Oxford Physiology

[Stephany Tousley]

TheMSc by Research in Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics offers a wide range of research topics within a large multi-disciplinary and world-renowned department, spanning a diverse spectrum of research areas from neuroscience, cardiac science, ion channels transporters and signalling, metabolism and endocrinology, development and reproduction to neurobiology of sleep and circadian rhythms.

In the first instance, applicants are advised to identify potential supervisors with Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics, based on their research area of interest. You will nominate a supervisor on the application form together with the agreed research project title. As science advances, projects may or may not change.

Your research will be conducted at Oxford under the supervision of academic staff who are generally at the forefront of developments in your chosen research project area. You will explore your research subject area to new depths and may have the opportunity to present your findings to members of the international scientific community with whom, one day, you may collaborate. MSc by Research students may complete the degree between one and three years.

The allocation of graduate supervision for this course is the responsibility of the Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics and it is not always possible to accommodate the preferences of incoming graduate students to work with a particular member of staff. Under exceptional circumstances a supervisor may be found outside the Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics.

At the end of your first year or start of the second year, you will prepare and undertake the first milestone, Transfer of Status from Probationary Research Student (PRS) status to MSc by Research status, for which you will submit a written report describing your research to date and plans for the future. This will be assessed by two independent experts, who interview you as part of the process. The Transfer of Status milestone is generally undertaken towards the end of the third term and no later than the fourth term of the programme. At this point of the programme, you are expected to have established methodology and collected sufficient data to demonstrate that you are able to complete within the timeframe.

The final assessment is the final examination, the Viva Voce. This may occur at the end of the third term at the earliest, having already transferred status, or no later than the ninth term. Once you have passed, you will be awarded Leave to Supplicate. You may then book your graduation ceremony through your college.

An alumni survey showed nearly two-thirds were employed in academic research or had returned to medicine in conjunction with academic research. Other careers include industrial research, high-tech start-up companies, financial and business sectors, pharmaceutical consulting, teaching, scientific publishing, patent law and banking. Some graduates enter charitable fundraising and charitable scientific employment.

The University will seek to deliver this course in accordance with the description set out in this course page. However, there may be situations in which it is desirable or necessary for the University to make changes in course provision, either before or after registration. The safety of students, staff and visitors is paramount and major changes to delivery or services may have to be made in circumstances of a pandemic, epidemic or local health emergency. In addition, in certain circumstances, for example due to visa difficulties or because the health needs of students cannot be met, it may be necessary to make adjustments to course requirements for international study.

Where possible your academic supervisor will not change for the duration of your course. However, it may be necessary to assign a new academic supervisor during the course of study or before registration for reasons which might include illness, sabbatical leave, parental leave or change in employment.

The requirements described below are specific to this course and apply only in the year of entry that is shown. You can use our interactive tool to help you evaluate whether your application is likely to be competitive.

This course requires proficiency in English at the University's higher level. If your first language is not English, you may need to provide evidence that you meet this requirement. The minimum scores required to meet the University's higher level are detailed in the table below.

If your ability to meet the entry requirements has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic (eg you were awarded an unclassified/ungraded degree) or any other exceptional personal circumstance (eg other illness or bereavement), please refer to the guidance on extenuating circumstances in the Application Guide for information about how to declare this so that your application can be considered appropriately.

You will need to register three referees who can give an informed view of your academic ability and suitability for the course. The How to apply section of this page provides details of the types of reference that are required in support of your application for this course and how these will be assessed.

You will be required to supply supporting documents with your application. The How to apply section of this page provides details of the supporting documents that are required as part of your application for this course and how these will be assessed.

Interviews are held as part of the admissions process and take place in January for entry in October of the same year. All shortlisted candidates called to interview will have been assessed on completed applications only. Funded places are awarded purely on the basis of an assessment of candidates' excellence appropriate to their intended research path

References and supporting documents submitted as part of your application, and your performance at interview (if interviews are held) will be considered as part of the assessment process. Whether or not you have secured funding will not be taken into consideration when your application is assessed.

Students are considered for shortlisting and selected for admission without regard to age, disability, gender reassignment, marital or civil partnership status, pregnancy and maternity, race (including colour, nationality and ethnic or national origins), religion or belief (including lack of belief), sex, sexual orientation, as well as other relevant circumstances including parental or caring responsibilities or social background. However, please note the following:

Information about processing special category data for the purposes of positive action and using your data to assess your eligibility for funding, can be found in our Postgraduate Applicant Privacy Policy.

If you receive an offer of a place at Oxford, your offer will outline any conditions that you need to satisfy and any actions you need to take, together with any associated deadlines. These may include academic conditions, such as achieving a specific final grade in your current degree course. These conditions will usually depend on your individual academic circumstances and may vary between applicants. Our 'After you apply' pages provide more information about offers and conditions.

Some postgraduate research students in science, engineering and technology subjects will need an Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate prior to applying for a Student visa (under the Student Route). For some courses, the requirement to apply for an ATAS certificate may depend on your research area.

The Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics (DPAG) is the top-ranked in Anatomy and Physiology in the world according to the QS World University Rankings 2023. It has excellent facilities for the large number of full-time research students who are fully integrated into the research of the department.

Within each of these themes there are several research groups and centres. All staff and doctoral students belong to one or more of these research groups, each of which has its own seminar programme to which graduate students often contribute. In addition, the department as a whole sponsors regular seminars and public lectures which attract distinguished national and international speakers.

DPAG IT Services provides various services to the department. These include e-mail, network file storage and computer and printer management services, and maintenance of the network both wired and wireless across the departmental estate.

Incoming students will be allocated study space upon their arrival with their group. The lecture theatre and seminar rooms provide perfect settings to attend talks given by local and internationally acclaimed speakers.

The department offers top-quality advanced degrees, covering an extraordinarily wide range of specialised and interdisciplinary topics. These include molecular, cellular and integrative neuroscience, cardiovascular physiology, cellular and whole-body metabolism, functional genomics, neurobiology of sleep and circadian rhythms.

DPAG is home to a large number of internationally-renowned teams of scientists addressing major questions in biomedicine, the answers to which will have a profound effect on modern biology. Crucially, DPAG thinks learning is just as important as research, and at the department's core lies a belief that a synthesis of the two is key to advancing our understanding. As such, DPAG works to provide outstanding opportunities for graduate students to enjoy cutting-edge training across a diverse range of state-of-the-art methodologies in leading laboratories in the field, to develop practical skills to excel in academia, industry, consulting, high-tech start-ups and have made outstanding achievements in a variety of career fields; from making ground-breaking discoveries into fundamental biological processes to translational contributions with real-life impacts.

There are no compulsory elements of this course that entail additional costs beyond fees (or, after fee liability ends, continuation charges) and living costs. However, please note that, depending on your choice of research topic and the research required to complete it, you may incur additional expenses, such as travel expenses, research expenses, and field trips. You will need to meet these additional costs, although you may be able to apply for small grants from your department and/or college to help you cover some of these expenses.

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