Postgraduate Taught Opportunities

Taught courses cover a broad spectrum of specialist topics, leading to a variety of qualifications up to Master's degree. Typically, a taught Master's course lasts for twelve months of full-time study. Two semesters of instruction are followed by a dissertation written over the summer. However, many courses may be studied part-time (one or two days per week) over two or more years.

A full table of all postgraduate taught courses is set out here. More information on each course is set out in the relevant course sections.

"The course has been hard work and I have had to study a lot. The department are excellent and if you want anything there is always someone to ask. The department is also expanding so there are better, and more, facilities available. The general computer and library facilities here are also very good and after visiting other universities I've found Bradford's to be much better."

Abdulmonam G Ali - MSc in Radio Frequency Communications Engineering

Taught Course Structure

All courses have two stages: the taught course stage (which takes up most of the first two semesters) and the project/dissertation stage.

Many courses are available at two levels: the Master's degree (MA, MSc, MBA or MRes), and the Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip). Applicants for most taught Master's courses will be expected to have a first degree in a relevant subject. However, for those Master's courses which offer a Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip), students can be admitted with, say, relevant practical experience instead of formal qualifications. The two levels always run in parallel, so even if you are admitted at PGDip level you can transfer to the Master's course without loss of time if you perform well enough in the taught course assessment. Some courses offer a Postgraduate Certificate (PGCert), which usually comprises the first semester of the PGDip course.

If you are following the course full-time, then the taught course stage runs from late September to late January and February to June. Some of the modules in the second semester will be direct preparation for the research project you will undertake over the summer, and which will form the basis of your Master's dissertation.

Courses are organised on a modular basis. Teaching is usually concentrated on two or three days in the week during normal term times. Modules are usually examined or assessed at the end of the semester in which they are taught. Master's students and PGDip students all follow identical modules, and sit the same examinations.

Candidates admitted at PGDip level may transfer to Master's if their performance is good enough, and proceed to the dissertation stage. Conversely, candidates admitted at Master's level may be transferred to the PGDip if it is felt that they are not able to achieve the particular level needed.

If you do proceed to Master's level, you spend the summer writing a dissertation (sometimes described as a project report, a management project, or a long essay), usually between 10,000 and 15,000 words. The dissertation is written on a topic which you have to agree with your Department, and is usually based on a project which you undertake in the second semester or over the summer. It is usually submitted by mid-September, a year after starting the course.

If you have passed at PGDip level, you will be awarded the Postgraduate Diploma on the basis of your performance in the module assessments and examinations.

If you complete half the taught course modules successfully, then you will be eligible for the award of a Postgraduate Certificate (PGCert).

Many courses are available part-time as well as full-time. This makes it easier for students in full-time work to make day-release arrangements. The taught element of part-time courses generally lasts two years instead of one, with a further year allowed for the completion of the dissertation.