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Postgraduate study
Postgraduate study is a very popular option with Imperial graduates, with over a quarter of all graduates from Imperial (and over a half from some degrees) choosing to undertake a postgraduate course. These can be taught courses or research-focussed degrees, or a mixture of both.
A postgraduate qualification can be desirable for entry into some careers and is sometimes essential. It is a good idea to find out whether it is necessary for your career of choice before committing to it, as most careers are open to graduates with a good first degree.
Postgraduate study should not just be a way to delay career decisions and postpone work experience or employment. Think carefully about what you would gain from postgraduate study and what your reasons are for choosing this option. You can always do postgraduate study later on if you are not sure it is right for you now.
The following are the main types of course:
• One or two-year taught courses leading to Master’s degrees (MSc,
MPhil, MA)
• One or two-year research courses leading to Master’s degrees (MRes, MPhil) • Three+ year research degrees leading to PhDs (called a DPhil in
Oxford University)
• Vocational courses, required for entry into professions such as teaching or law
Typically Master’s courses are one year of study in the UK and can be two years in other countries. Similarly, a PhD may take different lengths of time in different countries, for example five-six years in the US as compared to three-four years in the UK.
There is relatively little funding available for Master’s study but there is much more funding available for PhDs in the sciences and engineering disciplines. You can find out more about funding postgraduate study from FindAMasters and FindAPhD.
Common reasons for postgraduate study
Here are some of the common reasons students choose to continue into postgraduate study:
• To deepen knowledge in my subject e.g. statistics Master’s following a maths degree
• To change direction e.g. chemistry into data science with a Master’s course; graduate entry medicine
• To build research experience towards a PhD and test if research is for me e.g. researchbased Master’s
• To gain professional qualifications e.g. PGCE for teaching
• To prepare for a career in research - a PhD is a necessary requirement for an academic career and will be beneficial for a career in research and development (R+D) in industry
Application timelines
Ideally you should start researching postgraduate options 12 to 18 months before you intend to start the course if you can. This will give you a good amount of time to assess all your options, network and make sure you have the experience in place to make a good application.
There is no centralised system (like UCAS) in the UK for making most postgraduate study applications. Therefore you will usually need to make a separate application for each course you are applying to and they are all likely to have different deadlines and processes. You will need to be organised to keep track of all the dates and documents you will need. For some vocational courses e.g. teaching or law you may need to apply through a centralised system on a specific date.
As a general rule starting to make applications in October/November of the year before you plan to start your postgraduate course will allow you to have the maximum number of options available to you. However, you may find courses advertised all year round so you can keep looking through the winter and spring of your final year. When applying in the US and some other countries you may have to take a test such as the GRE before you make your application so you will need to factor in extra time for this. The summer before you start your final year of study is a good time to use for preparing for and sitting these tests.
Different types of PhDs
There are variations in how PhD programmes are set up and how long they take, but what they all have in common is that they are an opportunity to do an extended, independent research project in your discipline.
In the UK some PhDs are advertised for specific projects with a designated supervisor and you will start your main research project as soon as you start the PhD. There are also Centres of Doctoral Training (CDTs) and Doctoral Training Partnerships (DTPs). Each CDT or DTP is focused on a specific topic of research. They bring together different research groups, universities and sometimes industry partners that link to the topic of the CDT/DTP. The CDT or DTP will recruit a set of students who start together and will usually do one or two smaller research projects and have training before starting their main PhD project in their second year of the PhD.
Some PhDs are projects set up in collaboration with industry and some are full or part-funded by industry. If you want to work in industry later on, choosing a PhD like this will ensure that the topic you are working on has industry relevance and give you the chance to build contacts in industry during your PhD.
Postgraduate study
PhD ready checklist
• Achieve the best possible grades on your degree.
• Build up your research experience e.g. with summer UROP if possible.
• Think about the areas of your discipline that you may be interested in doing research in and do some extra reading about them, choose relevant modules and projects where you can.
• Discuss your interest with academics such as your personal tutor, lecturers and your final year project supervisor and seek their advice.
• Identify possible PhD supervisors and speak to them if you can. Advice on reaching out to potential supervisors can be found on the
TARGETjobs website.
• Identify if there are any CDTs or DTPs in areas of research that you are interested in.
• Be ready to start applying in the autumn of your final year of study.
• Check whether the PhD programmes to which you are applying are funded; this is usually the case in science and engineering. Check your eligibility for funding (there may be rules around nationality or level of qualification) • Explore widely - you are not restricted to Imperial or to doing a PhD that continues research you have already started. This is a good moment in your research career to explore lots of options.
• The Careers Service can help you at every stage – researching and exploring options, getting feedback on your applications and helping you prepare for interview.
Postgraduate study websites
For general advice on postgraduate study options, funding and searching for opportunities in the UK and other countries visit:
• The Further study and funding webpage from the
Careers Service
• The Postgraduate study webpage from Prospects
• The Postgraduate advice webpage from
TARGETjobs
• Search for Master’s courses via FindAMasters
• Search for PhD via FindAPhD and jobs.ac.uk
• Find information on postgraduate study in the US on the Fulbright website
• Information on writing a strong personal statement can be found on the Careers Service website under Personal statements
