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Research Degrees and Taught Programmes

If you want to continue your studies to a higher level, you could follow your first degree with either a taught or research post graduate degree, at master's level or with research at doctoral level. Many students start with a taught master's course and then go on to a PhD. It is possible to progress straight from a first degree to a PhD, or alternatively, you could start with a research master's course, such as an MPhil and then convert it into a PhD.

Taught programmes
Taught programmes lead to master's degrees, such as an MA or MSc and normally last one year full-time or two years part time. Most are academic, but some have vocational implications. Teaching is done in seminars and lectures, but you may have to be more pro-active in your learning than you were at undergraduate level. You will be expected to do more research on your own and write longer assignments. Often the courses involve a dissertation, a substantial piece of your own work usually involving research. Many students enjoy the research aspect of master's course so much, they go on to a PhD afterwards.

Postgraduate diplomas are vocational or practical courses of one or two years' duration. Sometimes the only difference between a postgraduate diploma and a masters is the lack of original research undertaken for the project or dissertation. Thus, a diploma would be completed during the academic year rather than the calendar year. Certain diplomas or certificates are compulsory for entry to a career, e.g. the PGCE, Dip CG or Dip SW.

Research degrees
Normally known as an MPhil (one, sometimes two years of full-time study) or a PhD (three years of full-time study) and involving major original research. (Some MA and MSc courses are also research only.) There is no syllabus; you decide what you want to do and how you are going to do it, with the aid of your supervisor. It's rather like writing a book - and indeed, many PhD theses are published as books. Many students will consider a PhD as the foundation for a future academic career.

If you are considering to research based study, you may want to consider the points below:

• What kind of supervision is available? Is your supervisor someone you can work with?
• Will you have the chance to do some teaching?
• Does the department encourage you to publish and attend conferences?

How do I know if it is for me?
If you are enjoying certain aspects of your first degree, and if there are areas within it that you are really keen to explore further, postgraduate study may well be for you. Talk to your department about it and discuss it with current postgraduate students - they will be able to tell you about the highs and lows.

Talk to a careers adviser about your options. They can discuss whether the choice is right for you and which programme of study will suit you. 

Certain careers require you to undergo relevant or professional training in order to qualify. For some jobs, you will not be considered if you have not had this training, although some employers may recruit you and then put you through the necessary training, which may be part-time. Careers for which vocational training is necessary include teaching, librarianship, social work, archives, and law. In some cases, you may have to undergo some relevant experience in order to be considered for the course.

Not all vocational courses are a prerequisite, but they can help. For example, you may choose to do a course in journalism, publishing, computing or human resources in order to improve your chances of obtaining a job in the field. If you decide to do this, check out the courses' information about the destinations of previous students and find out if employers seek out students from this course.

If you are considering to study a vocational course, you may want to consider the points below:

• What happens to graduates from the course?
• Do they complete the course? What jobs and/or courses have they gone on to do? Does this fit in with your aims?
• Do employers target the course?

Your local FE College is worth exploring for relevant courses. You can sometimes do a short or part-time course to help you gain useful marketable skills, such as business studies, languages or IT skills. They are not necessarily at postgraduate level, but they can help you gain useful practical skills and knowledge which will contribute to your career success.

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