Theoretical Physics, MSc by Research

MSc by Research programmes: We normally require a minimum of an upper second class Honours degree or equivalent in physics or a related field.

Applicants to this programme would normally be expected to meet the minimum entry requirements indicated above. The College/School reserves the right to ask for higher academic grades and qualifications.

Admissions decisions take into account not only prior academic qualifications, but also factors including the standard of the research synopsis/proposal submitted by the applicant, their performance at interview (if required), intensity of competition for limited places and relevant professional experience (where appropriate).

Swansea is a research-led University and our department makes a significant contribution, meaning you will benefit from the considerable experience and skills of our expert staff. Professor Lyn Evans, leader of the Large Hadron Collider project at CERN, is a significant Swansea Physics alumnus. Professor Higgs Boson, the Physics Nobel Prize winner who proposed the Boson particle is a Swansea University Honorary Fellow with close links to our department. You will have access to our raft of state-of-the-art facilities including:

• Low-energy positron beam with a high field superconducting magnet for the study of positronium
• CW and pulsed laser systems
• Scanning tunnelling electron and nearfield optical microscopes
• Raman microscope
• CPU parallel cluster
• The IBM-built ‘Blue C’ Supercomputer at Swansea University

If you are a Welsh speaker our dedicated academy, Academi Hywel Teifi, is here to support you throughout your time at Swansea University. We offer you:

• An interview through the medium of Welsh when applying for a place.
• The option to receive your personal correspondence in Welsh - we will then communicate with you in your language of choice.
• The option to write and submit your coursework or exams through the medium of Welsh (even if you have chosen to study in English), and every effort will be made to mark your work in its original language.
• A Welsh-speaking personal tutor.
• One-to-one support to improve your academic Welsh language skills.

Since 2011, there has been a 40% increase in the number of students studying through the medium of Welsh at Swansea University and our *TEF data over the last two years shows that Welsh-medium students are high achievers in regards to employability (*Swansea University TEF return 2017 and 2018).

Annual tuition fees for entry in the academic year 2019/20 are as follows:

Tuition fees for years of study after your first year are subject to an increase of 3%.

You can find further information of your fee costs on our tuition fees page.

Note: The UK/EU fee is indicative pending confirmation from UKRI

If your course starts in January, April or July 2019 please refer to the 2018/19 fee costs on our tuition fees page.

You may be eligible for funding to help support your study. To find out about scholarships, bursaries and other funding opportunities that are available please visit the University's scholarships and bursaries page.

Current students: You can find further information of your fee costs on our tuition fees page.

You may be eligible for funding to help support your study.

To find out about scholarships, bursaries and other funding opportunities that are available please visit the University's scholarships and bursaries page.

Academi Hywel Teifi at Swansea University and the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol offer a number of generous scholarships and bursaries for students who wish to study through the medium of Welsh or bilingually. For further information about the opportunities available to you, visit the Academi Hywel Teifi Scholarships and Bursaries page.

You may face additional costs while at university, including (but are not limited to):

• Parking and travel to and from campus
• Printing, photocopying, stationery and equipment costs (e.g. USB sticks)
• Purchase of books or texts
• Printing and binding
• Gowns for graduation ceremonies

Apply online. 

The application process for postgraduate research involves two stages:

1. Firstly, securing an offer of a place at the Department via the Admissions Office.
2. Securing funding for your studies. We will give you help where necessary, especially with the second part.

Depending on the source, funds to undertake postgraduate research are awarded on the basis of either the project being of high quality (in which case the funding will exist when we advertise the project), or the merits of the applicant.

If you already have funding, or are self-funding, you will need to decide on a research topic that interests you.

For enquiries regarding postgraduate research in Experimental Physics (AMQP, APM Groups), contact Dr Markus Müller


For enquiries regarding postgraduate research in Theoretical Physics (PPCT Group), contact Dr Daniel Thompson