MA to PhD

Has anyone applied to a PhD program starting directly after your MA? It seems that my school's deadline is at the same time I'm to submit 3 essays and get started on my dissertation! It it feasible.. or sane? I really don't want to work in London, from what I've seen of rush hour. 

I believe it's pretty common to go straight through from Bachelors to Masters to PhD in the UK (one of my friends from high school finished his PhD at age 25 - he did his Bachelors from 2001-2004 and then PhD from 2004-2007). I took a year out between my undergrad and my masters to earn money to pay for the MSc fees, but I moved to the US and started a PhD just 6 days after I had my masters thesis defence!

I applied for my PhD back in November 2006, only 2 months after starting my masters degree and was supposed to start it in Fall 2007 - I was studying for the GRE and getting my application together, at the same time as writing homework essays, preparing for a month-long field trip to Central America and writing a 20-page research project proposal - all over the Christmas vacation!

However, due to the nature of my masters degree, I was still going to be working on my thesis in October 2007 so I deferred the PhD start date to Spring 2008. But many UK masters degrees (taught, rather than research ones) have strict deadlines on course length and dates for thesis submission (e.g. you must finish by Sept 30th) and so after this date the students are often free to begin a PhD or a new job.

However, UK PhDs are generally quite flexible on start dates because most PhD students do not have to take any classes and so can start at any time during the year - whenever their supervisor agrees is a good time to start. A lot of students do begin a PhD in September or October anyway, but it doesn't have to be this way. One of my best friends started a PhD with his masters supervisor back in January, but he hadn't finished his masters thesis yet, so he asked for some more time and ended up waiting to October 2008 to start instead.

As always, thank you for your informative responses.

SOAS requires, or points out as customary that, "qualifications need to be completed before registration for a research degree can go ahead." The beginning of Autumn term starts in early Oct but MA dissertations aren't returned until some time in Nov. I suppose it's a bit hallucinatory to assume I'll complete my dissertation by September.

It's a small school so I assume a response from my dept would be quick. My probable PhD supervisor is my current course convenor.

Any tips on my application or other things in preparation? I don't necessarily need to be at the top of my class, do I?

I think that you might have some flexibility if you are intending on doing a PhD with a professor you already know, in the department you are already studying in - especially if your supervisor is your course convenor. You may be able to arrange to start after your dissertation has been returned or you may be allowed to start after you have handed it in, but before it is returned.

Have you inquired about the process with your would-be supervisor? They might be able to tell you what their processes for selection are. Two of my friends have just started PhDs with their previous masters supervisors (one of which was our MSc course organiser) and actually got offered their places before formally applying for the PhD - the application part was just a formality afterwards!

In terms of preparation, you don't need to be top of the class (although good grades are obviously preferable), but you need to be enthusiastic and very interested in the specific project that you are applying for. They are likely to be looking for the ability to carry out independent research, that you have project ideas that you would like to investigate and that you will be invested in the project.

I didn't actually do a formal PhD application for the US university I applied to - it was just a couple of over-the-phone interviews and a 1-page form that I had to send off to the university - so I can't help much with application/interview tips though.

Hope this helps a bit .

Thanks again.

I'm very excited about my PhD topic- more so than my MA course!  And things are so casual at SOAS, I just may have this in the bag before I even submit my application! 

You really should have it in the bag before you formally apply.  Most PhD programs I've run across (including the one I'm in now) were decided well before I thought about mailing in an application through mainly emails back and forth with the person I wanted to have as my supervisor.
Also, I did everything back-to-back, even though my undergrad in the States was a few years longer than normal and spread over three universities.  My undergrad was done in May 2005 and I started my MA that September.  I graduated this past August in the US and began my PhD program in the UK in October.

So admission wold be conditional since you don't have your final assessment for the the MA until Sept or Oct?

It depends on the programme.  I received an unconditional offer before I finished my MA.  Also, even though I graduated in August, I did not receive my certificate until mid-September, as it generally takes a month or two for a university to finalise the degree.  It is understood that you might not have final proof until well after a new programme starts, so they may just take your word on it, provided you can at least show that everything up until the application shows a progression which falls in line with it (i.e. if you have all the credits for graduation and are planning to complete the programme you're in before starting the programme you're applying to).  Also, I have a friend who is in the Classics Department at Bristol who entered his PhD programme with just his undergraduate degree.

It depends on the programme.  I received an unconditional offer before I finished my MA.  Also, even though I graduated in August, I did not receive my certificate until mid-September, as it generally takes a month or two for a university to finalise the degree.  It is understood that you might not have final proof until well after a new programme starts, so they may just take your word on it, provided you can at least show that everything up until the application shows a progression which falls in line with it (i.e. if you have all the credits for graduation and are planning to complete the programme you're in before starting the programme you're applying to).

I started my PhD in the US only a week after I passed my masters thesis defence at Bristol uni - I had been accepted on the PhD programme almost a year before I finished the degree and I started it 2 months before my masters was officially awarded and 7 months before I graduated from Bristol (I flew back from the US in July to graduate).

Also, I have a friend who is in the Classics Department at Bristol who entered his PhD programme with just his undergraduate degree.

Many people do these days - there were about 4 students from my undergraduate degree programme who went straight into PhDs with just a BSc at the age of 21. And then about 5 more who did the same 4-year undergraduate degree as me (MPhys) who went straight into a PhD a year later at age 22.

Many people do these days - there were about 4 students from my undergraduate degree programme who went straight into PhDs with just a BSc at the age of 21. And then about 5 more who did the same 4-year undergraduate degree as me (MPhys) who went straight into a PhD a year later at age 22.

That really depends on the programme.  Most of the US ones now have an "MA along the way" in a 5-year program.  My MA programme was completely separate from the PhD programme within the department (and the PhD programme required a separate MA).

That really depends on the programme.  Most of the US ones now have an "MA along the way" in a 5-year program.  My MA programme was completely separate from the PhD programme within the department (and the PhD programme required a separate MA).

It can depend on the programme, but in the UK it can also depend on the student's ability too. Of my undergraduate tutorial group of 4 students, I was the only one who didn't start a PhD right after graduating - the other 3 students got PhD places at Exeter, Durham and Warwick universities with no problem at all... nothing to do with the entry requirements, but everything to do with their research ability and knowledge - and also the fact that our undergraduate degree was essentially a masters to start with (I have a Master in Physics degree and also a Master of Science degree - one was undergrad, one was postgrad).

I was offered a PhD place about 6 weeks after I graduated with my undergraduate degree. The university that offered it to me did not have a PhD 'programme' as such, but the professor was desperate for a research student and I was offered the place within about 2 weeks of sending him an email. In the end, I turned it down because at the end of the day, I'm just not that interested in Condensed Matter Physics (!) and instead decided to switch disciplines (to geophysics) by doing an MSc in Earth Sciences. In that case, I wouldn't have easily been able to go straight into a PhD because I had little knowledge of the geophysics field and wouldn't have felt comfortable doing research in it.

It's my understanding that it's getting easier to go right from a bachelors to a PhD in the UK with no masters degree needed or earned on the way (I didn't actually realise it was possible until I was close to graduating from undergrad) - whereas I think a lot of universities in the US require that if you start a PhD without a masters, you have to essentially gain an MA or MS before being able to continue on with the PhD programme.

It's my understanding that it's getting easier to go right from a bachelors to a PhD in the UK with no masters degree needed or earned on the way (I didn't actually realise it was possible until I was close to graduating from undergrad) - whereas I think a lot of universities in the US require that if you start a PhD without a masters, you have to essentially gain an MA or MS before being able to continue on with the PhD programme.

If you start a MA/MS in the US, and if you have support, you can change into the PhD stream.   

I knew a couple of people who did this.  They knew they were considering accelerating to PhD programmes from the get go, but they had to start in the Masters programme first.

That said, they were highly research-oriented and deeply passionate about their subjects.  Also, generally older individuals for whom the quickest route was the most logical.

Oh God.. I think my recent bout with pneumonia is going to derail my plans for a PhD. The new term starts in a few days and I know I'll be swamped with reading, in addition to my late essays. Do I need to graduate with merit or distinction in order to be admitted to a PhD program?

My profs have been very understanding, but honestly at this point I just want to submit anything and not fall behind with the reading. It was stress that compromised my immune system and made me vulnerable to pneumonia in the first place!  :\\\'(

While those look good, it's better to have a line of communication with a professor in the PhD programme to which you're applying.  If one's willing to supervise your research, you're in (and that really goes for both sides of the Atlantic).

Even if my final assessments are abominable (or close to it)?