Hello, I'm writing because I don't know who to speak to about this. I'm currently an MRes student- at a relatively unknown uni. Prior to this, I completed a BA (Hons) 2.1 -at a relatively good uni- and an MA (Taught) Pass- at a top research uni. Should I even think about doing a PhD? I am currently funded (fees + stipend), but I wasn't before. How well would I need to do if I wish to obtain funding for a PhD? I am enjoying my work right now, and my supervisors (BA and MA) think that I could do well in a PhD programme, but is this *really* sufficient? I'd be grateful for any suggestions or advice, thanks in advance.

It depends basically on which area are you in, but from the point of view of the research councils I think you at least meet the minimum requirements. For the Arts it is usually a 2.1 BA + a masters (I think the Research Councils for the sciences do not require a masters though). Then it depends of a number of things like the originality and quality of your research proposal, your motivation, whether you have relevant work experience and many other things.

and now is a very good time to start submitting applications.

Ah, cheers for the swift replies. I'm in a humanities subject area, not social sciences, so v. little funding available. I didn't mention that my grades- 65% and 56% average respectively- are likely to reflect badly on my capacities. This was partly due to a shift of research interests (I changed disciplines), and I'm now trying to redeem myself, though I fear the worst. I hear that 70% or a distinction for the Masters is required, or am I wrong on this? I want to continue to research, because I am enjoying it, seeing it as independent of poor grades. But practically speaking, I feel extremely pessimistic about future prospects.

Ok, in the social sciences, a 70/or distinction is definitely not required to get funding from bodies such as ESRC.

I got a CASE +3 ESRC funded PhD (funding for three years PhD). In terms of my background I have a 2.2, and 2 MScs (average 68 and 65).

Im not sure whether its different for humanitites, but I suspect that as long as you have a 2.1, and passed an MSc (or MA), then Im sure there would be striking reason why you shouldn't receive funding. Although this of course depends on other issues such as level of competition, supervisors avaliability and interest in your area. Have you got any work experience? In terms of my application (and interview) the fact that I had relevant experience was crucial in overshadowing my underperformance (2.2).

Hope the above helps!

If you can self-fund the PhD, you can go to an unknown average university and just apply for a PhD. Shouldn't be any problem to get accepted. Plus, you will have the freedom to choose your topic independently rather than following the proposal of professors.

True. A friend of mine at UCL is self funding her PhD and found no problems in doing a PhD there.

I agree with Otto. And to my surprise, the Universities don't even seem to care about the quality of the proposal or the research candidate in those cases. I don't mean to put all the self-funders in one box but I've seen very bad self-funded research projects. Very disappointing of the system.

No suprise to me. One of my old Uni's would take a trained monkey if it could pay the fees. Not a reflection on the orginal poster BTW, rather the Uni I was referring to. Its in Preston in case you were wondering.

And there's always the option of doing a PhD part-time, and having a part-time job to pay for it. Works for me!
Plus, just get your potential supervisor excited about your project (it's always good to meet them before applying/ or at least correspond) and your previous grades will mean a lot less.

Wow, thanks everyone for the replies. I can't fund myself, therefore very fortunate to currently be fully funded. Comments from *pineapple* and Arch were particularly helpful. Guess I should stop worrying and try to write a good thesis for the rest of my current programme (ends 2008 so I still have time to think about my applications). Any further comments or suggestions will be gratefully considered. Cheers once again.

Hi friends,
I am new to this forum. I am planning to apply for a PhD position. I need your help to write my proposal in INFORMATION SECURITY ( GRID COMPUTING , ROLE BASED ACESS CONTROL). Can anyone of you give me a good idea to write this proposal and some general ideas about research proposal. Thanks for your time.

What exactly do you mea re 'a good idea'? Are you asking for us to come up with a research topic within the subject area? At the risk of being accused of winding people up, isn't that part of actually doing a PhD. Coming up with your own research idea?

@Christine - if I were you, I would really concentrate on writing a good master's thesis and preferably one which can be developed into a PhD thesis. That will help you to come with a really strong and well developed research proposal, which is definitively helpful in the funding competition. If you plan to apply to the AHRC (Arts and Humanities Research Council) bear in mind that the deadline is usually in February-March for start in the following September-October, and by the time you apply you must already have been accepted by a department to follow a PhD program (because the department needs to fill in some parts of your application form for AHRC). So better start sooner than later.