Applying for a PhD in Design Engineering

Design Engineering requires higher than the minimum Imperial College entry requirements; our PhD applicants are expected to have a First Class (Distinction) Degree or equivalent at Masters level in a relevant engineering, design or scientific discipline. In exceptional cases where extensive research/industry experience can be demonstrated, candidates with a UK-equivalent of 2:1 (Merit) at Masters level can be considered. 

As part of the application process applicants will need to show that they have met the College’s English-language requirements. Details can be found here.

Candidates with study up to Bachelors degree level will not normally be considered without evidence of significant industrial, research, or field experience. However, they are welcome to apply for our Master's Degrees, Innovation Design Engineering and Global Innovation Design.

If your undergraduate and/or master's qualifications are from overseas institutions, please see here for information on international grade equivalencies and how they relate to the Imperial College entry requirements. 

If you are applying to the PhD Programme as an overseas student, there are a number of additional requirements you may need to fulfil as part of the application process: 

• Meeting the College's English language requirements. 
• Securing a tier 4 student visa to study in the UK. 
• Most nationals who require immigration permission to be in the UK and intend to study an Engineering PhD will require ATAS clearance. Further information on this is available here. Please note that nationals from the EU, EEA, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea and the USA are NOT required to have ATAS clearance (as of 5th October 2020). The CAH code used in ATAS applications for Design Engineering is CAH10-01-01.  

You should apply online using the College's application portal. Please keep in mind the following:

• Enter ‘Design Engineering Research’ in the programme title field on the application form
• Start your application as early as possible
• Many studentships have application deadlines well ahead of your planned start date
• Sponsors will be more impressed if you can show you already meet our requirements

As part of the application, you will need to upload the following supporting documents: 

• Degree transcripts 
• 2 references
• Evidence of your English language qualifications (where applicable)
• Your CV
• A short personal statement and/or a research proposal (maximum 1-2 pages)

The main thing to keep in mind is to answer the following questions: 

• What is your motivation to undertake a PhD and why now? 
• Why Imperial and why Design Engineering? Why this particular research team? 
• What is your research question or what is the area you are interested in? What is the need/gap for this research?  

All applicants must be interviewed before a formal offer of admission can be made. This interview will be conducted by at least 2 members of academic staff; on occasions the Director of Postgraduate Research or the Head of Department may be present. The interview should be carried out in English. 

Normally, interviews are carried out face-to-face. If it is not feasible for the candidate to meet with the potential supervisor – for instance if they are an overseas applicant – candidates may be interviewed by phone or via Teams/Zoom. Due to Covid-19, all interviews are currently being held remotely.   

You are requested to prepare an appox 20-minute (maximum) PowerPoint presentation that should include the following items. 

• Highlights of your CV:  Academic performance, skills, achievements, etc.
• Description of your undergraduate project.
• Description of your MSc project or equivalent.
• Description of any advanced project  (for candidates with industrial experience).
• Highlight skills of particular relevance to your PhD topic.

The College has a number of scholarships available for you to apply for. We would recommend you look at the available scholarships to help you find all available sources of funding. 

The application form will request information on how you plan to fund your PhD, and this will be considered in appraising the strength of your application. Applications to the College's President's Scholarship Scheme are made in the PhD application form.  

It is important to consider the deadline dates of scholarship schemes when applying for to the PhD programme. Scholarship applications can take some time, and it is therefore best to apply in good time in order to secure funding.