INFORMATION FOR PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS

Owing to the competition for places, applicants are advised to apply as early as they are able; the number of places on each programme is limited. The deadlines for entry in 2013 will be published here soon.

Yes, the fee is £25 for online taught programme applications and £50 for paper taught programme applications except for the UCL Eastman Dental Institute and the UCL Slade School of Fine Art. UCL Eastman Dental Institute fees are £60 for online applications and £85 for paper applications. Slade School of Fine Art fees are £50 for online applications. The Slade does not accept paper applications. Additionally, there are a small number of programmes exempt from the application processing fee (see below).

Please note, the online application is not submitted to UCL until the fee has been paid.

Applicants to postgraduate research programmes, i.e. MRes, MPhil, PhD and specialist doctorates, do not have to pay the fee.

The following postgraduate taught programmes are exempt from the application processing fee:

• (International) Economy, State and Society: Economics and Business (IMESS) MA
• (International) Economy, State and Society: Nation, History and Society (IMESS) MA
• (International) Economy, State and Society: Politics and Security (IMESS) MA
• Brain and Mind Sciences MSc
• (European)/PG Cert (European) International Health MSc
• Radiation Biology MSc
• Medical Education MSc
• Medical Education Postgraduate Diploma
• Medical Education Postgraduate Certificate
  
  

If you apply online you can make the payment via debit or credit card at the final stage of the application. You can pay with Visa, Mastercard, Maestro or Maestro UK. Mac users are advised to use Firefox as Safari is not a supported browser for the payment system.

If you submit a paper application you can pay by credit or debit card or by banker's draft. Full instructions are found on the application form. Personal cheques are not accepted.

Yes, if you apply online you will receive an email at the appropriate stage of the application process which can be forwarded to the person making the payment.  If you submit a paper application the cardholder can complete the payment form.

No, the application processing fee is required in order to process the application regardless of the outcome of the application.

No, the application processing fee is required in order for us to process the application.

Yes, the application processing fee is payable per application submitted.

A transcript is a breakdown of module/course results for an overall qualification (i.e. Bachelor's degree, Master's degree). This should be an official document provided by your university at your request and provides admissions tutors with in-depth information regarding your academic performance. Documents will not be returned, so please only send certified copies of transcripts unless you have specifically requested a transcript for application purposes from your previous university. A certified copy of a transcript must have a valid signature from the institution representative, along with their job title and full name printed clearly.  It must also be stamped/embossed and on official institution paper and include the final award and the date of the award.

If you graduated from a UK university over 20 years ago then a certified copy of your degree certificate will suffice.

GCSE and A level certificates are NOT required as part of the graduate admissions process. If you wish to, you are welcome to list GCSEs/A levels on your application.

Any transcripts, certificates or references provided as part of your application must be in English. Official translations must be verified by your original university, a solicitor or official translation service such as that provided by the British Council. Translations must also be accompanied by a certified copy in the original language.

You should provide an official transcript of your marks to date.

One of your references must be academic but the other may be from an employer. References may not be submitted from family members or personal friends.

If you completed your Bachelor's degree with UCL, you are required to submit your transcript with your application, unless applying to the same department where you undertook your undergraduate studies. The same applies for references if the referees are employed by UCL in the department to which you are applying. Please note the following exceptions:

• All LLM applicants must submit a transcript regardless of where it was obtained.
• All applicants to the Department of Economics are required to submit references regardless of where they have previously studied.

Yes. If your first language is not English and you have been requested by UCL to take an English language proficiency test, then you must obtain the required grades. Failure to do so will prevent you from studying at UCL. Please refer to UCL's English language requirements for full information.  

English language qualifications and test results are required to have been awarded no more than two years prior to the proposed date of enrolment. If you took a test more than two years ago and you have not been working or studying in English within a majority English speaking country since, you will be asked to provide a more recent test result.

You can expect to receive a response from UCL around seven weeks after your application has been processed by UCL Access & Admissions. Where there is a deadline for a programme of study, you may not hear until after that closing date, even if you applied some time before this. 

An assessment of fee status is made if an application for admission has been successful. Notification of fee status is included with the formal offer of admission. See UCL’s policy on fee status assessment for further information.

The Access & Admissions office counter is located within the Student Centre in the Chadwick Building and is open from Monday to Friday between 10:00 and 16:00, except public holidays and UCL closure days.

A CV can be used in place of the work experience section or as extra information. However, applicants are advised to give a brief description of their current or most recent role in this section and then refer to the CV for further information.

We cannot courier any official documents to applicants. However, UCL is happy to prepare a package for collection by courier that the candidate must arrange and pay for. You will be able to view your offer letter via the UCL portal.

No, it is not possible to re-use a previously submitted application and/or references.

No, it is not possible to re-use a previously submitted application. Your application will be assessed on its merits and not any prior applications.

Yes, UCL regulations state that all PhD applicants must initially be registered as MPhil for the first year of studies. As long as this year is satisfactorily completed, students' status will be upgraded to PhD.

If you have been offered a place on a programme at UCL but wish to defer your place for a year you must submit this request to UCL Access & Admissions  in writing or by email and you do not have to apply again. The request is then forwarded to the academic unit to which you have applied for their consideration. A decision is usually made within four weeks and you will again be notified by post. If successful, a new offer letter for the following year will be sent to you and also viewable via the UCL portal.

Due to the Data Protection Act 1998, Access & Admissions staff are unable to discuss the details of an application with anyone but the applicant themselves. Nevertheless, UCL understands that it is often difficult for an applicant to liaise directly with UCL due to working hours or time differences if overseas. If you cannot get the information you need via email, you can nominate someone to act on your behalf but you must provide UCL Access & Admissions with written confirmation of this decision. The person acting on your behalf should also be given your application number to be quoted in any correspondence with UCL Access & Admissions. 

Please do not submit original documents to UCL. Unfortunately, it is not possible to return application documentation once it has been submitted. Documentation for successful applicants are scanned and the paper documentation destroyed immediately after enrolment. Therefore, you should send certified copies rather than submit any irreplaceable originals. UCL is also unable to return references unless the referee has specifically expressed that they are willing to allow an applicant access to such information.