Medical Sciences

Based in the Radcliffe Department of Medicine, this DPhil research programme is aimed at basic scientists and clinicians with an interest in pursuing research in a scientific field related to medicine, particularly in cardiovascular medicine, diabetes, endocrinology and metabolism, epidemiology and clinical trials, haematology and pathology, immunology, regenerative medicine and stem cells, and acute stroke.

Recent graduates from the DPhil in Medical Sciences have gone on to take up postdoctoral research opportunities within universities and in the pharmaceutical industry. Graduates with previous medical training have continued their clinician-scientist careers both within the University of Oxford and elsewhere.

The DPhil programme typically lasts from three to four years and is entirely based around a research project conducted in a single laboratory. The programme accepts applications from both basic scientists and clinicians. If you are a clinician you will normally be expected to complete your project within three years; if you are a basic scientist you will be expected to complete your project within four years.

You will be assigned a supervisor who will be a departmental Principal Investigator (PI) with experience of supervising graduate students. You will also be allocated a formal co-supervisor and have a named source of support in addition to your supervisor.

Within RDM you will be assigned to one of four academic divisions of the department: the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Nuffield Division of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, Investigative Medicine Division or the Oxford Centre for Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Metabolism. In addition, many PIs are based within the MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecule Medicine (WIMM). Each of the divisions and the WIMM has a local graduate advisor who oversees graduate studies and provides additional support and advice.

Training is actively supported over the duration of the course, with opportunities available within RDM and also provided by the Medical Sciences Division. These include both subject-specific scientific skills and generic research and transferable skills. There are a wide-range of visiting speakers and seminars in all areas of the department and across the Medical Sciences Division. Students working on projects related to cardiovascular medicine will benefit from the unrivalled research training programme offered through the British Heart Foundation Centre for Research Excellence, which organises regular seminars and specialist courses for cardiovascular researchers.

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 biomedical or related science subject.

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

However, entrance is very competitive and most successful applicants have a first-class degree, a GPA of 3.7 or the equivalent.

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.

• Official transcript(s)
• CV/résumé
• Statement of purpose/personal statement: Up to two pages
• References/letters of recommendation:Three overall, generally academic

ENGLISH LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS

Higher level

• Global Education
• Hill Foundation Scholarships