Computer Science

The DPhil in Computer Science is an advanced research degree, awarded for significant (new) contribution to the existing body of knowledge in the field of computer science. You will work with world-class experts in their field. The DPhil normally takes three to four years of full-time study to complete.

Most DPhil students pursue a career in academia moving on to becoming post-doctoral research assistants and moving on to university lecturers and professors. A few students do join industry or return to a military career. 

The DPhil in Computer Science will introduce you to cutting edge research whilst studying in a beautiful, historic setting that is both student- and family-friendly. Supervision is available via the department's research themes together with cross-disciplinary research in areas such as linguistics, biology, medicine, quantum foundations and quantum computation.

The course combines individual supervision with a selection of lecture courses, transferable skills training and opportunities to participate in leading-edge research activities. The department recruits students from Oxford’s high-quality undergraduate and masters’ degrees, as well as nationally and internationally, and is pleased to be part of the Centres for Doctoral Training in Cyber Security and Autonomous Intelligent Machines and Systems (AIMS).

During your study at Oxford, the department hopes to share with you some of the excitement about the topics the department investigates, and of the understanding the department has gained from research into basic theory and by industrial collaboration.

The development of computer science at Oxford has been heavily supported by research grant funding from the government, EU and science foundations, as well as donations and sponsorship from the department's industrial partners. The department is committed to offering you the best supervision and to providing a stimulating research environment.

During your first year you are expected to complete three pieces of assessed work - one piece comes from attendance at a taught course and taking the examination, one has to be a paper written during the course of one term, which may be publishable, and the final piece can be from another taught course or a specially designed reading course

The work is assessed either by the supervisor or the examiner for a taught course.  You are also expected to complete a literature review which should survey the state of the art in your chosen area. It should explain the background of the proposed research, the results that have been obtained by other researchers, and the conclusions that may be drawn. You are expected to give a clear and coherent account, demonstrating competence in organising ideas and presenting them in a scholarly manner. 

You will also be offered transferable skills training and are required to give presentations to your research groups.

This is a full time course and you should meet regularly with your supervisor.  You are expected to continue working outside of the University Terms with an annual holiday of approximately eight weeks.  On completion of the course you will graduate with the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.

Applicants are normally expected to be predicted or have achieved a first-class or a strong upper second-class undergraduate degree with honours (or equivalent international qualifications) in either (i) a four-year master's degree in a relevant subject, or (ii) a three-year BSc/BA degree followed by excellent performance in a master's degree in a relevant subject, where relevant subjects typically include computer science or mathematics.

Students require either a distinction in a master's or a four-year undergraduate degree - a four-year sandwich degree with one year spent in industry is not an acceptable equivalent. 

Please note that entrance to the course is very competitive and most successful applicants have a first-class degree or the equivalent.

For applicants with a degree from the USA, the minimum GPA sought is 3.6 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.

How to apply

Before making a formal application, you are encouraged to contact the department's Graduate Studies Administrator, providing an up-to-date copy of your CV/résumé and a research proposal or a statement of your research interests along with your enquiry.

Before submitting this information, a good starting point is to look at the research currently being done in the department and the profiles of academic staff. Academic staff profiles contain information on their research interests and will help you identify potential supervisors. 

You can contact potential supervisors directly but remember they are very busy and may not reply immediately. You should be brief and include some information about your background, your research interests and any relevant experience. You might like to introduce yourself by explaining why their work interests you enough to motivate you to apply to study with them for the next three or four years and you may have read some of their publications. Alternatively you may prefer to send your email to the Graduate Studies Administrator who can then contact potential supervisors on your behalf.

The set of documents you should send with your application to this course comprises the following:

• Official transcript(s)
• CV/résumé
• Research proposal/statement of purpose: Around two pages
• References/letters of recommendation: Three overall, all of which must be academic

ENGLISH LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS

Standard level

• Global Education
• Hill Foundation Scholarships