PhD proposal reviewer

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: TYPE OF WORK

Gig

: SALARY

300 USD

: HOURS PER WEEK

40

: DATE UPDATED

Aug 3, 2026

JOB OVERVIEW

## Job title
Academic Editor for a PhD Dissertation Proposal in Plant Biochemistry and Natural Products (Kava)

## Job type
Gig / one-time project. Roughly 30 to 40hours of work.

I need an experienced academic editor to proofread, correct and rewrite a doctoral dissertation proposal to publication-grade academic English.

The document is 58 pages, roughly 30,000 words, in the field of plant specialized metabolism and analytical chemistry. The subject is Piper methysticum (kava): what molecular control point sets the ratio between two classes of compounds in the root, and whether that control point explains the legal distinction between noble and non-noble cultivars. It covers the phenylpropanoid pathway, type III polyketide synthases, enzyme kinetics, liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry method validation under ICH Q2(R2), and international food standards.

What I need done:

1. Correct grammar, syntax, punctuation and word choice throughout.
2. Improve sentence structure and paragraph flow so it reads as formal academic prose, without changing what any sentence claims.
3. Enforce consistent scientific terminology, chemical nomenclature and unit formatting.
4. Check internal consistency: section cross-references, numbering, hypothesis labels, table headings and the reference list format.
5. Flag anything that reads as unclear, unsupported or contradictory in a separate comment list, and also rather silently rewriting it in the comments.

Rules that cannot be broken:

- Every claim in the document carries an epistemic tag in square brackets. These tags must survive editing exactly as placed. Do not move them, merge them, or delete them.
- Do not add citations, numbers, or facts. If something looks like it needs a source, flag it in the comment list.look for a proper literature and accept.
- Do not change section numbering.
- No em dashes anywhere in the document.
- No bold text inside prose. Structural labels only.
- Deliver as a tracked-changes Word file plus a clean file, with a separate comment list.

Who I am looking for:

- A master's or doctoral degree in chemistry, biochemistry, plant science, pharmacy, food science or a closely related field. Please state your degree and institution.
- Demonstrated experience editing scientific manuscripts, theses or grant proposals. Please link or attach a sample, with confidential material removed.
- Comfort with chemistry notation, enzyme kinetics terminology and analytical method language. You do not need prior kava experience, but you must be able to read this material without needing it explained.
- Native or near-native academic English.

To apply, do not send a generic cover letter. Send:

1. Your degree, field and institution.
2. One sample of scientific editing you have done.
3. Your answers to the short test below.

Applications without the test answers will not be read.

## Screening test (paste as the last section of the post, or send to shortlisted applicants)

I will send you one 400-word section of the document. Return it edited, plus:

1. In one sentence, what is the difference between a chalcone and its corresponding flavanone, and why does that matter for a mass spectrometry measurement?
2. In two sentences, what does ICH Q2(R2) require an analytical method to demonstrate?
3. Name one sentence in the passage you would flag rather than edit, and say why.

Question one is the filter. Anyone who can answer it correctly can read your document; anyone who cannot will produce fluent edits that break your chemistry.

## Skills tags for the platform

Academic writing, proofreading, copy editing, scientific writing, research, English, Microsoft Word, technical writing.

One practical note. OnlineJobs.ph is built around Filipino virtual assistants, and the pool of chemistry postgraduates there is thin, so expect most applicants to be strong general English editors rather than subject-matter people. That is not fatal, since language editing is most of what you need and the test question filters the rest. If you get no qualified applicants in two weeks, the same posting works on Upwork, and Kolabtree and Editage both list PhD-level subject editors who charge per word instead.

SKILL REQUIREMENT

Research Writing

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PhD proposal reviewer

Please login or register as jobseeker to apply for this job.

TYPE OF WORK

SALARY

HOURS PER WEEK

DATE UPDATED

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