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Medical Imaging MRes + MPhil/PhD

London, Bloomsbury

This is the programme information for 2026/27 entry

If you require details of the previous year's programme, Medical Imaging MRes + MPhil/PhD (2025/26), click here

UK students International students

Study mode

UK tuition fees (2026/27)

£6,400

£3,200

Overseas tuition fees (2026/27)

£34,700

£17,350

Duration

3 calendar years

5 calendar years

Programme starts

October 2026

February 2027

May 2027

Applications accepted

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis but should be submitted at least three months prior to your preferred start date.

Apply for this course

Entry requirements

A minimum of an upper second-class UK Bachelor’s degree in Physics, Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics, or another closely related discipline, or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard. Knowledge and expertise gained in the workplace may also be considered, where appropriate.

The English language level for this course is: Level 2

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.

If you are intending to apply for a time-limited visa to complete your UCL studies (e.g. Student visa, Skilled worker visa, PBS dependant visa etc.) you may be required to obtain ATAS clearance. This will be confirmed to you if you obtain an offer of a place. Please note that ATAS processing times can take up to six months, so we recommend you consider these timelines when submitting your application to UCL.

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

Join us on this multidisciplinary, highly innovative MRes + MPhil/PhD programme that’s aimed at individuals ready to play their part in transforming healthcare and building the future of UK industry.

You’ll work on your own next-generation medical imaging research, development or enterprise, and be co-supervised by non-clinical and clinical scientists from across UCL.

The programme, which bridges the gap between engineering, clinical sciences and industry, is co-delivered with our NIHR Biomedical Research Centres and Unit.

It sits within i4health, a centre for doctoral training focused on intelligent, integrated imaging in healthcare. i4health aims to transform patient care through next-generation imaging tools and analysis.

You’ll be well placed to progress into work with multi-national medical device companies or small-scale startups, complete further training to work as a clinical scientist or engineer, or continue in academia.

Who this course is for

As a multidisciplinary subject that sits at the interface of physics, engineering, life sciences and computer science, you’ll have a diverse range of career options on graduation. Many students choose to continue in academia through the subsequent award of a fellowship or a postdoctoral research post.

This programme is ideal if you are interested in a life-long career in academia or a research organisation.

Read about what it takes to become a UCL graduate research student

What this course will give you

This degree offers you the following benefits and opportunities:

Study at i4health, a centre for doctoral training focused on intelligent, integrated imaging in healthcare.
Work with UCL’s internationally renowned academics in medical and biomedical imaging and devices, data science and AI, robotics, and human-centred design, and make use of the latest healthcare data and equipment. UCL is ranked 8th in the world for Medicine and 21st in the world for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (2025 QS World University Rankings by Subject).
Benefit from UCL’s significant activity in medical and biomedical imaging with several centres of excellence and significant funding for our research in this area.
Develop a sophisticated understanding of medical and biomedical imaging to produce intelligent, radical healthcare innovations, focused on either imaging or imaging-enabled systems.
Shape your studies to match your interests, with a wide range of optional specialisms including human-computer interaction, interventional systems, and medical imaging.
Work on a multidisciplinary PhD project that bridges the gap between engineering, clinical sciences and industry, with expert supervision and support from a pool of 100 non-clinical and clinical scientists from across UCL.
Learn directly from research staff in a close-knit community, with regular opportunities for networking and professional development.
UCL’s Bloomsbury campus is in the heart of a London district famous for its cultural and educational institutions.

Find out how your research could have an impact

The foundation of your career

Specialists are needed in the latest medical imaging technologies to help transform medicine and improve healthcare globally.

Graduates from our Department have obtained employment with a wide range of employers and sectors, such as financial technology, medtech industries, hospitals, clinical settings and academia.

Find out more on our Meet our Alumni page.

Thanks to this central role of UCL researchers in the MRI scientific community, I developed an excellent professional network early on, I had the opportunity of attending high-quality talks delivered by experts in my field several times per month, and I was exposed to the most recent innovations in my field.

Dr Emma Biondetti

Research Degree: Medical Imaging

Read more student testimonials

Employability

Working with a team of scientists and engineers in a world-leading research group, you’ll develop the scientific and engineering skills and knowledge to solve problems at the leading edge of human endeavour.

You’ll also build skills in project management, effective communication and teamwork in this high-quality working environment.

By the end of this programme, you’ll be well placed to pursue diverse careers and opportunities. You could take your newly-acquired skills into industry, and work with multi-national medical device companies or small-scale start-up enterprises.

Graduates of this course also go into the NHS or private healthcare sector to work as a clinical scientist or engineer, upon completion of further clinical training.

Networking

You’ll have regular opportunities to connect, collaborate and build professional contacts as part of your MRes + MPhil/PhD.

Benefit from supervision and mentorship from scientists and engineers who collaborate nationally and internationally across clinical, industrial and academic sectors.
Benefit from our national and international collaborations across the clinical, industrial and academic sectors, as well as a number of charitable, research council and international organisations. For example, by getting involved in projects involving radiotherapy and infant optical brain imaging work in Africa.
Work within research groups, and across UCL departments, to develop your knowledge and skills.
Network with external partners; based on the merit of their research, our doctoral students have previously been invited to attend and present at international conferences, private industry events and clinical centres to potential employers.
Build your networks further, and socialise, through clubs and societies at UCL, such as the UCL MedTech Society.

Teaching and learning

This comprehensive training programme ensures our students develop the skills to confidently produce academic research papers, deliver presentations at conferences and make significant contributions to their chosen research project.

The MRes year consists of compulsory units and transferable skills (120 credits) and optional modules (60 credits). The MRes project is compulsory and often (but not necessarily) forms the basis for PhD research.
Students are registered for the MPhil degree from Year 2.

After successful completion of MPhil/PhD upgrade, you will transfer to PhD status.

Advanced electives are available to all students in Years 2 and 3 (MPhil and PhD) and are designed to enhance learning and skills.

The modules of the MRes are assessed through exams, coursework, group work, lab sessions and project work.

A dissertation of up to 100,000 words for a PhD, or up to 60,000 words for an MPhil, is completed as a part of this programme.

Each taught MRes module consists of around 30-40 lectures over a 10-week term (excluding reading week).

In total, you’ll need to spend approximately 35-40 hours a week on your studies as a full-time student. You’ll spend approximately 10 contact hours a week in lectures and problem-solving classes and 25-30 hours per week of self-directed study.

Research areas and structure

UCL Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering is a global leader in research and education. We foster close collaborations with clinicians, practitioners and scientists in major teaching hospitals, which enables our researchers to be at the forefront of healthcare engineering and for our research students to learn about the latest innovations from leading experts in the field.

Medical Imaging research is focussed around the three major themes in the methodological research portfolio:

Imaging Technologies: imaging devices; image acquisition; image reconstruction.

Image Computing: image analysis; computational modelling.

Integrated Systems: actionable analytic systems; interventional systems.

Furthermore, our enabling translational portfolio are: cancer imaging; cardiovascular imaging; infection and inflammation imaging; neuroimaging; ophthalmology imaging; paediatric imaging; perinatal imaging.

Visit UCL Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering’s research website for more.

Research environment

Our vision is to train the translational imaging research leaders of the future, filling a critical gap identified in academia, pharmaceutical and medical devices industries, and creating internationally competitive research.
Our innovative training has a strong focus on new image acquisition technologies, novel data analysis methods and integration with computational modelling.

The MRes degree is a 1-year programme. You can progress onto the research degree for 3 years full-time to complete the MPhil/PhD.

You’ll initially register for the MPhil degree and then transfer to the PhD after successful completion of an upgrade viva (9-18 months after initial registration).

You’re permitted to include an internship, either by pausing your research or completing it alongside. You can discuss these opportunities with your supervisor and the programme directors. You’ll be encouraged to attend, and present at, optional conferences relating to your area of research.

The MRes degree is a 1 year programme. You can progress onto the research degree for 5 years part time to complete the MPhil/PhD.

You’ll need to register for the MPhil degree and then transfer to the PhD after successful completion of an upgrade viva (15-24 months after initial registration).

The opportunity to undertake an internship and attend conferences is also available to part-time students.

Accessibility

The department will endeavour to make reasonable adjustments for students with disabilities, including those with long-term health conditions, neurodivergence, learning differences and mental health conditions. This list is not exhaustive. If you're unsure of your eligibility for reasonable adjustments at UCL, please contact Student Support and Wellbeing Services.

Reasonable adjustments are implemented on a case-by-case basis. With the student's consent, reasonable adjustments are considered by UCL Student Support and Wellbeing Services, and where required, in collaboration with the respective department.

Details of the accessibility of UCL buildings can be obtained from AccessAble. Further information about support available can be obtained from UCL Student Support and Wellbeing Services.

For more information about the department and accessibility arrangements for your course, please contact the department.

Fees and funding

Fees for this course

UK students International students

Fee description	Full-time	Part-time
Tuition fees (2026/27)	£6,400	£3,200
Tuition fees (2026/27)	£34,700	£17,350

Postgraduate Taught students benefit from a cohort guarantee, meaning that their tuition fees will not increase during the course of the programme, but UCL reserves the right to increase tuition fees to reflect any sums (including levies, taxes, or similar financial charges) that UCL is required to pay any governmental authority in connection with tuition fees.

The tuition fees shown are for the year indicated above. Where the course 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

Students may be required to pay some additional costs associated with optional research conferences, which will vary greatly depending on the location and length of the conference. Please note that there is funding available for students in the department, which may partly or fully meet research conference costs.

For in-person teaching, 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 £119.90. This price was published by TfL in 2025. 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

Please visit the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Intelligent, Integrated, Imaging in Healthcare (i4Health) for current funding information. https://www.ucl.ac.uk/intelligent-imaging-healthcare/ For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.

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

See all the ways you can fund your studies

Next steps

Medical Imaging research is focused around the three major themes in the methodological research portfolio:

Imaging Technologies: imaging devices; image acquisition; image reconstruction.
Image Computing: image analysis; computational modelling.
Integrated Systems: actionable analytic systems; interventional systems.