The different types of postgraduate degrees

Thinking about postgraduate study but not sure what all the different course types mean? Whether you’re looking at continuing your studies after your undergraduate course, or have been working for years and want to level up your skills, we’ve got you covered with our simple guide to the different types of postgraduate degrees.

Postgraduate taught and postgraduate research degrees

Postgraduate taught and postgraduate research degrees may sound similar, but they’re actually very different…

Postgraduate taught

Postgraduate taught encompasses Master’s courses, and are similar to undergraduate courses in that you’ll have lectures and seminars on different topics and modules, with work and assessments set by tutors and lecturers. Examples of postgraduate taught types of courses:

• Master’s (MA/MSc): includes both taught modules and a dissertation/major project – usually six 20-credit modules and a 60-credit dissertation/major project, but full details can be found on our course pages
• MFA: The Master of Fine Arts (MFA) programme features a combination of taught modules and practical modules, along with a major project, totalling 300 credits.
• ACCA: This is a flexible course that allows you to learn and take exams in specific modules to become fully qualified as an accountant.
• PgDip: A Postgraduate Diploma (PgDip) is made up of 120 credits of taught modules – usually six 20-credit modules.
• PgCert: A Postgraduate Certificate (PgCert) is made up of 60 credits of taught modules – usually three 20-credit modules.
• MArch: The MArch (RIBA Part 2) is the second stage of your professional training to become an architect. You need to have already passed RIBA Part 1 and ideally have some work experience.
• MMus: The Master of Music (MMus) programme features a combination of taught and practical modules, totalling 240 credits.

Postgraduate research

Postgraduate research (PGR) does what it says on the tin – it’s a much more autonomous course, where you work on a research project in your chosen field. You’ll put together a research proposal as part of your application.

Examples of postgraduate research types of courses:

• PhD: Most PGR courses will be PhDs. You’ll complete a research project and be assigned a supervisor who specialises in your field of research. You’ll get to use the title of ‘Doctor’ when you finish!
• DBA: Doctorate of Business Administration. This course is a professional doctorate completed on a part-time (Executive) basis. The course enables you to earn the title of Doctor without putting your career on hold.
• EdD: Doctorate of Education. An EdD is a research degree which is part-time and designed for professionals already working in the field of education.

PGCE courses

Interested in going into teaching? This is a great option if you’ve finished your undergraduate degree and feel like sharing the knowledge you’ve learned. A PGCE will give you the skills and training to become a teacher at whatever level and for whatever subject you choose; so, whether you want to teach reception their ABCs or Year 13s about metaphor in Shakespeare, a PGCE is the way to go. You’ll do a placement in a school to gain valuable work experience, too. This is a great option if you’ve finished your undergraduate degree and feel like sharing the knowledge you’ve learned.

Conversion courses

You can also gain a postgraduate qualification through a conversion course. For example, our Psychology MSc course allows those with an unrelated undergraduate degree to complete a year’s conversion course to achieve a Psychology Master’s qualification. These types of courses are a great option if you are looking to do something a little different after your undergraduate degree, without having to study for another three years on a new course.

Pre-registration courses

BCU also offers a number of postgraduate courses that will allow you to then go on and register with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC), for example, Dietetics, Speech and Language Therapy, Physiotherapy, and more. These courses set you up really well to succeed in your career path, as they also include placements.

Short courses/professional development/CPD

There’s also an option to do shorter courses, more like one-off modules, to help with your continuing professional development (CPD). These can work around your job or other studies to enhance your skills and CV to open up more opportunities for your career. For example, we run a lot of healthcare-based short courses (like Principles of Prescribing for Health Care Professionals, or Children and Young People’s Diabetes Care) and other courses across our faculties (like CISCO Certified Network Associate, or Fashion, PR and Strategic Communication). A lot of our short courses can be taken as modules to form part of a full degree or diploma, like a PgCert or PgDip, for example.

Got more questions about postgraduate study? You can read our FAQs here.