Oxfordfirst - Postgraduate Studies
A large number of students from across the world come to the UK for postgraduate (masters and doctorate level) study. These can be taught or by research.
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There are many reasons for the UK's popularity:
- it is possible to graduate after just one year, saving time and money,
- UK universities offer high-quality teaching,
- you have the opportunity to study in internationally famous departments,
- universities offer an extensive range of diverse subjects,
- programmes are frequently highly relevant to career development.
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Taught Master's Courses
A typical year would be as follows:
Induction – an introduction to staff, course requirements, facilities and so onTwo semesters attending lecturers and seminars, but also possibly requiring a significant input from participants for example group work, presentations, case studiesFinal segment - conducting an individual independent piece of research work (project/dissertation) based on what has been learnt on the programme but allowing students to demonstrate of skills: originality, research and communication skills. The work is sometimes based on real data and information from industry. It is a chance to shine and apart from the work itself there are other rewards, for example, obtaining a reference from the company and even possibility an offer of a job!
Application Procedure
The key  piece of advice is to plan ahead. Not only do you personally have to be well organised but you must allow time for other aspects of administration such as references, decision-making, issuing offer letters, the visa process, organising flights, booking flights and so on.
If apply for a Master's course in high demand, you should apply early, possibly as early as October for a start in September the following year. However, many universities allow applications until much closer to the start date. Some universities allow you to apply online and most allow you to download the forms you need.
Normally application to postgraduate study require references. These can be university tutors who know the quality of your work and your strengths but can include employer references if appropriate to your field of study. Many universities will accept sealed references submitted with your application form but not open references.
Research Degrees
These are normally referred to as MPhil and PhD (in some places these degrees have different names like DPhil). In the UK these are normally completed in three years full-time or five years part-time. Unlike other countries the UK research degrees do not normally start with a taught component.
The application process is quite different from applying for a taught programme. For example, for research degrees at some institutions it is possible to start at any time of year. First it is crucial that you investigate which intuitions have research centres that include the area in which you are interested. You can find this out easily using online search and perhaps even identify an individual or individuals who you consider may be interested in supervising you. You should feel free to contact them before submitting a formal application. If you do so, you should provide details about yourself and an initial research proposal or at least identify the area you wish to research.
Most institutions require you to register for an MPhil as a step towards PhD. Upgrading to PhD is normally done after one year of successful research.
Postgraduate Foundation
Sometimes are not quite ready for postgraduate studies, particulalry in relation to English language skills. As is shown above most postgraduate taught courses last just one year so you don’t have much time to adjust - you need to ‘hit the ground running’! You need to be prepared.
See our special page on postgraduate foundation programmes here.
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