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Doctoral and Masters

Doctoral/PhD study

Each year just under half of the College’s full-time postgraduate students are working towards a Doctoral degree. With a tradition of dedicated postgraduate study since its foundation, the College has long experience in providing tutorial and other support for academic development that the departments and faculties cannot offer. In particular, we are large enough to be genuinely multidisciplinary, yet small enough to foster both interdisciplinary learning and friendship – and we offer a wide range of College scholarships intended to provide direct and additional support to PhD students.

We hold various receptions, seminars, talks, academic evenings, dinners and other occasions, arranged by the College and by students. These allow you to meet other research students or senior academics, in your own or other disciplines, formally and informally. There are opportunities to learn writing and presentational skills, and to present your research to non-experts in various student research events. With a large group of Research Fellows and Research Associates, the College has a diverse community of post-docs able to help Doctoral students in their discipline. There is information about our research areas and Bridge projects, which foster connection and interaction between our researchers and practitioners, on the academic pages of this website. Individual student profiles, including a number of PhD students, and senior members’ profiles are a good place to find out more about the College’s research culture.

We recognise the importance of having predictable and stable accommodation during Doctoral study; it is College policy to give priority for college accommodation to students taking courses of three years duration or longer. And, of course, research students will also want to relax with various societies, sports, and music – or simply socialise in the clubroom and common room.

Applications for study at Doctoral level are submitted to the central University in the first instance, and applicants have the option to nominate a first- and second-preference college choice with their application. See the college choice pages and the postgraduate admissions pages on the University website for more information. There is more information about the application process in the how to apply pages.

The Postgraduate Admissions Tutors, Dr Alastair Lockhart and Dr Carole Sargent, hold regular online admissions clinics for those wishing to find out more about applying to Cambridge and Hughes Hall for PhD and Masters study. See the open days and visit page to book yourself in.

Masters

Masters students make up just over half of our full-time postgraduate study body each year, we also admit a growing number of part-time students at Masters level. Most students at this level are registered for MPhil degrees in the University, but we welcome significant numbers of students in the full breadth Masters course types – including LLM and MCL Law students, MBAs and MFins with the Judge Business School, training teachers through PGCE, and other courses. Many of our scholarships and bursaries are directed specifically at candidates for Masters study. The Masters community at Hughes is one of the most diverse in terms of the backgrounds and experience of the students, the mix of research and fully taught pathways, and international make-up of the community.

With a well-balanced mix of PhD and Masters students, those studying for a one-year Masters benefit from being part of an academic culture that includes Doctoral candidates working at the cutting-edges of their disciplines, and they have the opportunity to join in with the breadth of subject events and academic groups within the College. The meet our students section includes a number of personal studies from Masters students, and the senior members’ profiles provide a good insight into the teaching and research areas of the College’s professorial, post-Doctoral and research seniors.

We believe that a core part of our purpose is to improve societies through academic study, providing a bridge from the academic world of Cambridge to the global professional world and international communities – so we want to encourage adventurous graduates who will make their mark on the world through practical and policy work, or by going on to Doctoral study. There is information about our research areas and Bridge projects, which foster connection and interaction between our researchers and practitioners, on the academic pages of this website.

Most of you will return to your own communities and apply what you have learnt at Cambridge. Each year we bring different policy makers and practitioners to the College for lectures, seminars, and dinners, to share different perspectives on what it takes to create real-world impact.

We also provide opportunities for interdisciplinary conversations between different groups of students. The spark created from combining perspectives often inspires new practical solutions.

Applications for Masters-level study are usually submitted to the central University in the first instance, though some are processed through the Departments (see how to apply for information about these), before going to the Colleges. You can find out more about applying for Masters study on the University’s postgraduate admissions pages. Applicants for postgraduate study can nominate up to two college preferences with their application, you can find out more about Hughes Hall on this website, and there is information about college choices on this page of the University website.

There is more information about the application process in the how to apply pages.

The Postgraduate Admissions Tutors, Dr Alastair Lockhart and Dr Carole Sargent, hold regular online admissions clinics for those wishing to find out more about applying to Cambridge and Hughes Hall for PhD and Masters study. See the open days and visit page to book yourself in.