Master's degree programmes FAQ
Find some of the most frequently asked questions (and their answers!) about our Master's degree programmes
Degree programmes
1. How many contact hours should we expect to have as a student?
4. Does our dissertation have to be strictly related to one of our module choices?
5. How are students assessed? Do we have exams at the end in January, summer, or do we have essays?
6. Are students given chances to write formative essays, just to practise our writing technique?
7. How do postgraduate essays differ from those we have been writing at an undergraduate level?
8. Is there opportunity for travelling abroad during the degree?
11. Would there be a possibility to change from a Full-time to a Part-time course?
The Institute
2. What is the rough percentage of international students in your programmes?
3. Around how many students does each programme take?
Careers
2. Does UCL support students in the search for jobs?
3. What are the sorts of career paths that previous students have taken?
Student experience
2. How was your transition from an undergraduate to a postgraduate degree?
3. Aside from the academic side of UCL, is there a social side? Clubs, etc.?
4. What is the help like within the Institute, are they attentive?
Admissions, Visas, and Funding
4. Where can I look for scholarships?
6. Is it possible to defer my offer? If so, what is the deadline for this?
Degree programmes
1. How many contact hours should we expect to have as a student?
You will take six modules overall (2.5 and 3.5 each term), plus write a dissertation. Modules usually meet for two hours per week, so for one term that means five hours per week, and for the other term seven hours per week. All lecturers also hold weekly office hours and we encourage students to drop-in for additional feedback and discussions about the course material. During Term 3 and the summer, you will then meet with your dissertation supervisor periodically to discuss the progress of your independent research project. A 15-credit module at the Institute is usually 2 contact hours per week. The estimated workload for a 15- credit module is 150 hours: 80 hours - reading material; 20 hours – lectures/seminars; and 50 hours – essay writing. In addition, students may be required to complete one or more specified tasks in order to fulfil module requirements: the module tutor will specify any such requirements.
Student take: Most of my larger classes (more than 20) held a one-hour lecture followed by a seminar with fewer students where you can ask more pointed questions and expand on details. Smaller classes (roughly 20 or less) were set up as a seminar where readings were discussed at length and more of an organic conversation occurred. A lot of what a postgraduate degree is, in my experience, revolves around thoughtful readings that form discussions in class. Back to degree programmes faq
2. Is it common for students to take modules from outside of the department (in other UCL departments or at other University of London colleges)? If so, do you have any examples of which modules people choose to take?
Students can take some modules in other departments or at other universities (if similar modules are not provided at UCL) and need to discuss the rationale with their Programme Director and get their approval.
Student take: In my experience, the answer to this is yes. 30 credits are allowed to be taken from other departments. I took a Philosophy module in the first term and an Anthropology module in the second term focused on Practical Documentary Filmmaking. Back to degree programmes faq
3. When and how do we access information about modules? Is the list on the website a good indication of what will most likely be on offer then? When will we be able to see and then pick our module choices?
The list on the website is a good indication of what will be on offer, but just bear in mind that not all modules run every year. If you have any questions on specific modules feel free to email us. Visit the graduate modules page.
4. Does our dissertation have to be strictly related to one of our module choices?
It depends on the programme. For example, for some programmes your dissertation has to be related to the issues we discuss in class e.g. economic development, inequality, etc. For the MA US Studies programme, it can be on any topic relating to the history and politics of the US, regardless of what you have studied in your modules. MSc programmes tend to be more focused, while MA programmes allow for a greater breadth of research areas. Back to degree programmes faq
5. How are students assessed? Do we have exams at the end in January, summer, or do we have essays?
Many modules are assessed by a 3 or 4,000-word essay that is usually due at the beginning of the next term. For instance, the essays for Term 1 Autumn modules will be due in early January, on the first day of Term 2. There are no exams in our department. Some courses may, however, have more than one marked assignment. If that’s the case, the first assignment before the Christmas break. Back to degree programmes faq
6. Are students given chances to write formative essays, just to practise our writing technique?
Many modules have formative writing opportunities built into the syllabus. For instance, some modules encourage students to contribute 300-word weekly ‘memos’ that help to structure discussion. UCL also has a Writing Centre, which offers individual tutorials. You can find out more through this link. Back to degree programmes faq
7. How do postgraduate essays differ from those we have been writing at an undergraduate level?
Your question about the difference between UG and Master’s level writing is a good one! With a long answer. To give a brief response: master’s level writing tends to demonstrate more awareness of theory and perspective—for instance, master’s level essays might take into account the different schools of thought that approach a particular topic. The process of research at the master’s level is also more independent: you will be expected to search for books and articles on your own to complement the reading lists you are given.
By ‘theory’ I am speaking broadly about academic perspectives. In politics, you could think of institutionalism, rational choice, or culturalism (for example) as different theoretical frameworks. In history modules, this might simply be a sense of historiography. For instance, two historians might both write about the same events, but in a very different way. A master’s level essay will be aware of this, and might discuss the kinds of assumptions that each historian is making, even if the historian didn’t lay it out specifically as ‘theory’. In other words, at the postgraduate level we expect students to be able to identify different scholarly perspectives, pull arguments apart, examine how arguments are supported, and make assessments about what types of arguments are persuasive or not and for what reasons. Back to degree programmes faq
8. Is there opportunity for travelling abroad during the degree?
Yes, many students conduct fieldwork in Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America for their dissertations. Students can also apply for a Research Grant from the department to contribute to the costs of fieldwork. Click on this link to know more about some testimonials from former students about their fieldwork experiences. Back to degree programmes faq
9. I come from a Humanities background and I was wondering if any other previous students have done the same, and how they coped with the social/economic sciences side of the degree?
Our modules do not require previous knowledge in political science, economics or development studies. In fact, all courses are developed in a way that builds up your knowledge of discipline-specific content from the very basics. Back to degree programmes faq
10. Is it possible to enrol in the programmes as a part-time student? If so, how will the course be structured?
Yes, you can take the programme part-time over two years. You will take six modules, but spread out over four terms instead of two. So that means that some terms you’ll only take a single module, and others you will take two modules. In the first year you will take the Researching the Americas module. You will write your dissertation in the second half of your second year. Back to degree programmes faq
11. Would there be a possibility to change from a Full-time to a Part-time course?
Yes, this is possible - but only allowed under certain circumstances. Please speak to the Teaching Administation Team if you need to do this. Back to degree programmes faq
The Institute
1. What are some interesting/focal areas of study right now within the institution? (Something that the Institute is involved in either locally or regionally?)
There’s a big range, both geographically and topically. Broadly speaking, inequality in various forms is a common theme among many of the Institute’s staff, as is identity formation. There are multiple research projects that look at (amongst other topics) Cuba, tax policy, Human Rights in Latin America, and intellectual history of the US. Here is a link to the bigger projects housed at the Institute, but each staff member has other projects, as well.
Examples in terms of applied collaborations/research-driven impact projects include:
Par Engstrom has a few projects on human rights’ protections that involve collaboration with Latin American institutions. In fact, he co-edited a report on Torture Prevention published by the International Bar Association. You can see it through this link.
Other projects can be seen on our Research Pages.
Past examples include:
Maxine Molyneux is developing projects with the United Nations on capturing international feminist movements in Latin America.
Emily Morris works closely with Cuba-based organisation and is leading the UCL-Cuba collaboration project. Link to the UCL-Cuba project.
Kate Quinn is Chair of the Haiti Support Group and has worked with other organisations in the Caribbean.
Student take: Also, as a student I feel as though a lot of the specialty knowledge gained from a postgraduate programme at the Institute stems from the important research being conducted by the academic staff. You can learn more about some of the amazing lecturers and their research interests by visiting the academic staff page here.
Back to faq about the institute
2. What is the rough percentage of international students in your programmes?
These numbers vary on a yearly basis, but there is always a significant number of international students on our programmes each year. Back to faq about the institute
3. Around how many students does each programme take?
Numbers for each programme vary per year. Each year, we tend to have roughly 70 master’s students in total (i.e., across our programmes). Back to faq about the institute
Careers
1. Are there opportunities for students to start an internship in areas related to the degree programmes?
Student take: UCL has a careers service that has access to a comprehensive database of internships happening around London. Once at UCL, you can meet with a Careers Service Advisor who will help you build a CV, work on interview skills, write a cover letter and find an internship. Also, UCL has a wide range of volunteering opportunities available to students.
We also have an extensive network of alumni who work in London, so you could get in touch with someone working in your area of interest. Back to careers faq
2. Does UCL support students in the search for jobs?
UCL offers excellent career advice services and we also organise in-house “career/professional development” events. You can find out more about UCL Career Services. Click on this link to visit their website.
3. What are the sorts of career paths that previous students have taken?
Our recent graduates usually find jobs in sectors such as: UK government, foreign governments, international organisations, consulting, market intelligence, journalism, finance/banking, or NGOs. We also have a good number of recent graduates who continue their studies and enrol in PhD programmes in the UK or US universities. Back to careers faq
Student experience
1. Is it plausible to apply for a relevant PhD after receiving a Master’s degree in the Institute rather than. I’m a bit worried that one-year Master’s programme would mean less competitive than MPhils when applying.
Yes, absolutely. In fact, many of our students apply to PhD programmes with us or elsewhere after completing their master’s degrees. In our own experiences (and experiences of our past students), getting a master’s degree should not place you at a disadvantage when applying for PhD programmes. All of our master’s degrees require completion of our research methods course and an independent research project (i.e., dissertations). These will be fundamental when applying for a PhD programme in the UK, the US, or elsewhere.
Being in a small department such as ours also gives us the opportunity to know students well and provide close dissertation supervision—which you prepare you for undertaking a PhD programme. Furthermore, the fact that the Institute also offers a PhD programme means that we act as PhD supervisors and know what other programmes are looking for. Back to student experience faq
2. How was your transition from an undergraduate to a postgraduate degree?
Student take: I’m from the US but chose to do my undergrad in Journalism at City, University of London. I then took a year off to work on a documentary and am now at UCL. The transition was quite seamless as I was already very familiar with London. That being said, UCL does a great job at making its students feel at home. Back to student experience faq
3. Aside from the academic side of UCL, is there a social side? Clubs, etc.?
Student take: There are so many clubs, sports, activities orbiting UCL - it’s actually a lot to process. When/if you arrive at UCL they will inform you about ways you can get involved and meet people. There are many societies ranging from Knitting Clubs, Hiking Clubs, all kinds of sports, academic clubs, dancing clubs, really you name it and UCL has it and if they don’t it’s likely that you can create a society around your interests. I was involved with student radio and had a biweekly podcast show. I also wrote for UCL’s magazines and newspapers, was involved with our Psychedelic Society, Writing Society, Yoga Society, and Hiking Club. On top of that, the Institute holds panel discussions on topics ranging from US foreign policy to Latin American trade. There really is a community of interested people doing interesting things at UCL. You can find more about clubs and societies on the UCL Students’ Union website.
Our Student Society launched in 2022.
Back to student experience faq
4. What is the help like within the Institute, are they attentive?
Student take: The Institute is a wonderful community to be a part of. All of the staff, whether you study directly with them or not, are available to chat about your research interests and to help you along your learning journey. There is an intellectual vibrancy to the Institute which makes studying there worthwhile, as if you’re part of something bigger and more important than just yourself. Back to student experience faq
Admissions, Visas, and Funding
1. Do you have any tips for the admissions process, is there anything that the institute really appreciates?
Student take: While there’s no one-off piece of advice on how to get accepted, I would say it’s important to demonstrate a passion in whatever subject you apply for. Back to admissions, visas, and funding faq
2. I am interested in more than one programme. Is there a way to apply jointly for two different programs or would I have to apply as two completely different applications?
If you are interested in more than one of our programmes, then please do submit applications for each one. In practice, there is quite a bit of flexibility in terms of which modules you take. There is also the possibility of switching into a different programme once you enrol. Back to admissions, visas, and funding faq
3. I received an unconditional offer and I would like to know whether there is a deadline for accepting the offer and also if you recommend to confirm the spot as soon as possible, given the current circumstances.
Check the deadlines, but in general, we would say that it’s better not to wait, but accept earlier for planning purposes. Back to admissions, visas, and funding faq
4. Where can I look for scholarships?
Useful sources of information on scholarships and funding are listed below
Link to the UCL Scholarships and Funding webpage
Link to other sources of information
Back to admissions, visas, and funding faq
5. How much time UCL needs after a student accepts an offer to issue student visa documents (i.e. UCAS form)?
Students can apply for their Visa in the three months prior to the start date of their programmes, so UCL Admissions can start issuing CAS numbers (which the students will need in order to apply for their Visas) from the end of June. From the moment a student accepts their unconditional offer until they receive their CAS number, it takes approximately 10 days minimum but it may be longer, depending on the number of overseas applications Admissions have to process. From then, the time it takes for countries to issue the Visa documents depends on the country, with some taking longer than others.
Student take: As a US student who has completed the Tier-4 visa process twice, it’s fair to say that it’s tedious and not always clear. That being said, UCL’s Immigration Advice Team is a great resource for answering questions. It’s important to read all the information on UCL’s website before reaching out. You can book an appointment with UCL’s Immigration Advice Team. Visit their website via this link. Back to admissions, visas, and funding faq
6. Is it possible to defer my offer? If so, what is the deadline for this?
Only under exceptional circumstances - please speak to the Teaching Administration Team ASAP. Note that you can only defer for one year. Back to admissions, visas, and funding faq