should I message the professor for a phd position?

Question

I like a PhD position. If they give me offer, I definitely will take it.

I have submitted my application, and the dealine is the 20th of this month. But now I have a working offer with a ddl for acceptation or rejection. I don't think I have time for waiting for them.

Could I message the professor in linkedin, and request an interview for this position? Or it is not polite? Because they have their process for interviewing candidates.

Or actually they have reviewed my resume, and don't think I could be a match?

Answer 1

You can try, but the response will probably be "I am sorry to hear that. All the best with the rest of your career." They cannot make a decision before the deadline, because who knows who is going to apply just before the deadline. Depending on the local laws they may be legally required to wait till the end of the announced deadline.

Answer 2

Messaging the professor in itself is not going to cause you a problem. But it is unlikely that it can help you, because the professor is probably bound by procedures, which usually implies waiting for the deadline to pass before making a decision in order to allow to "exhaust the applicant pool". Even giving feedback on your application, even an "If I were you, mmmm, I'd take the other offer", could be dangerous. Saying (hypothetically) that you have good chances, is going to be particularly dangerous because a deranged twin version of you could sue for damages or badmouth the professor in the community as a liar, if you are considered but end up not being the preferred candidate. This would constitute at the least a big bother.

If you message the professor after what I just said, at least restrain yourself from explaining your dilemma. Also, using LinkIn appears to me to be a bit tacky, but this might be a reflection of my cultural prejudices.