Documents needed for application
The following items must be submitted (in electronic format), please note that only complete applications will be reviewed:
- Your personal details, including a contact
- Email address
- Your CV/Resume, detailing your career to date
- A research proposal (4000 words maximum) – please see the guidelines below for details of how your proposal should be structured
- Names and e-mail addresses of 2 referees, either an employer or a university tutor
- Official transcripts for your Bachelor and/or Masters Degrees
- Official transcript of proficiency in English, if English is not your first language.
Research proposal
As part of your application you must submit a research proposal, which will enable potential supervisors to judge their interest in your proposed topic. This is intended to provide a useful starting point for discussion of your ideas. The research proposal should consist of the following:
A personal statement describing your reasons for undertaking the Executive PhD (1000 words maximum)
In your personal statement please address the following questions: Why do you want to do an Executive PhD at this point in your career? What do you expect to get out of the programme? What are your career aspirations post Executive PhD? Please also describe your previous experience of research, if any.
Your personal statement should be followed by your research proposal. Before preparing your proposal your should familiarize yourself with the research interests of Bayes academics to make sure that your research is aligned with their expertise.
Content of main proposal (4000 words maximum)
The main research proposal should consist of the following:
- Your name and title of your research proposal
- Short introduction and statement of the problem you want to investigate
- Main research questions and sub-questions
- Why is the research question an interesting problem to address? What is the main theoretical contribution of your research?
- Short literature review: What have others written about this research topic? What theory or theories inform your research questions? How will your research add to the existing body of knowledge?
- Research plan: What are your key theoretical constructs? What methods will you use to answer your research questions? What kind of data do you need to answer your research questions? Be specific and indicate whether you have access to the data; if not indicate how you are going to get access to the data or collect the data
- Analysis plan: How are you going to analyse the data?
- What are the practical or policy implications of your research?
- A bibliography.
Read more about How to Write a Research Proposal (pdf)
References
Two references are required. The references can be from an employer or a university tutor, but referees should be able to comment on your aptitude for critical thinking and original research. We will contact your referees once you have submitted your application.
Please note that our programme team will only evaluate fully completed applications. If you meet our criteria, we will try to match you with a potential supervisor.
Should any of the faculty at Bayes be interested in supervising your research, you will be invited for an interview with the Programme Director (and your potential supervisor) which can take place in-person or via phone or Skype.
Based on this interview, we will make a final decision as to whether we will offer you a place.
We encourage applicants to apply as early as possible, as applicants may find that nearer the deadline, prospective supervisors have reached their quota.
A confirmation email will be sent to you on successful submission of your application. If you experience any problems with the online application system please contact the Executive PhD Admissions Office on +44 (0)20 7040 5030.
Entry requirements
- Applicants should have a clear understanding of the basic business principles together with extensive practical experience
- Hold an excellent MBA, MSc or equivalent professional qualification
- Possess a minimum of five years managerial experience
- Applicants should preferably show evidence of having a clear advantage related to their current employment, e.g. unique data
- Applicants need to make a credible time commitment to studying throughout the programme
- Fluency in English, if English is not your first language, please see below for acceptable English language qualifications.
English language requirements
The following qualifications will normally meet the English language requirement for entry to a postgraduate degree course:
- A first degree from a UK university
- A first degree from an overseas institution recognised by City, University of London as providing adequate evidence of proficiency in the English language, e.g. institutions in Australia, Canada or the United States
- GCE O-level/GCSE English language or English literature, grade C minimum
- Cambridge ESOL CPE (Certificate of Proficiency in English) at grade C or above
- A minimum overall score of 7.0 and a minimum writing score of 6.5 in the English Language Testing System (IELTS) – IELTS scores are only valid if they are less than two years old on the programme start date
- Warwick English Language Test (WELT) with pass grades at BBC minimum.
