College of Medical, Veterinary & Life Sciences

Things to consider before you apply

1. Gather Your Documents

Before applying please make sure you gather the following supporting documentation:

• Final or current degree transcripts including grades (and an official translation, if needed) – scanned copy in colour of the original document.
• Degree certificates (and an official translation, if needed): scanned copy in colour of the original document
• Two references on headed paper and signed by the referee. 
  • One must be academic, the other can be academic or professional [except iPhD applicants, where only one academic or professional reference is required]. 
  • References may be uploaded as part of the application form or you may enter your referees contact details on the application form. See instructions below.
  • We will then email your referee and notify you when we receive the reference.  We can also accept confidential references direct to rio-researchadmissions@glasgow.ac.uk, from the referee’s university or business email account.
• Research proposal, CV, samples of written work as per requirements for each subject area. iPhD applicants do not need to submit any of these as you will start your programme by choosing a masters.
• Completed the College of MVLS Postgraduate Research Cover Letter

Notes for iPhD applicants

• add 'I wish to study the MSc in (chosen subject) as the masters taught component of the iPhD' in the research proposal box
• write 'n/a' for the supervisor name

 Click here for more information on what an iPhD is.

2. Submitting Your References

To complete your application we will need two references (one must be academic the other can be academic or professional).

There are two options for you to submit references as part of your application. 

You can upload a document as part of your application or you can enter in your referee’s contact details and we will contact them to request a reference.

Option 1 – Uploading as part of the application form

• Your references should be on official headed paper. These should also be signed by the referee.
• You can then upload these via the Online Application form with the rest your documents to complete the application process.
• Please be aware that documents must not exceed 5MB in size and therefore you may have to upload your documents separately.
• The online system allow you to upload supporting documents only in PDF format.

Option 2 - Entering contact details as part of the application form

• If you enter your referees contact details including email on the application form we will email them requesting they submit a reference once you have submitted the application form. 
• When the referee responds and sends a reference you will be sent an email to confirm the university has received this.
  

What Qualifications Do You Need?

The normal standard of admission for a research student is a good First Class or Upper Second Class honours degree (GPA 3.0 or above), or Masters, in a relevant discipline. 

• PhD (Doctor of Philosophy): three to four years full-time or up to eight years part-time study
• MD (Doctor of Medicine): two years of full-time study or four years of part-time study (for medically-qualified graduates only)
• MSc by Research (Master of Science): one year full-time or two years part-time study

In special circumstances, other academic qualifications, or professional qualifications or experience, may be recognised as equivalent.

Integrated PhD (Doctor of Philosophy)

Completion of taught Masters level modules before entering a research PhD. 

Year 1: Taught component and discussion/identification of research ideas with potential PhD supervisors
Year 2 - 4: Research degree begins in area of chosen research and examinable piece of independent research is completed by end of the programme.

Entry requirements: Upper second-class honours degree or international equivalent in a relevant subject area. In addition, IELTS, where required, at 6.5 (with no component less than 6.0). 

For more information and to make an application, go to: Research Opportunities A-Z

Research Opportunities and where to find them

Postgraduate students wishing to undertake research within the College, have a range of full and part time study options.

For an A-Z of research opportunities click the button below.

Search For A Supervisor

All Postgraduate Research Students are allocated a supervisor who will act as the main source of academic support and research mentoring.

Follow the link below to identify a potential supervisor and contact them to discuss your research proposal before you apply. 

Please note, even if you have spoken to an academic staff member about your proposal you still need to submit an online application form.

Search for a supervisor

Tuition & Additional Fees

Fees 2021/22

For up-to-date information see Research Opportunities, Fees.

• £4,500 within UK
• £23,000 European Union & International

Prices are based on the annual fee for full-time study. Fees for part-time study are half the full-time fee.

Additional fees for all students:

• Re-submission by a research student £540
• Submission for a higher degree by published work £1,355
• Late submission of thesis £350
• Submission by staff in receipt of staff scholarship £790

Depending on the nature of the research project, some students will be expected to pay a bench fee (also known as research support costs) to cover additional costs. The exact amount will be provided in the offer letter. 

Fees - 2020/21

For 2020/21 fees, see Research Opportunities, Fees. These apply to students who start before 31/07/21.

Application Process

Once you have gathered all your supporting documentation you can apply through our Online Application System and create a new account.

Personal Statement

As part of your application process a Personal Statement, of around 500 words, may be required, consisting of relevant experience and your academic history.

A good personal statement helps determine if you're a suitable candidate for your chosen research programme. And if applying for more than one, be sure to tailor your statement for each application.

What To Write About:

• Academic History
• Relevant Experience
• Why you want to study at the University of Glasgow?
• What's your motivation behind deciding to study in your chosen field?
• Share with us any other experience you have gained outside of academia that's relevant.

Once you've written it up, set it aside for a while and later come back to it to re-read and make any corrections.

Check your spelling and grammar. Even ask someone to proof-read it for you for one last check if you're unsure.

1. Decisions & Offers

Once a decision has been made regarding your application the Research Admissions Office will contact you by email.

If you are made an unconditional offer

You can accept your offer through the Applicant-Self-Service by clicking on the ‘Accept/Decline link’ for your chosen programme under the ‘Admissions Section’ at the bottom of the Applicant Self Service screen.  You can access the Applicant Self Service by using the link, username and password you used to apply and selecting the “Self Service” button below your application.

Please make sure you accept your unconditional offer within 4 weeks of receiving your offer. If you are an international student your CAS will not be issued until you have accepted an unconditional offer.

If you are made a conditional offer

If you accept a conditional offer then the offer status on Applicant-Self-Service will change to ‘incomplete’ to indicate that the application is incomplete until such time as all the conditions are met.

Your offer letter will list all the conditions that apply to your offer and you can upload the required document(s) through Applicant Self Service. If you have met the conditions satisfactorily, you will automatically be sent an unconditional offer.

If your application is unsuccessful

If your application is unsuccessful then you will be sent an email to inform you of this which will outline the reason why we have been unable to offer you a place on this particular programme. Please note that your application status will be updated to 'Cancelled' on Applicant Self Service if the offer is rejected.

Deferring your offer

If you want to defer your start date, please contact us here. We need authorisation from your supervisor before we confirm your request to defer. Once we have this we will contact you by email to confirm.

2. If You Need To Upload Further Documents

Log into the Applicant Self Service and scroll down to the Admissions Section. You can find out about where to upload documents on the Applicant Self Service FAQs page.

Documents must be uploaded in .jpg, .jpeg or .pdf format and must not exceed 5MB in size.  There is a maximum 10MB upload size for all documents with the application

After you have accepted an unconditional offer

• You will receive an email nearer to the start of your studies to tell you how to register online using the University's MyCampus website, the University’s student information system.
• That email will provide you with your personal login details and the website address.
• Please ensure that your email address is kept up to date as all correspondence is sent via email.
• You can update your email address through the Applicant Self Service Portal under the Personal Information section.

Further information and a step by step guide on How To Register 

Important Information For International Students

For advice on visas, immigration, English language requirements and the Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) please visit our International student pages and International Student Support pages

If your are having difficulty with your online application or even just want to track it's progress, click one of the buttons below for more help.

* Important Note

If you are experiencing the application system hanging then please follow the steps below:

• Clear your cache, then close all browser windows/sessions
• Ensure you do not have a pop-up blocker running
• Select on the “Apply Now” option on the programme page of the degree you wish to apply for. This will launch the log in page for our online application system.

Need More Information?

• If you have any questions about your application before you apply: contact our College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences Graduate School
• If you have any questions after you have submitted your application: contact our Admissions team