Division of Surgery and Interventional Science MPhil/PhD

London, Bloomsbury

Study a postgraduate research degree at the Division of Surgery & Interventional Science on a full-time or part-time basis. You will join a unique environment where surgeons, engineers, biomaterial specialists and basic scientists from a variety of backgrounds come together to carry out world-leading research in areas aligned to surgery, interventional sciences, and regenerative medicine.

UK students International students
Study mode
UK tuition fees (2025/26)
£6,215
£3,105
Overseas tuition fees (2025/26)
£36,500
£18,250
Duration
3 calendar years
5 calendar years
Programme starts
October 2025
February 2026
May 2026
Applications accepted
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis but should be submitted at least three months prior to your preferred start date.

Entry requirements

MPhil/PhD are required to have an upper second-class UK Bachelor’s degree in a relevant engineering/science subject or a medical degree (MBBS), or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard.

The English language level for this programme is: Level 1

UCL Pre-Master's and Pre-sessional English courses are for international students who are aiming to study for a postgraduate degree at UCL. The courses will develop your academic English and academic skills required to succeed at postgraduate level.

Further information can be found on our English language requirements page.

Equivalent qualifications

Country-specific information, including details of when UCL representatives are visiting your part of the world, can be obtained from the International Students website.

International applicants can find out the equivalent qualification for their country by selecting from the list below. Please note that the equivalency will correspond to the broad UK degree classification stated on this page (e.g. upper second-class). Where a specific overall percentage is required in the UK qualification, the international equivalency will be higher than that stated below. Please contact Graduate Admissions should you require further advice.

About this degree

As a PhD student, you join a unique environment where surgeons, clinicians, engineers, biochemists, biomaterial and nanoscience specialists, and basic and fundamental scientists collaborate on world-leading, cutting-edge research.

You will have access to excellent facilities, including nanotechnology laboratories, stem cell facilities, GLP laboratories, custom joint design and manufacture, gait analysis, and computer modelling facilities within the division. Depending on your research project, you may have the opportunity to engage with cross-faculty collaborations and activities that provide access to an even wider range of resources.

The Division is located over three sites, each associated with NHS hospitals. UCH is close to Bloomsbury campus; the Royal Free Hospital is in Hampstead; and the Institute of Orthopaedics is based at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore. These close links enable research to be conducted in collaboration with clinicians.

We offer a range of opportunities to meet your needs. You can gain different research skills, depending on your project (for instance, from clinical research for fundamental science and technology). A dedicated Personal Development programme with extracurricular activities is tailored to your interests and offers workshops on skills such as entrepreneurship.

Who this course is for

We welcome any suitably qualified applicants who wish to pursue research in any of our specialist areas and related disciplines.

What this course will give you

This programme offers you the following benefits and opportunities.

  • Close clinical links enable research to be conducted in collaboration with clinicians. We undertake research aligned to current unmet needs in the medical field.
  • A unique environment of interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary research between surgeons, basic scientists, engineers, mathematical modellers, physiotherapists, nurse practitioners and other allied health professionals working within the surgical environment.
  • Opportunities for cross-disciplinary interactions amongst scientists with very different backgrounds.
  • An individual research skills programme, including a Personal Development programme, to suit your needs and interests.

The foundation of your career

With the breadth of experience gained throughout a postgraduate research degree, most of our graduates have successful careers in industry, academia (academic positions) and in the healthcare industry (e.g. the NHS).

According to the HESA Graduate Outcomes survey (2018-2022), around 85% of our Surgery PhD graduates reported being in highly skilled work (82%) or in further postgraduate study (3%).

What I enjoy most about my PhD is the freedom. I have general guidance from my supervisors but I get a lot of space to have my own creativity.

Judith Pape

Judith Pape

Surgery and Interventional Science, PhD

Employability

We aim to provide the finest environment for personal and academic development. We also offer a direct exposure to the healthcare sector through various cross-disciplinary activities.

Medically qualified graduates have successful careers as consultants or in clinical academic posts while non-medical graduates pursue careers in industry, academia and in the healthcare industry including elite sport, physical activity promotion, and biomedical industries.

According to the HESA survey, our graduates have gone onto a range of destinations and employers. These include a range of NHS Trusts, cancer research organisations (Institute of Cancer Research, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre), joint replacement innovators (MatOrtho), biotechnology (Abcam), testing and verification services (SGS) and universities (UCL, St. George's).

Most are employed as specialist medical practitioners, GPs, or researchers. Some are biochemical, biological or biomedical scientists, or laboratory or quality assurance technicians. Others have gone into business and research professions, as R&D managers and IT directors.

Networking

Within the Division, there are many opportunities for networking development through interactions between the different Departments and Research Centres.

The Division offers a unique environment of interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary research between surgeons, basic scientists, materials scientists, engineers, mathematical modellers, physiotherapists, and nurse practitioners. Interaction with other allied health professionals working within the surgical environment is actively encouraged.

Teaching and learning

Most of your research will be carried out independently. There will also be a series of training requirements that you will need to complete in the early stages of the programme.

Your first milestone will be to upgrade from MPhil to the PhD degree. For this, you will submit and present a report. In your final year, you submit a thesis covering your research and discuss this at a formal interview known as a viva examination.

Most of your time will be spent conducting independent research, alongside regular meetings with your supervisory team and completing your training requirements. We also encourage you to attend relevant research events at UCL and elsewhere.

Contact hours and hours of self-study are agreed between the student and the supervisor at the beginning of their research degree and should be reviewed on a regular basis. Full-time postgraduate research students are expected to work a minimum of 36.5 hours per week on their project. With agreement of their supervisors, contact time can be on-site or remote working depending upon the nature and stage of the project. PGR students can have the opportunity to access UCL facilities ‘out of hours’ including weekends and holidays during their period of registration. Students will have research meetings with their supervisors at least once per month.

Research areas and structure

  • Nanotechnology and regenerative medicine: targeted cell delivery; cell-material interactions; tissue engineering; nanomedicine; biomaterials; biosensors; nanoscale surface structuring
  • Orthopaedics and musculoskeletal science: osteoporosis; bone tumour biology; joint replacement; tissue engineering; biomedical engineering; imaging and materials science; performance/rehabilitation; peripheral nerve and spinal injury
  • Tissue engineering of musculoskeletal tissues
  • Tissue engineering of tumours - tumoroids. These have been developed to tetdrug efficacy against established and novel therapeutics.
  • Sports science: the extreme environment, surgical optimisation, orthopaedic outcomes, hip deformity, and human health and performance
  • Surgery: cancer surgery; tissue engineering; reconstructive surgery; transplantation; vascular surgery; surgical implants
  • Urology: interventional oncology; surgical and patient-related outcomes; molecular and stem cell biology; new medical device development.

Research environment

The Division of Surgery & Interventional Science has three multidisciplinary research departments.

The Research Department of Orthopaedics and Musculoskeletal Science conducts research at the interface of surgical and rehabilitation engineering for the optimisation of personalised clinical procedures.

The Research Department of Surgical Biotechnology focuses on the development and translation of innovative technologies into clinical practice, with the aim to drive the uptake of innovative treatments and improve surgical practice to enhance patient benefit.

The Research Department of Targeted Intervention focuses on the development of highly targeted novel imaging, sensing, management and energy-based interventions to detect and cure disease.

Registration for the full-time PhD programme is three years.

You register initially for the MPhil degree and will be eligible to upgrade to PhD between 9-18 months into the programme.

To upgrade, you submit a report detailing your research to date, then present and attend a viva about this work Students who are unsuccessful in this process or do not wish to progress onto the PhD degree can exit with an MPhil award.

To receive your degree, you submit a thesis covering your research findings and present it in the form of a viva to an internal and external examiner.

Following the third year of registration, you may register as a ‘completing research student’ (CRS), which allows you extra time to complete your thesis.

Registration for the part-time PhD programme is five years.

You register initially for the MPhil degree and will be eligible to upgrade to PhD between 15-24 months into the programme.

To upgrade, you submit a report detailing your research to date, then present and attend a viva about this work. Students who are unsuccessful in this process or do not wish to progress onto the PhD degree can exit with an MPhil award.

To receive your degree, you submit a thesis covering your research findings and present it in the form of a viva to an internal and external examiner.

Following your approved period of registration, you may register as a ‘completing research student’ (CRS), which allows you extra time to complete your thesis.

Accessibility

Details of the accessibility of UCL buildings can be obtained from AccessAble. Further information can also be obtained from the UCL Student Support and Wellbeing Services team.

Where you'll study

Medical lamp and equipment

As world leaders in medical and biomedical research, we design innovative courses for clinicians and scientists that meet new patient and industry needs. These are led by some of the greatest scientific minds, so you get a research-based learning experience. Our cutting-edge expertise ensures that you will be taught the latest techniques using the most advanced equipment. Our activities are split across three sites. Our Department of Targeted Intervention is based at Bloomsbury campus in central London. Our Department of Surgical Biotechnology is based at the Royal Free campus in Hampstead. Our Department of Orthopaedics and Musculoskeletal Science is based at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore, north-west London.


Fees and funding

Fees for this course

UK students International students
Fee description Full-time Part-time
Tuition fees (2025/26) £6,215 £3,105
Tuition fees (2025/26) £36,500 £18,250

The tuition fees shown are for the year indicated above. Fees for subsequent years may increase or otherwise vary. Where the programme is offered on a flexible/modular basis, fees are charged pro-rata to the appropriate full-time Master's fee taken in an academic session. Further information on fee status, fee increases and the fee schedule can be viewed on the UCL Students website: ucl.ac.uk/students/fees.

Additional costs

Depending on the PhD activities and the project, special equipment and/or laboratory consumables might be needed, which might require an Additional Fee Element (AFE).

The AFE is banded into four fixed amounts: £1,000, £2,500, £5,000, and £10,000, with one further band for variable sums over £10,000.

Every year, the Division supports travel costs for students to present their research at national and international conferences via the Robert Brown Travel Awards (up to 10 per year).

Some research groups may also have funding available to cover specific research costs. Applicants would need to check in advance with their primary supervisors.
 

UCL’s main teaching locations are in zones 1 (Bloomsbury) and zones 2/3 (UCL East). The cost of a monthly 18+ Oyster travel card for zones 1-2 is £114.50. This price was published by TfL in 2024. For more information on additional costs for prospective students and the cost of living in London, please view our estimated cost of essential expenditure at UCL's cost of living guide.

Funding your studies

Throughout the year, there are several funding opportunities for which the Division is eligible. Details of subject-specific opportunities can be obtained from the Divisional Senior Teaching Administrator.

For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.

Next steps

Deadlines and start dates are usually dictated by funding arrangements, so we advise you to check with the department or academic unit to see if you need to consider these when preparing your application. In most cases, you should identify and contact potential supervisors before applying.

There are three entry points for postgraduate research students each year: October, February and May.

Applicants are advised to apply at least 2-3 months prior to their start date.

Please note that you may submit applications for a maximum of two graduate programmes (or one application for the Law LLM) in any application cycle.

Choose your programme

Please read the Application Guidance before proceeding with your application.

Year of entry: 2025-2026

UCL is regulated by the Office for Students.