Students can study for a Master of Science MSc either full time or part time.

Our postgraduate degree programmes in the Department of Materials are accredited by the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3), licensed by the UK Engineering Council.

The courses are made up from modules that are each 15 credits. The credit rating roughly equates to the number of hours of student effort required to cover the module material in its entirety, with 15 credits equivalent to 150 hours.

MSc students study 180 credits made up of 120 credits (8 x 15 credits) from the taught modules and 60 credits from the masters project. To be awarded the MSc students must obtain at least 150 credits from the 180 credits studied and must exceed the minimum standard in the remainder.

Each new academic year commences in October and if you wish to apply and be registered in time to start in October, you should aim to have your application submitted before the end of July. Applications are still accepted up to the end of August, however, if there are any complications or additional documents required, there may not be sufficient time for processing so we recommend applying as soon as possible.

International students are encouraged to apply early to allow for time to obtain the necessary documentation and apply for a visa if required.

Please visit our key deadlines webpage for more information.

The academic year for full time MSc programmes runs from October to the following September and is made up of two taught semesters, each 15 weeks long, with 12 weeks of teaching followed by exams in Jan/Feb and June. MSc students also have the third semester, an extended period beyond the second semester exams, throughout the summer period, to work on their projects with final dissertation hand-in taking place in September.

Please see our semester and term dates for more information.

Information about fees can be found on the online prospectus pages for our MSc Programmes.

General information about Postgraduate tuition fees can be found here. 

Our MSc courses are available to students wishing to study part-time to allow for more flexibility to complete an MSc programme over a longer period.

Part-time students are expected to attend taught sessions in person, which include lectures, tutorials, seminars and laboratory classes.

Taught modules run in semester 1 or semester 2 alongside the full-time mode of study. Each module typically has 2-3 hours timetabled each week for lectures, tutorials, or seminars. Teaching resources, lecture notes and recommended reading lists are all accessible online using the University's virtual learning environment, and video recordings of the lectures are also made available so you can re-cap these at a convenient time. Laboratory sessions are scheduled for some modules, which typically would be 2-3 hours per week over a 3-4 week period.

Part time students can study at their own pace, varying the amount they study in any given year to suit their circumstances. Typically, the MSc takes 3-5 years. If students circumstances change or they need to take a break from study this is accommodated by the regulations which allow students up to six years to complete the MSc. 

When first registering, part time students pay for their first 30 credits of study (2 modules), once this has been completed, further modules are studied on a pay-as-you-go basis.

For details of fees please refer to the relevant online prospectus page.

The Department of Materials has a thriving research community of about 60 PhD students and every year a small number of our highest achieving MSc students stay on to study for a PhD.

More information about PhD research degrees »

The project is an important part of the MSc programme, comprising 60 credits. For all students (full and part time), the project runs for the full academic year, from October through to the following September.

For part time students this is typically conducted at their place of work on an appropriate topic. You are supported by a member of academic staff based in the department who will supervise the project.