Study at Birkbeck | Postgraduate study | Why Birkbeck? | Choose to study part-time or full-time
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Part-time and full-time study

At postgraduate level, you have the option to study either part-time or full-time.

Part-time study

One of the many advantages of studying at Birkbeck is that, as most teaching takes place in the evenings, you don’t have to put your career on hold in order to study with us and gain your postgraduate qualification.

Almost all of our postgraduate courses are taught part-time, by evening study. Many of our part-time students are either working or looking after their families during the day; our part-time evening study means they can continue to pursue their daytime activities while gaining a University of London qualification.

Full-time study

If you would prefer to study full-time, you’ll find that most of our taught Master’s degrees are also available on a full-time basis, taking one year to complete. This means you can pursue your studies over a shorter, more intensive period – but still study in the evenings.

Evening lectures

  • This is a very popular route for working professionals who want to complete their studies in one academic year.
  • However, it is also very intensive, and if you have a demanding job and/or family commitments, we recommend that you speak to the admissions tutor for the programme you want to study to ensure that this is the right route for you.

Intensive study

  • Full-time postgraduate programmes require intensive study, and you will be expected to undertake 25–30 hours of organised study per week:
  • Exact hours will depend on the programme of study and student ability, but will generally comprise lectures (for taught programmes), tutorials, directed reading, research and the preparation of assignments or a thesis as part of the formal assessment for the award of a qualification.

Information for international students