PhD and MRes in Business and Management Admissions
Criteria for Admission to the Doctoral Programmes and the MRes in Business and Management
The School welcomes applications from suitably qualified students to undertake research leading to an MRes, available on a full-time basis only, or Doctoral degree, available on either a full-time or part-time basis. We have an annual intake of new students in October of each year.Qualifications required for admission on to the MRes in Business and Management Programme
Applicants will normally be graduates of an approved university holding a good honours degree in a relevant subject (with at least an upper second or equivalent).Qualifications required for admission on to the Doctoral Programme
Applicants should normally hold, or expect to have obtained by Autumn 2013, a Masters qualification in a relevant subject (with an average over 65% in the taught modules and 65% in the dissertation, or its equivalent), as well as a good honours degree in a relevant discipline (minimum 2:1). In exceptional cases, substantial professional, business or industrial qualifications/experience may also be taken into consideration.Please enclose transcripts of all your academic qualifications with your application form. Interested applicants who have not yet fully completed their Masters or undergraduate degree should include a transcript of the marks received to date. Any offer made would be conditional upon achieving the required standard.
As entry on to our PhD programmes is highly competitive, please note that possession of the admissions requirements does not guarantee that you will be offered a place. In making our decision, we also consider the quality of your research proposal, the fit of your research area with potential supervisors, your grade average, the ranking and reputation of the institution where you studied, references, personal statement and your potential for success in your chosen programme, as evidenced, for instance, by your grades in modules of particular relevance to your chosen research.
Research Proposal
Your application must include a research proposal. This must indicate the area in which the research will be conducted and the key issues that you want to examine in more detail. You need to demonstrate that you understand the field that you plan to research, that you are able to identify an interesting and original research question, and that you have an understanding of what research at postgraduate level entails.The purpose of a research proposal is to provide the School and potential research supervisors with an indication of the topic you are interested in. A research proposal also provides an insight into the student's ability to identify and develop an interesting research question. Most potential supervisors will review research proposals as a preliminary description of the applicant's area of interest and will not necessarily assume that the proposal defines exactly the research project that the student will eventually carry out.
A typical research proposal will be somewhere between one and two thousand words, (although proposals for the MRes programme are not expected to be as detailed as proposals for the Doctoral programme).
For guidance on how to write a research proposal, please click: Research Proposal
Applying
If you wish to apply please complete a Postgraduate Application Form online. You should also submit your research proposal, two academic references, academic transcripts and English language test result, if English is not your first language and you do not have a degree from one of the countries listed here (see below).If you want to make a formal application, please consult the list of available supervisory staff within the School and their research interests, in order to determine whether your interests coincide with those of a potential supervisor.
Your acceptance into the programme will be based on both academic ability and the availability of suitable supervisors. The quality of your research proposal is highly important when it comes to finding research supervisors and is a crucial part of the application process.
With regard to the Doctoral Programme, the Business School normally admits students to study for the degree of PhD in the first instance, however each year students are required to undergo an Annual Review in order to confirm their PhD status or potentially downgrade to MPhil status where necessary.
If English is not your first language
If your first language is not English and you do not have a degree from one of the countries listed here, we normally require you to achieve one of the following combination of test results taken no earlier than September 2011 for an immediate entry to either the MRes Business and Management Programme and the Doctoral Programme (IELTS preferred).- An International English Language Testing System (IELTS) score of at least 7.0 with a minimum score of at least 6.0 in each of the four individual elements of the test.
- A Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) score of at least 600 with a Test of Written English (TWE) score of at least 4.5 or computerised test equivalent of 250 with a TWE of 4.5 or an internet based TOEFL of at least 100, with a minimum score in the individual elements of the test : minimum 19 with 20 in speaking.
Recommended Dates
There is no set closing date for applications, but it is recommended that applications should be received by July for an October start date.Note: Students who want to be considered for a Nottingham University Business School scholarship should submit a completed application by 8th March 2013, including all required supporting documentation (please refer to the Scholarship webpage for further details).
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