Imperial College, London

Why study at Imperial College London?

Imperial is acknowledged worldwide as a centre for excellence for teaching and research. It is the only UK university to focus entirely on science, technology, engineering, medicine and business.

About Imperial

Imperial College London is a science-based university with an international reputation for world class education and for excellence in research. Our particular interest is in the application of science, engineering and medical knowledge in industrial, commercial and healthcare settings. We encourage interdisciplinary working at the College and collaborate widely with other organisations, so that our students can experience real research that is changing the world.

Imperial College is consistently recognised as one of the top 3 UK universities for research quality. In the 2008 RAE, 73 per cent of Imperial College's academic staff had their research judged as world-leading or internationally excellent.

There are over 6,000 staff in total and 13,000 students, of whom approximately a third are postgraduates following research programmes and attending postgraduate advanced courses.

The staff includes 68 Fellows of the Royal Society; 68 Fellows of the Royal Academy of Engineering and 78 Fellows of the Academy of Medical Sciences. 14 Nobel Laureates have been members of the College either as staff or students.

What can I study?

Postgraduate Advanced Courses

We place great emphasis on the integration of our Master's level courses with our world-class research portfolio and pride ourselves on the quality of our academic staff.  This excellence has been recognised in the last Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) institutional audit and the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE), as well as by bodies such as the Nobel foundation and Royal Societies.  Many of our courses are accredited by professional bodies.  The content of our courses is regularly reviewed in order to keep them relevant and up-to-date, with industrial experts making their experience readily available in the teaching, examining and review of the courses. 

All our Master's level qualifications are Bologna compatible and assigned ECTS credits.  This means that they are recognised internationally as a 2nd cycle award under the Bologna process.  For more information see http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc48_en.htm

There are many reasons to choose to do a Master's qualification.  For instance, you may wish to specialise in an area of particular interest, convert your undergraduate knowledge to a different setting, differentiate yourself for the job market or learn specific laboratory techniques as a preparation for a research degree, such as a PhD, EngD or MD(Res). Whatever your goal, Imperial has a portfolio of over 100 postgraduate Master's level courses covering a wide range of subjects at the forefront of scientific, engineering, business and medical research, to meet your needs.

Within this portfolio we offer a number of different Master's awards:

MSc - a mixture of taught courses and research which provides an in depth education in a specialist subject, an opportunity to hone your expertise and develop your research and/or technical skills

MRes - a research-focused programme which provides an adequate foundation for doctoral study or a research career in industry or the public sector

MEd - designed to provide opportunities for professionals and others to study education at an advanced level

MBA - a business-orientated Master's course aimed at experienced business people

Most Master's are full-time and are of one year's duration, although some may be taken part-time over two or three years. The majority of courses commence in October and extend beyond the summer term (to 30 September at the latest). The credit rating for these programme is normally 90 ECTS.

Imperial also offers a range of full and part-time Postgraduate Diplomas and Certificates though these are not available on all advanced programmes.  These options can be taken as stand-alone courses or, in some cases, can be used as to build towards a higher level award.  A Postgraduate Diploma is intended for award on the satisfactory completion, including formal examination, of a prescribed programme of full-time study beyond the Bachelor's degree level of at least six months or equivalent in part-time study such that the credit rating of the programme normally totals at least 60 ECTS. A Postgraduate Certificate is similar to the Postgraduate Diploma but is of at least three months or equivalent in part-time study duration such that the credit rating of the programme totals at least 30 ECTS.

A full list of postgraduate courses can be found here http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/pgprospectus/whatcanyoustudy

Research Degrees

Research at the frontiers of scientific, engineering, business and medical knowledge is a major feature of the academic activity at Imperial. Our aim is to tackle some of the most difficult problems in science, engineering, health, the environment and the economy, such that we can translate our research into positive benefits for those who need it most. We bring together outstanding international researchers, working with leading international companies and organisations to develop innovative solutions to critical world problems and to set the agenda for future research and education in science, engineering and medicine.

As a research student at Imperial, you will be working with world-class researchers and academics. We have an outstanding international research reputation—with the highest proportion (73%) of research judged world-leading or internationally excellent (4* or 3*) of all UK multi-faculty universities in the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise.

For more information about our research (PhD, EngD and MDRes) opportunities, visit our studentships page and the departmental research specific pages at http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/a_to_z

Transferable Skills Training

The Imperial College offers a programme of transferable skills courses that help students to develop research, personal and professional skills. The courses are designed to support your personal development and to assist you in entering and progressing in your chosen career. They also help you to understand the ethical and commercial dimensions of your studies and enable you to communicate your work effectively to a variety of audiences. Imperial College won the Times Higher Award for Outstanding Support for Early Career Researchers in 2006 and 2008.

Visit our website for more information about the Transferable Skills Programme

International students

International students form an important part of our student community. Currently there are more than 3000 postgraduate students from outside the UK at Imperial. Whether you have already been a student in the UK, or are coming here for the first time, we offer a range of services which will help you with the practicalities but which also, we hope, will make you feel at home very quickly.  See www.imperial.ac.uk/international

Fees and Funding

Tuition fees vary depending on the programme you choose to study. Please check the course you wish to apply for.

Funding for postgraduate study at Imperial is available through a number of channels. As well as Research Council and charity funding from both the UK and Europe, Imperial offers internally awarded scholarships and studentships for UK/EU and international students. These awards cover maintenance and fees, and all are designed to offer the opportunity of further study at Imperial whatever the circumstances. See http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/registry/studentfinancialsupport

How to apply

Further information can be found on our   website, including details on open days, how to apply and life as a student at Imperial.

Postgraduate Open Days

Imperial's Graduate School hosts the annual Postgraduate Open Day in December. Here you will have the chance to talk to academics about the many opportunities for research and postgraduate courses available. Support staff will also be on hand to advise you on the practical issues such as accommodation, possible careers and fees and funding.

Dates for forthcoming Open Days are:

• Wednesday 5th December 2012
• Wednesday 4th December 2013
• Wednesday 10th december 2014
• Wednesday 9th December 2015

Please visit the Open Day webpage for more information