Oxford mphil programs

I am having trouble understanding why, given that Oxford is an elite school. Any ideas? Is the program worth attending?

The good economics students get a PhD in Economics I can't think of many schools that have a Masters in Economics Economics is mostly as a theoretical basis in undergrad. It's different in UK. There you don't generally apply for a PhD directly. The most extreme example is the setup at LSE now: you apply for the MSc, which is a one-year stand-alone degree. If you get above a distinction average, you go and do the MRes, which adds another year of more difficult coursework.

As for why they accepted many applicants, I don't know. The calibre of applicants is likely pretty strong, given that people apply for it with academia in mind, rather than IBD jobs. And Oxford has to compete with a lot of other really great schools for those people: by and large, your Harvards, MITs, Berkeleys, Princetons and Stanfords are probably more desirable for most PhD candidates.

There is no coursework for the MPhil in Economics at Oxford. MPhil at Oxford is actually an MSc in disguise and unique and self-sufficient in its own ways. To add on the previous comment: There are on average applicants per year see official website , 50 students are selected. However, this figure cannot be taken as a benchmark, as Oxford MPhil charges applicants 50 pounds per application, which filters out thousands of applications.

Depends on your qualifications? Probably more in the UK than US duh. Don't know. They're different animals so you can always argue about how one complements the other. Dolorum soluta officiis ipsa vel qui. Nesciunt voluptas dolorem dolore in. Sed aliquid quae occaecati perspiciatis. Architecto tempore est itaque minus quam et. Share on LinkedIn. Share on Reddit. About the course The MPhil in Economics is designed to provide rigorous training in economic theory, applied economics, and econometric methods.

Supervision The allocation of graduate supervision for this course is the responsibility of the Department of Economics and it is not always possible to accommodate the preferences of incoming graduate students to work with a particular member of staff.

Assessment The three compulsory courses in microeconomics, macroeconomics and econometrics are examined before the start of the third term of the first year. Changes to this course and your supervision The University will seek to deliver this course in accordance with the description set out in this course page. Other courses you may wish to consider If you're thinking about applying for this course, you may also wish to consider the courses listed below.

Economic and Social History MSc. Economics DPhil. Economics MPhil. Economics combined MPhil and DPhil. Economics for Development MSc. Financial Economics MSc. Entry requirements for entry in Proven and potential academic excellence Degree-level qualifications As a minimum, applicants should hold or be predicted to achieve the equivalent of the following UK qualifications:.

English language requirement This course requires proficiency in English at the University's higher level. Supporting documents You will be required to supply supporting documents with your application, including references and an official transcript. Performance at interview. How your application is assessed Your application will be assessed purely on academic merit and potential, according to the published entry requirements for the course.

Admissions panels and assessors All recommendations to admit a student involve the judgement of at least two members of the academic staff with relevant experience and expertise, and must also be approved by the Director of Graduate Studies or Admissions Committee or equivalent within the department.

Financial Declaration If you are offered a place, you will be required to complete a Financial Declaration in order to meet your financial condition of admission.

Funding The University expects to be able to offer around 1, full or partial graduate scholarships across the collegiate University in Additional information. Living costs In addition to your course fees, you will need to ensure that you have adequate funds to support your living costs for the duration of your course.

College preference All graduate students at Oxford belong to a department or faculty and a college or hall except those taking non-matriculated courses. Balliol College. Brasenose College. Campion Hall. Christ Church. Corpus Christi College. Exeter College. Harris Manchester College. Hertford College. Jesus College. Keble College. Kellogg College. Lady Margaret Hall. Linacre College. Lincoln College. Magdalen College. Mansfield College. Merton College.

New College. Nuffield College. Oriel College. Pembroke College. The Queen's College. Regent's Park College. Reuben College. St Anne's College. St Antony's College. St Benet's Hall. St Catherine's College. St Cross College. It also contains an extensive collection of manuscripts and original source materials.

Books cannot be borrowed from the Bodleian and must instead be consulted within one of its reading rooms. In addition, nearly college, institute and departmental libraries fall under the auspices of Oxford University Library Services.

The University expects to be able to offer around 1, full or partial graduate scholarships across the collegiate University in You will be automatically considered for the majority of Oxford scholarships , if you fulfil the eligibility criteria and submit your graduate application by the relevant December or January deadline. For further details about searching for funding as a graduate student visit our dedicated Funding pages, which contain information about how to apply for Oxford scholarships requiring an additional application, details of external funding, loan schemes and other funding sources.

Please ensure that you visit individual college websites for details of any college-specific funding opportunities using the links provided on our college pages or below:. Please note that not all the colleges listed above may accept students on this course. For details of those which do, please refer to the College preference section of this page. Further information about funding opportunities for this course can be found on the department's website. Further details about fee status eligibility can be found on the fee status webpage.

Course fees are payable each year, for the duration of your fee liability your fee liability is the length of time for which you are required to pay course fees.

For courses lasting longer than one year, please be aware that fees will usually increase annually. For details, please see our guidance on changes to fees and charges. Course fees cover your teaching as well as other academic services and facilities provided to support your studies. Unless specified in the additional information section below, course fees do not cover your accommodation, residential costs or other living costs. For more information about course fees and fee liability, please see the Fees section of this website.

There are no compulsory elements of this course that entail additional costs beyond fees and living costs. However, as part of your course requirements, you may need to choose a dissertation, a project or a thesis topic. Please note that, depending on your choice of topic and the research required to complete it, you may incur additional expenses, such as travel and vaccination expenses, conference attendance, research expenses, and field trips. In addition to your course fees, you will need to ensure that you have adequate funds to support your living costs for the duration of your course.

For the academic year, the range of likely living costs for full-time study is between c. Full information, including a breakdown of likely living costs in Oxford for items such as food, accommodation and study costs, is available on our living costs page. All graduate students at Oxford belong to a department or faculty and a college or hall except those taking non-matriculated courses.

If you apply for a place on this course you will have the option to express a preference for one of the colleges listed below, or you can ask us to find a college for you. The Colleges section of this website provides information about the college system at Oxford , as well as factors you may wish to consider when deciding whether to express a college preference.

For some courses, the department or faculty may have provided some additional advice below to help you to decide. You are advised to review the profiles of academic staff before you apply as successful applications always depend on the DPIR's capacity to offer appropriate supervision. However, you do not need to contact academic staff members before you apply.

The set of documents you should send with your application to this course comprises the following:. Your transcripts should give detailed information of the individual grades received in your university-level qualifications to date. You should only upload official documents issued by your institution and any transcript not in English should be accompanied by a certified translation.

More information about the transcript requirement is available in the Application Guide. Most applicants choose to submit a document of one to two pages highlighting their academic achievements and any relevant professional experience.

In your statement, please reflect on the aspects of international relations that you would like to learn more about, on how undertaking this course would help you achieve this goal, and on your relevant experience and education.

Please focus on your academic objectives and purposes rather than personal achievements, interests and aspirations. Your statement should give an indication of the area of your intended research project and who among the faculty you would like to work with. If possible, discuss the question s you would like to investigate and the sources and methods you plan to use. We expect that your ideas would change if you were admitted to the programme, as you would acquire new skills and insights in your first year.

You should nevertheless make the best effort you can to share with the admissions panel your current ideas for a research project. The statement should be written in English and not exceed the word limit. Please ensure that the word count is clearly displayed on the document. Your statement will be assessed for your reasons for applying to this particular MPhil programme; evidence of motivation for and understanding of the proposed area of study; the ability to present a reasoned case in English; the academic attributes that you will bring to the programme; the skills that you hope to gain from the MPhil; and your commitment to the subject.

You should submit academic essays on any subject or theme within the discipline of international relations but preferably ones that relate to your proposed area of study. The essays may be written specially for the application or may have been produced for other purposes, for instance as a coursework submission within a previous degree programme. Essays that comprise extracts or excerpted sections from longer pieces are acceptable but should be prefaced with a brief note that places them in context.

Essays should be within the specified word limits. You should not submit one longer essay or two essays of variable lengths. All written work should be in English. The word count does not need to include any bibliography or brief footnotes. If possible, please ensure that the word count is clearly displayed on the document. This will be assessed for understanding of the subject area; understanding of problems in the area; ability to construct and defend an argument; powers of analysis; and powers of expression.

Whilst you must register three referees, the department may start the assessment of your application if two of the three references are submitted by the course deadline and your application is otherwise complete. You will choose the topic, with the guidance of your supervisor, and, in most cases, spend some of the summer doing research and gathering data. In the second year, you will take your chosen option courses and continue work on your thesis. More information can be found in the course handbook on the department's course page.

Each course entails three to five hours of teaching per week, delivered through lectures, classes and workshops. Class sizes are small — between 5 and 30 students — encouraging active participation and enabling students to learn from each other.

You prepare for sessions by reading a selection of recommended books, book chapters and articles. You will be allocated a general supervisor who will support your academic development and with whom you will meet regularly. In your first year, you will identify someone to supervise your thesis, typically someone from the MPhil core staff.

You will also have a college advisor whom you may consult on issues concerning your personal wellbeing. The allocation of graduate supervision for this course is the responsibility of the Oxford Department of International Development. It is not always possible to accommodate the preferences of incoming graduate students to work with a particular member of staff. Under exceptional circumstances a supervisor may be found outside the Oxford Department of International Development. Formal assessment will normally comprise a three-hour written examination at the beginning of the third term for each foundation course; a three-hour written examination at the end of the third term and a research design essay, submitted in the same term, for research methods; and two 5,word essays for the core course.

You must pass all examinations to continue into Year 2. There is an opportunity to re-sit in September. You will be formally assessed for your two option courses as well as the 30,word thesis submitted during the final term.

Further information on the thesis can be found on the departmental website. Others have gone on to jobs in the United Nations, government, diplomacy, politics, NGOs, the media, art, business, finance, management, technology and development consultancies.

The University is respected globally and the extensive and powerful alumni network is a valuable asset for all new graduates.

The University will seek to deliver this course in accordance with the description set out in this course page. However, there may be situations in which it is desirable or necessary for the University to make changes in course provision, either before or after registration.

The safety of students, staff and visitors is paramount and major changes to delivery or services may have to be made in circumstances of a pandemic including Covid , epidemic or local health emergency. In addition, in certain circumstances, for example due to visa difficulties or because the health needs of students cannot be met, it may be necessary to make adjustments to course requirements for international study.

Where possible your academic supervisor will not change for the duration of your course. However, it may be necessary to assign a new academic supervisor during the course of study or before registration for reasons which might include illness, sabbatical leave, parental leave or change in employment. For further information please see our page on changes to courses and the provisions of the student contract regarding changes to courses. If you're thinking about applying for this course, you may also wish to consider the courses listed below.

These courses may have been suggested due to their similarity with this course, or because they are offered by the same department or faculty. As a minimum, applicants should hold or be predicted to achieve the equivalent of the following UK qualifications:.

As one of the purposes of the course is to provide a basic education in the subject, in exceptional cases, students who have not specialised in a social science may be admitted to read for the MPhil in Development Studies. It should be recognised that for some students, the transition to a social studies approach to learning may be challenging. Entrance to the course is very competitive and most successful applicants have a first-class degree or the equivalent.

This course requires proficiency in English at the University's higher level. If your first language is not English, you may need to provide evidence that you meet this requirement. The minimum scores required to meet the University's higher level are detailed in the table below.

Your test must have been taken no more than two years before the start date of your course. Our Application Guide provides further information about the English language test requirement. You will be required to supply supporting documents with your application, including references and an official transcript.

See 'How to apply' for instructions on the documents you will need and how these will be assessed. Your application will be assessed purely on academic merit and potential, according to the published entry requirements for the course. The After you apply section of this website provides further information about the academic assessment of your application , including the potential outcomes. Please note that any offer of a place may be subject to academic conditions, such as achieving a specific final grade in your current degree course.

These conditions may vary depending upon your individual academic circumstances. Students are considered for shortlisting and selected for admission without regard to age, disability, gender reassignment, marital or civil partnership status, pregnancy and maternity, race including colour, nationality and ethnic or national origins , religion or belief including lack of belief , sex, sexual orientation, as well as other relevant circumstances including parental or caring responsibilities or social background.

However, please note the following:. Further information about processing special category data for the purposes of positive action and information about using your data to assess your eligibility for funding , can be found in our Postgraduate Applicant Privacy Policy. All recommendations to admit a student involve the judgement of at least two members of the academic staff with relevant experience and expertise, and must also be approved by the Director of Graduate Studies or Admissions Committee or equivalent within the department.

Admissions panels or committees will always include at least one member of academic staff who has undertaken appropriate training. If you receive an offer of a place at Oxford, your offer letter will give full details of your offer and any academic conditions, such as achieving a specific final grade in your current degree course. In addition to any academic conditions which are set, you will be required to meet the following requirements:.

If you are offered a place, you will be required to complete a Financial Declaration in order to meet your financial condition of admission.