Masters Year Funding

Voyager2002

Gingernutmeg wrote: »

Ah, thanks for that - it clears up something I was wondering about. My tutors were suggesting that I apply for the MPhil at Cambridge and I did wonder why it seemed only to be an Oxbridge thing and wasn't really offered anywhere else alongside the 'ordinary' MA/MSc courses. You learn something new every day

And you know why 'Oxbridge' are different? They can't call one of these degrees, earned by being taught and assessed over a one or two year period, an MA. That is because all Oxbridge graduates can convert their BA into an MA by waiting a couple of years and then paying a fee -- ten pounds, I believe. For good historical reasons, but rather confusing for anyone who had to work hard to earn their MA by means of postgraduate study (and perhaps paying tuiton fees that were significantly higher than ten pounds, or whatever).

Back in the days when Oxford and Cambridge universities each had an MP to represent their interests in Parliament (!), only people with these MAs could vote.

Gingernutmeg

My friend was able to do that with his Maths degree, I was rather jealous lol. Although he did tell me that anyone who 'knows' knows that the (Oxon) and (Cantab) you put after the MA give it all away

But it's a completely different world lol ... I know that when I've been to conferences at Oxford and Cambridge it's incredible the difference between them and my very 'ordinary' university, they literally ooze money Not sure I'd want to study there, but they're incredible places to experience for a few days. Last time I stayed in Oxford my room was bigger than my whole flat, with a fireplace that was probably worth more lol. How the other half live!

melancholly

Voyager2002 wrote: »

And you know why 'Oxbridge' are different? They can't call one of these degrees, earned by being taught and assessed over a one or two year period, an MA. That is because all Oxbridge graduates can convert their BA into an MA by waiting a couple of years and then paying a fee -- ten pounds, I believe. For good historical reasons, but rather confusing for anyone who had to work hard to earn their MA by means of postgraduate study (and perhaps paying tuiton fees that were significantly higher than ten pounds, or whatever).

Back in the days when Oxford and Cambridge universities each had an MP to represent their interests in Parliament (!), only people with these MAs could vote.

it's actually free and it's also because the MA was in use as a qualification to teach undergrads at oxbridge historically, before other unis started handed them out in a different sense!

Idiophreak

Gingernutmeg wrote: »

Ah, thanks for that - it clears up something I was wondering about. My tutors were suggesting that I apply for the MPhil at Cambridge and I did wonder why it seemed only to be an Oxbridge thing and wasn't really offered anywhere else alongside the 'ordinary' MA/MSc courses. You learn something new every day

I was gonna mention mPhils here - one of my mates did one at the same time I was doing a "conventioal" taught MSc. He did it in (iirc) 2 years, it took him a little bit more effort than my MSc and he had to do a bit of marking and stuff, but he got paid for doing it, has "published papers" on his CV and got to do some pretty cool research, as well as attending conferences in LA and stuff, so it's definitely a route to consider. If you impress with the first part of the MPhil, I think it's also fairly easy for them to "convert" you onto a PhD if that's something you decide you want to do.

As for my MSc, I funded that with a "Professional Studies Loan" or something. When I did it (about 2-3 years ago now) there wasn't any "normal" student loan available to me, but looking back, I'm not sure how much I actually researched this, so it may not be the case. I think the PSLs are generally intended for more "professional" qualifications, but thankfully HSBC are such a bunch of muppets I think they got confused and gave it to me anyway.

The idea is that you're supposed to be able to demonstrate that doing the qualification will improve your future earnings and/or employability...But my sister got the same loan for her MA in Osteoarchaelogy, so I guess they're not too fussy.

I'd give whether you want to do take this kind of funding serious thought though, to be honest. I had to take a £7k bank loan, which I'll only finish paying back on monday, almost 3 years after my final exams...and I've been paying £340 a month to for the last two years - really puts a dent in your finances for the first couple of years of work and holds you back a fair amount.

That said, I've just got a new job that I honestly don't think I'd have got without my masters and that's worth an extra couple of grand over the "standard" job out there, so I guess it's swings and roundabouts at the end of the day...

Ideally, I'd research what postgrad courses are available to you and target all of those that pay well, basically. Try and get chatting with the professors that are involved with these courses, show a particular aptitude in their class, try and fit aspects of it into your dissertation, that kinda thing. And also, obviously, work hard - they only give funding to the "brighter" students, so you're gonna need a decent grade to show that you're "worth it".

Some of the postgrad courses when I was applying were £18k per year tax free or something stupid - that's masses of money...at the time I thought it was more important to do "something I want to do"...If I had my time again, I think I'd give a little in "interesting" in exchange for a little "money"

melancholly

and i should also add that my cambridge room was a hole and i didn't get onsuite as an option!! the nice rooms they put visitors in aren't always a reflection on what the whole student population gets!!!

Decla

Here are some links to information about Postgraduate funding.

Hotcourses http://www.hotcourses.com/studentmoney/
Prospects http://www.prospects.ac.uk click on postgraduate study
Postgraduate Studentships http://www.postgraduatestudentships.co.uk/
Community of Science Funding Opportunities http://fundingopps.cos.com/

It may also be worth looking at charities if you're studying a relevant subject. A career development loan may also be open to you if you're studying a more vocational course.

Finally, speak to your university's career's service. They should be able to tell you about other opportunities as well as giving you advice relevant to your specific situation. Your university also may have a financial incentive for returning students so check if there's an alumni bursary.

ianianian_2

Hi there,

ive been in the same situation and as my other post shows, i took the career development loan route and have found i'm paying quite a lot of interest on this scheme.

My number one regret is that i didnt go for a scholarship!!! Basically I started the course and found that a large portion of students on the course had gained a scholarship. These were from a wide range of backgrounds, and it riled me that some mature students with their own consultancy businesses that i can only be described as being absolutely loaded were getting a scholarship and absolutely everything paid for when i was working two jobs, was skint and had failed to apply!

Ferris

its also always worth checking out www.jobs.ac.uk since they now include a separate section for masters funding opportunities. obviously it depends on your subject area, and some are more popular than others...

but it was from jobs.ac.uk that i located my funded place on my masters (fees only) and funded PhD place (which is actually a good wage - i get paid more than my friend who is a police officer and actually works really hard in occasionally dangerous circumstances, which says a bit about this country really...), both in interesting subjects and within easy commuting distance of my home, so the website is always going to get a plug from me

Nenen

Thank you all for some very useful information. I'm currently considering either trying to do a part-time masters or resigning from my job as a teacher in order to do a full-time masters and this is really helpful in researching all my options.

Cardelia

I would say your first port of call for a funded masters degree should be the http://www.jobs.ac.uk website. I don't think it's a comprehensive list of vacant postgraduate positions (both masters and PhDs), but it covers far more than any other website so you're bound to find something.

Regards the MPhil/PhD thing, some universities are registering new PhD students on an MPhil/PhD course. Most PhDs have some kind of formal assessment after 1 year to judge whether you are capable of completing the full PhD degree. If you don't pass the first year assessment (incredibly rare) then most likely you will be told to write up your current findings for an MPhil award. If you do pass the first year assessment then you are "transferred" from an MPhil to a PhD and you go on to complete the PhD as normal. However, you don't get both the MPhil and PhD qualifications at the end, you only get the PhD. If you want both an MPhil and PhD then you have to study for the two degrees separately and submit two different theses.