My main area of research interests is _____________. Specifically, I’m interested in how [X variable] ______ influences [Y variable] _____ in under [Z conditions, moderator]_________. I find X and Y variables interesting because ____________. The specific research question I’d like explore is ____[refer to your literature review notes], because ____[explain importance of research question]. I came to be interested in this particular question because_______. The field of __[your field of interest] is going through __[explain the current state of the field]. The most exciting developments are ____[name exciting developments], which is why I’m interested in ___[insert your research question]. The field has come a long way from ___[describe how far the field has come from its beginnings]. [Note: hopefully your specific research question is connected to exciting developments in the field] Researchers have explored_______[other research questions from your literature review], but they have not examined______[insert your research question] OR they have tried answering this question while using _____[other methodologies]. Therefore, my approach___[describe your research design, methodology, analytic technique] will bring a fresh perspective to the field. [Describe how your research interest fits within the context of the overall field]. The challenge is answering ___[insert questions still left unanswered] because this will fill in ___[describe gaps in knowledge] and my research question’s contribution is to ____[describe how your research will close this gap]. My past experience involves ____[describe your previous research experience]. I took ___[name courses] and was involved in ____[name research labs/workgroups]. I learned a lot from those experiences and what stands out the most are ________. Those experiences have led me here today as _____[describe how your previous experience has prepared you to tackled the current research question you have]. [Note: if you have any red flags [see step 5a] address them here] I believe that admission into ___[name of school and program you’re applying to] will help me answer my research question because ________. Specifically, I’d like to work with ____[name faculty member[s]] and be involved in ____[name research group]. Furthermore, I’d love to take _____[name course / seminar]. The program matches my specific research interests in the following ways _________. I will be an asset to the program because ___[describe research fit] and _____[describe your skills, knowledge, abilities and how they contribute to the program]. With an education from___[name of school and program you’re applying to], I will be able to conduct research and ____[describe your research-oriented career aspirations]. Thank you for your consideration.


User Feedback

Comments Translationหนูสนใจอยากจะสมัครเรียนต่อระดับปริญญาเอกอยู่พอดีเลยค่ะแต่ว่าไม่รู้จะเริ่มต้นเขียนยังไง เอกสารนี้เป็นประโยชน์มากเลยค่ะ - Sarinya P.

I’m interested in applying for admission into a PhD program, but I don’t know how to start my statement. This document is very useful. – Sarinya P.

ดิฉันขอขอบพระคุณท่านมากค่ะ สำหรับข้อมูลอันเป็นประโยชน์อย่างที่สุดสำหรับดิฉันในการเขียน PhD Statement of Purpose ดิฉันได้รับข่าวนี้จากเพื่อนที่ share ต่อๆกันมาใน facebook ค่ะ ซึ่งเป็นสิ่งที่กำลังทำมองหาแนวทางพอดี เนื่องจากพอเขียนๆแล้วรู้สึกตันๆ และมึนงงพอสมควรค่ะ พอได้อ่านข้อเขียนของท่านก็รู้สึกเริ่มมีความหวัง และอ่านไปด้วยความตื่นเต้นมาก จึงได้เขียน email ส่งไปเพื่อขอรบกวนให้ท่านส่งข้อมูลมาให้เพิ่มเติม ข้อมูลที่ท่านอาจารย์เขียนละเอียดชัดเจนมากๆค่ะ ดิฉันจะเร่ิมทำตามกระบวนการทันทีเลยค่ะ โอกาสนี้ต้องขอขอบพระคุณท่านอีกครั้งค่ะ - Sudares S.

Thank you very much for this guide that will help me write my Statement of Purpose. I learned about your guide from Facebook friends who shared your link. This is just what I’ve been looking for since I started writing my Statement, I’ve gotten stuck and I’m looking for a guide. When I read your guidebook, I felt very excited. Your guidebook is extremely clear and I plan on following the steps outlined. Thank you again. – Sudares S.

Next Product Iterations

Coaching Services & Testimonials Online Course | E-Book

A translated version for the local market

Localization

English Thai

Products

PhD Purpose




Brainstorming

Empathy Processes

User Insights

Product Prototypes

Where traditional market research had

failed, we used design thinking to find insights to produce a mobile phone product to reach 5 million ‘unconnected’ users.

Brainstorming

Our brainstorming process led us

to explore three overlooked ‘unconnected’

user personas.

Understanding blue collar workers and small vendors

included field visits, in-depth interviews, ethnographic observations and customer development-style probing.

Empathy Processes

Empathy Processes

Research with the migrant community also involved heavy field research and in-depth interviews as well as a

partnering with a local nonprofit (i.e., The Labor Promotion Network) with access to the migrant community. The gentleman is on the left is the founder of the Labor Promotion Network.

Empathy Processes

Older Knowledge Workers personas required different design research methods including:

extreme user targeting and even visiting a school that specialized in providing technology education to elders.

Innovator Early Adopter

Connected Unconnected

Ready to Connect. Barely Connected

[Innovator] Older Knowledge Worker

Trigger

Work-related: Efficiency, updated knowledge, work-from-home, org enforcement, sharing info at work.

Hook: Portability, Tablet touch screen, iphone visual, convenience.

Connecting to friends and children: LINE groups.Staying current: Facebook.

Outcome: Hooked on smartphone.Feel naked without it.

Our most powerful insights emerged around the older knowledge worker personas;

how extreme users (innovators) came to adopt mobile internet at a faster rate.

User Insights

The internet is fun.

The internet is

สดชื่น

The internet prevents and

cures loneliness /depression.

The internet is anti-aging.

The internet is a

friend.

The internet is a smoother

transition into second phase

in life. Internet is fulfillment, fun and is a friend.

Mobile internet = fills the void.

User Insights

Mobile internet adoption insight was paired

with what mobile connectivity represented fueling the opportunity

to reframe existing product offering.

Product Concept Prototypes

Mobile Internet Package

with 6-month 24/7 Consultation – Line Live.

On-Demand Robust Q&A (make Newsletter form)

Free Courses to Teach Mobile Internet with a subscription (partner with OPPY – Old People Play Young)

Products

PhD Purpose



Teaching

My freshmen students getting amped up for their final speeches with a Ted-Talk style stage prop. Course: Understanding Human Communications.

Teaching

My students presenting their prototypes for the Social Innovation Project course

Promotion, Recruitment, Selection

Aside from teaching promotion, recruitment, and selection are needed to get a program off the ground. Content creation for video scripts, recruiting pitches and presentation was key.

Design Thinking Workshop

My partner and I gave a workshop on

the application of design thinking for addressing the problem of teenage pregnancy in Thailand.

portfolio_2.1

Documents