Reviewed on Feb 12, 2025(Enrolled 2024)
What Students Say
Likes
- Oldest Chemistry Department in England and hence consists of faculty who are pioneers in their respective field or are contributing to world leading research.
- The Royal Society of Chemistry accredits most of the courses offered by the Department of Chemistry which gives the students opportunity to attend seminars and connect to researchers who are members of the RSC and are conducting cutting edge research.
- The courses offered by the Department of Chemistry is highly research oriented which enables the students to learn by conducting critical analysis of the literature and by designing novel experiments, compared to the conventional method of classroom based education.
Dislikes
- Location of classes can be quite far apart from each other which sometimes lead to confusion and/or reaching classes later than the assigned time.
- The number of students in a particular course is extremely small (due to the difficult admission process, to maintain the academic standard of the institution) which makes it harder for students to make friends or acquaintances.
- Some of the modules can be quite advanced for students hailing from India even if the term "advanced" is not mentioned in the course title and irrespective of the fact that they might have taken the respective course in their undergraduate. Only thorough studying of the course and dedicating extra effort is the possible solution to a situation like this as UCL is an institution with a top 10 ranking in the world and hence an academic journey here is obvious to be a bit challenging.
Course Curriculum
10
- My course has a few taught modules but is heavily academically marked on my research project, which makes the difficulty level of the course quite high, as research is unpredictable and hence can affect marks.
- The positive aspect of my course is that it is training me to truly understand my subject inside out and apply that understanding to a research level. This is a skill that is crucial for a researcher aiming for a PhD. There are hardly any negative aspects of my course but just for the sake of stating one: computational chemistry can be quite difficult for traditional chemistry students with no work or lab experiences and fresh out of undergraduate level.
- I have only one class per day for 4 days in a week. Each class is 2 hours long, typically from 11-1 or 2-4 pm.
- Personal tutors are present to assist students both academically and with any personal requirements such as part-time work. Although it is discouraged to pursue part-time work, as the course offered by the Department of Chemistry is highly exhaustive and requires nothing less than a hundred percent dedication from the student's side.
- I have personally connected with my research supervisor the most, as he has similar interests in the research field as me. He has vast experience and knowledge in his subject and efficiently handles any student who might be struggling in the same.
Admission Experience
- I had applied to the University of Cambridge, University College London, and the University of Melbourne.
- I was accepted to all the aforementioned universities. I received a conditional offer from the University of Cambridge, and I received unconditional offers from UCL and the University of Melbourne.
- I could not pursue a master's at the University of Cambridge as I failed to gather a fully funded scholarship, which was one of the conditions as a part of my admission.
- As I failed to move forward with the University of Cambridge, UCL was my second option based on the QS rankings. Furthermore, I was interested in the chemical research degree provided by UCL, as it is structured in a way of a "short PhD," which will provide me with an overall idea of what a PhD is supposed to be like and hence prepare me for the next stage of my career.
- I had received an unconditional offer of admission from UCL; hence, my admission process was very simple. I had to provide my transcripts of my undergraduate degree, two letters of reference from my professors during my undergraduate degree and my IELTS scorecard. Additionally, I had to write a statement of purpose of 1000 words stating why I wanted to be a part of UCL and under this particular degree and state my top three choices of supervisors with proper justifications.
- The minimum requirements for admission were IELTS (7 and above) and GPA (3.6 and above). But attaining the minimum requirements does not mean a guaranteed admission, as they just imply that you qualify to apply-the decision of admission lies with the department.
- My overall admission experience was pretty straightforward and simple. As I had 3 work experiences and several publications, I had an advantage over the other applicants, and hence I managed to receive an unconditional offer of admission straightaway.
- Fall intake of 2024. I had just completed my research internship at IIT Jodhpur and was interested in continuing my higher studies immediately after gathering the relevant research experience.
- The admission process took roughly 6 months. I had applied early, in September 2023, and received an offer of admission by November 2023 itself. However, as I was more focused on my application at the University of Cambridge, I had not accepted UCL's offer until April 2024.
Faculty
10
- 7 people per class.
- I am the only Indian student in my course.
- We have a vast number of faculty; hence, the faculty-to-student ratio is not an issue. The professors give customised lessons and attention to every student in their module.
- The teaching methodology in my department is typically application-based and hence is perfect for an industrial job or a future PhD.
Campus Life
10
- Two campus: Bloomsbury and UCL east
- All necessary and extracurricular facilities are provided on each campus. We have dedicated libraries, study spots, cafes, theatre galleries, sports grounds, etc., available to the students of both campuses.
- All the campus festivals are celebrated majorly here. The freshers week has numerous festivals and welcome events: one such event was a boat party for the new students on the River Thames. There is also an upcoming Winter Ball in the month of December.
- The student committee under the Department of Chemistry is called the Chemical and Physical Society, which is the oldest student society in England.
- Additionally, there are over 100 clubs and societies, such as the Bollywood Society, Rowing Society, Bangla Society, and Baseball Society, who have their independent events for their members. Generally, master's students run on a very tight weekly schedule and hence are less likely to regularly take part in the events or meetings of these societies.
Part Time Jobs
- It depends on the supervisor and the funding available to the supervisor.
- Depends on the funding available to the supervisor mostly, but typically (25-30,000 pounds per annum).
- Research or teaching assistants, administrative officers, equality and diversity representatives, sabbatical officers
- 20 hours per week
- Not very difficult, although the competition is fairly high. You have to appear for an interview for the respective job and your CV should match the job requirements.
- 11 to 13 pounds—depends on which job sector they are looking to secure a job in.
- Part-time jobs with known companies like McDonald's or Marks and Spencer are competitive and part-time jobs at a startup or relevant industrial companies could be extremely suitable for building a CV but exhaustive. Indeed and LinkedIn are good platforms to find jobs. UCL has a jobshop available showing job vacancies but they are highly competitive. Most job applications require filling out a relevant form with CV and Cover letter and might call for an interview if the initial information provided passes the screening category.
Placement
6
- Almost all students usually secure a job offer by the time of their master's graduation if they are not willing to pursue a PhD.
- 25 to 30,000 pounds per annum is the salary.
- Networking and online job portals are the main modes of securing a job, as there are no campus placement methods here. Most students individually job hunt and approach employers well before their graduation.
- They mostly have been working under a company that has agreed to sponsor their master's at UCL on the condition that they join under them full-time after graduation.
- GSK and AstraZeneca are the main companies that come for campus recruitments.
Accommodation
Off Campus
8
- I am renting an independent property off-campus and I found it through an online platform called Imperial Housing Solution.
- 650 pounds, Wi-Fi included. Utilities are not included.
- I had to pay 6 months rent upfront due to a lack of a UK-based guarantor.
- Do not opt for campus accommodation, as it is much costlier and smaller in size.
- 25 minutes. Campus accommodation or private student accommodations.
Exams
- Only IELTS is mandatorily required for Indian students. However, if the students can prove that the mode of communication at their undergraduate level was English, they can be exempted from this requirement. As I had already taken an IELTS examination and received a scorecard for the same, I provided my IELTS marks for the application as well.
- IELTS scorecard, SOP (1000 words), 2 LORs from academic/professional references. CV was not required for UCL but was mandatory for Cambridge.
- I did not have to sit for an interview for UCL.
Fees
- The full tuition fee for my course at UCL is 37,500 pounds. I did not opt for hostel or university accommodation; hence, I am not aware of the costs regarding that.
- Students at UCL are supposed to pay the fee semester-wise. We are required to pay the first installment, which is one-third of the total tuition fee, by the first month of classes.
- My rent is 650 pounds and I pay about 100 pounds for commuting. Including food and miscellaneous expenditures, my total monthly expense is approximately 850 pounds.
Scholarship
- I received an external scholarship: the Tata Endowment Loan Scholarship. The eligibility criteria are being an Indian citizen applying for a full-time postgraduate course or PhD abroad, having a good academic record in their previous degree and certificates for extracurricular and co-curricular activities, already having an offer of admission from the respective university abroad and having two referrals.
- 10 lakh rupees (INR)
- I am not aware of that.
- Approximately 80 Indian students receive this scholarship and the typical award amount ranges from 4 lakh to 10 lakh based on academic merit through the screening processes.
