StudyQA — PhD: Architectural History

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Description Contents Requirements Funding

It is possible to study for a doctorate by part-time research in architectural history. Students studying for the DPhil part-time normally study for five to eight years. This compares with a full-time DPhil which normally takes three to four years to complete.

The DPhil programme draws on considerable experience in providing advanced tuition in architectural history. It profits from the close links within the department between the disciplines of architectural history, art history, English local history and landscape archaeology. It also has links with other parts of the University, particularly the Faculty of History, the Department of the History of Art, and Kellogg College, amongst the fellows of which is the largest concentration of architectural historians associated with the University.

The programme is overseen by the Continuing Education Board of the University. Admission is through the Department for Continuing Education.

Supervision on the DPhil programme is provided by specialist tutors from the Department and elsewhere in Oxford. In broad terms, supervision is possible in most areas of British architectural history (as defined above) from the middle ages to the present, and some European topics. In terms of Great Britain, academic staff currently have particular research interests in ecclesiastical buildings, medieval castles, great houses and their landscapes; country houses; vernacular architecture; urban and institutional architecture, especially of London and Oxford, from 1660 to the present.

Supervision is provided on an individual basis, tailored to the specific needs of students and to their subjects. Doctoral training is provided through the department’s Graduate School, and other agreed learning requirements (eg foreign languages) can draw on the resources of both the department and the wider University. Graduate students in the department have access to the full range of Oxford’s library, archive and computing facilities, as well as to Oxford’s extensive range of graduate and research seminars.

Applicants are normally expected to be predicted or have achieved a first-class or strong upper second-class undergraduate degree with honours (or equivalent international qualifications), as a minimum, in a related subject, or to have completed the OUDCE Postgraduate Certificate in Architectural History, or a master’s degree.

For applicants with a degree from the USA, the minimum GPA normally sought is 3.5 out of 4.0.

If you hold non-UK qualifications and wish to check how your qualifications match these requirements, you can contact the National Recognition Information Centre for the United Kingdom (UK NARIC).

No Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or GMAT scores are sought.

Applicants who have a Level 4 vocational qualification, rather than an undergraduate degree, may also be considered, as, in exceptional circumstances, may those who have substantial experience in a relevant profession (eg one related to building analysis and recording or to historic conservation).

Official transcript(s)
CV/résumé
Personal statement and research proposal: One-page statement and two-page proposal
Written work: Two essays of 2,000 words each
References/letters of recommendation: Three overall, all of which must be academic

ENGLISH LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS

Higher level

est	Standard level scores		Higher level scores
IELTS Academic Institution code: 0713	7.0	Minimum 6.5 per component	7.5	Minimum 7.0 per component
TOEFL iBT Institution code: 0490	100	Minimum component scores: Listening: 22 Reading: 24 Speaking: 25 Writing: 24	110	Minimum component scores: Listening: 22 Reading: 24 Speaking: 25 Writing: 24
Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE)	185	Minimum 176 per component	191	Minimum 185 per component
Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English (CAE)	185	Minimum 176 per component	191	Minimum 185 per component