I applied for a PhD but was rejected after the interview. How do I request feedback? I interviewed for an advertised PhD and got an email thanking me for interviewing but advising that I wasn't successful. They encouraged me to apply for PhDs at other colleges and their college. I have actually already applied to another advertised PhD with the same supervisor (who knows I have applied), but don't know whether they just didn't like me as a candidate or did like me but had another better candidate. If the former, I won't be considered for PhD2 but if the latter I may be.

This was my first PhD interview and I want some feedback, whether it is about my performance at interview (too nervous, talked too much), or other factors affecting my rejection (lack of research experience, average scores in a particular module that required high scores).

How do I politely request this feedback?
This is the kind of conversation that is important to have for your professional growth, but also difficult to have. This is not something that will be done "on-the-record," for obvious reasons, and the answer may be as simple as "there was another candidate who was more highly qualified." (This is very often the case!)

But if you'd like to ask more details about the interview, email the contact person for the position, and ask if you can talk by phone about how the interview went, and if they can offer you any constructive feedback about how to improve your application for future openings.