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Primary Care and Population Health MPhil/PhD

London, Bloomsbury and London, Hampstead (Royal Free Hospital)

This is the programme information for 2026/27 entry

If you require details of the previous year's programme, Primary Care and Population Health 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 academic years

5 academic 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 and/or a Master’s degree (preferably with a merit or distinction) in a relevant discipline, or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard.

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

The Primary Care and Population Health research degree is based within the UCL Institute of Epidemiology and Health Care (UCL IEHC).

You will join an extremely engaging MPhil/PhD programme, which currently supports a vibrant community of over 100 students from all over the world.

You will be supported to gain a wealth of skills, experience and networking opportunities that are relevant for a wide range of future careers, both within academia and more widely in the healthcare, industry and governmental sector.

You will receive direct supervision from world-leading academics based on UCL's campus in the heart of London. All PhD students are supported by supervisory panels of multidisciplinary staff, as well as student mentors, and departmental graduate tutors.

Who this course is for

This research degree provides training for those looking for a career in epidemiology, public health and health care policy, either in academia, industry or public health practice. It is offered full-time or part-time, the latter option being suitable for those who continue in employment while gaining a research qualification.

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

What this course will give you

This research degree will provide you with access to a wide range of supporting opportunities that will increase your ability to develop transferable skills, that are sought after by national and international employers.

Skills Development Programme

UCL's DocSkills Development Programme is open to all PhD students at UCL and it offers an extensive list of development opportunities. The purpose of the programme is to give you the opportunity to expand your research and transferable skills in order to support your research, professional development and employability. Find out more about UCL's DocSkills Development Programme.

Mentoring programme

We offer a Peer-Level Research Student Mentoring Scheme and provide all new research degree students with a peer-mentor upon arrival. The mentor you are allocated will generally be a second or third year PhD student.

Careers

We take career support very seriously at UCL and you can find out more within the programme's Careers and Employability section.

Early Career Researchers Forum

The institute’s Early Career Researcher Forum (ECF) is an ongoing and expanding programme of regular seminars for postdoctoral researchers and PhD students. Previous events focused on how to apply for jobs in academia, authorship and publishing, patient and public involvement in research, using social media in research (including film), how PhD students can best prepare for their viva, and oral and poster presentations.

Journal Club

A PhD and junior researcher journal club group which meets in an informal setting. With the aim of improving students' critical analysis and methodology skills, the Journal Club discusses papers from a broad range of topics on health promotion and disease prevention. The club is run by students and facilitated by a senior member of academic staff within the institute.

Lunchtime Seminar Series

The Lunchtime Seminar Series is delivered by the department's research groups and PhD students. The seminars typically take place once a week.

PhD Poster Competition

Every year we run a PhD student poster competition which is an opportunity to share students' work with members of staff, outsiders who will be visiting for our Open Day and fellow students.

3-minute thesis competition (3MT)

The institute runs an annual 3-minute thesis competition which is an academic competition that challenges PhD students to describe their research within three minutes to a general audience. 3MT celebrates the discoveries made by research students and encourages them to communicate the importance of their research to the broader community. It's a great opportunity for students to practice their presentation skills, meet other candidates and have a chance to win prize money.

Teaching Opportunities for PhD Students

The institute is committed and recognises the importance of providing postgraduate teaching assistant opportunities for PhD students, so they can gain valuable experience during their studies at UCL. Formal training is provided and a wide range of teaching opportunities are offered each term.

Find out how your research could have an impact

The foundation of your career

UCL IEHC produces graduates with the skills and knowledge sought after by government departments and public sector organisations worldwide, as well as leading academic institutions.

Employability

This research degree aims to provide excellent and challenging training for exceptional students, so that they may successfully pursue careers in:

Local and central government
NHS trusts
Public health organisations
Hospitals and clinical trial units
Academic researchers and university lecturers
Policy management
Government advisors
Charity and non-governmental sectors

This degree can be varied and may have an international dimension, including fieldwork carried out abroad, setting up a study within the UK or other countries, or using secondary data from some of the UK’s largest, most comprehensive longitudinal datasets many of which are housed within the institute.

You will also have access to UCL's Doctoral Skills Development Programme, which will enable you to expand your research and transferable skills in order to support your research, professional development and employability.

Networking

The institute's research departments collaborate with third sector and governmental organisations, as well as members of the media, both nationally and internationally to ensure the highest possible impact of their work beyond the academic community. Students are encouraged to do internships with relevant organisations where funding permits. Members of staff also collaborate closely with academics from leading institutions globally.

Teaching and learning

Learning is mostly self-directed with input from PhD supervisors. The training and development programme for each student is overseen and supported by a Thesis Committee panel, appointed by the supervisory team.

PhD final assessment is by means of a thesis, which should demonstrate your ability to pursue original research based upon a good understanding of the research techniques and concepts appropriate to the discipline.

Your thesis must also represent your distinct and significant contribution to the subject, either through the discovery of new knowledge, through the connection of previously unrelated facts, the development of a new theory, or the revision of older views.

Your thesis should reflect the exercise of critical judgement with regard to both your own work and that of other scholars in the field.

You are required to register initially for the MPhil degree with the expectation of transfer to PhD after successful completion of an upgrade viva. For a successful upgrade to PhD, you prepare a written report, give an oral presentation and pass an oral examination.

For a PhD award, you will be examined on your submitted thesis, this involves a viva (an oral exam) with two independent examiners.

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. Full-time research students can take 27 days of annual leave, plus eight days of Bank holidays and six UCL closure days.

Research areas and structure

This course offers you the opportunity to join a multidisciplinary research department with experts who focus on a wide range of public health concerns such as:

Find out more.

Research environment

UCL is among the world's top ten universities (QS World University Rankings 2026) with a reputation for high-quality research. Located in the heart of London, it is a stimulating and exciting environment in which to study.

Ranked number one in the UK for research power and impact in medicine, health and life sciences (REF 2021)
Ranked 3rd in the world for public health (ShanghaiRankings Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2024)
Ranked 9th in the world: among the top universities in the world (QS World University Rankings 2026)
UCL can bring the full power of a multi-faculty university to bear on discussions of population health, involving academics from the wide range of disciplines necessary to tackle some of the most difficult issues in public health.

More specifically, the UCL Institute of Epidemiology and Health Care brings together three research departments, whose interests span the life course from childhood to old age, and research from the origins of disease to the development of innovative interventions.

The three research Departments are:

Full-time students are normally registered for a minimum of three years.

All students initially register for the MPhil degree before being upgraded (typically early in the second year) to the PhD degree. For a successful upgrade to a PhD, students must prepare a written report, give an oral presentation and pass an oral examination.

Students are regularly monitored to ensure that they are making good progress and that supervisory arrangements are satisfactory to both the student and supervisor. Once the student has completed their research and submitted their thesis, they have a viva (an oral exam) with two examiners.

Part-time students are required to register for a minimum of five years.

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

There may be additional costs related to participating in scientific meetings, conferences, short courses, or data collection/access, but these are all optional.

The students can apply for financial support (up to £400) to attend conferences, provided by the Faculty of Population Health Sciences.

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

You can explore funding opportunities via these sites:

The following studentships have been received in previous years: ESRC, MRC, MRC/ESRC, NIHR, Cancer Research UK, Diabetes UK, Wellcome Trust, European Union and British Heart Foundation.

Self-funding or part-time study alongside part-time work are also options, but it is important to ensure you have the plans and resources in place at the start of the PhD to enable you to commit and engage fully, for the entire duration of the programme.

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

We accept research degree applications throughout the year. Please note: essential information about the application process can be found on the institute website.

Frequently asked questions

Question: Should I have a supervisor before applying to do a PhD at UCL’s Department of Primary Care and Population Health (PCPH)?
Answer: Yes. You should have a primary supervisor before submitting your formal application to UCL. Before applying, you should contact at least one academic member of staff and ask to discuss your PhD research ideas. You can find staff at PCPH here. Read our staff members’ public profiles to identify someone whose research area or methodological expertise matches your interests. Before committing to be your supervisor, staff members will require you to send them a research proposal with an outline of your research questions, short review of background literature, and proposed methodology.

Question: Can I do a PhD at the Department of Primary Care and Population Health, but have a supervisor from another department?
Answer: Every PhD student has at least two supervisors. The two supervisors can be from different departments. One supervisor is designated the Principal Supervisor. You will become a member of the same department as your Principal Supervisor. Your other supervisor(s) may be from different departments at UCL.

Question: Can I do my PhD remotely and meet my supervisors online?
Answer: Generally, the MPhil/PhD programmes are designed to be studied face-to-face with regular visits to the UCL campus. Though the pattern of physical attendance required will depend on the type of research you are carrying out and will be subject to approval by your prospective supervisors and any conditions set out by UCL. If you wish to apply for a PhD which is entirely remote for the duration of your registration, it is likely you will need to make a case for a non-resident PhD registration. This would be subject to the agreement of your prospective supervisors and would require them to provide supporting documentation to make a case to the Research Degrees Committee for consideration

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

This course requires two references. Further information regarding references can be found on this Selecting your references page.

Choose your programme

Please read the Application Guidance before proceeding with your application.

Year of entry: 2026-2027

Research Degree: Primary Care and Population Health, Full-time

Research Degree: Primary Care and Population Health, Part-time

Year of entry: 2025-2026