Postgraduate Study in Other Countries

Embarking on postgraduate study is a big decision that requires you to invest time, energy and probably money, so it is worth considering a range of options depending on your ultimate goals.

Studying outside the UK is an option that may have advantages, of which the opportunity to work with global specialists in your field and the benefits of living in a different country are just two. While relatively few Oxford students have taken up further study in countries outside of the EU and the USA, numbers are growing. There are many opportunities to study at well-regarded institutions, particularly in East Asia and in some Commonwealth countries, such as Australia and Canada.

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If you want to apply to study outside the UK, then you will need to start planning early. Although the internet has a vast number of resources on this topic, it will still take time to seek them out and work out which is the best route for you. Begin your research well in advance – some 18 to 24 months before you wish to go – not least because timetables vary for different countries, and if funding is available there may be early deadlines for applications.

In addition you may want to attend our international careers events, which run throughout Hilary term, to meet representatives of relevant organisations, or check CareerConnect for details of any institutions visiting Oxford to present their opportunities to students. Some individual funding opportunities are also advertised via the CareerConnect vacancy database.

Useful websites

The Careers Service subscribes to GoinGlobal: access it via our website for information about living, working and studying abroad.

Prospects: Studying Abroad provides further information about funding, application timetables, language requirements, etc. as well as country-specific guides.

There are two well-known searchable databases of courses, and although they are not comprehensive they can be useful:

League tables

If you wish to find out more about different University League Tables, these websites cover institutions worldwide:

Funding

Oxford University administers some scholarships and exchanges to provide opportunities to study abroad as part of your degree, or for postgraduate study. The Leverhulme Trust also administers some grants for overseas study.

The British Council has some information about specific programmes to enable students and graduates to study abroad for a brief period or longer.

It’s also worth looking at Oxford’s External Funding webpages, which includes details of scholarships as well as links to funding search tools like the Alternative Guide to Postgraduate Funding, which Oxford students can access using their University email address.

There are more than 4000 higher education institutions in Europe. The Study in Europe site provides information about studying in 24 different countries. There are an increasing number of opportunities to study in English in some European countries, and fees may be considerably lower than in the UK.

Other general sources of information include:

Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters Degrees (EMJMDs) are run by partnerships of universities and allow you to study towards a Masters which is jointly delivered by different European institutions. Information about the courses and scholarships can be found at the EEAS webpages.

Information about studying in some specific European countries is given below. There is general information about the impact of Brexit on the Oxford and Brexit webpages.

France

The French Embassy provides useful information about studying in France. See also the France Diplomatie website.

Campus France is the French national agency which promotes French higher education abroad. It provides:

  • General information about the French education system
  • Links to all French university websites
  • Information on specialist institutions (Grandes Ecoles): Schools of business and management, Engineering Schools (CEFI), and Institutes of Political Science (IEP – or “Sciences Po”)
  • Information about financing your education.

You can also contact their Desk in London: Institut Français, 17 Queensberry Place, London, SW7 2DT. Tel: 020 7871 3515. Email: londres@campusfrance.org.

Centre National des Œuvres Universitaires et Scolaires provides additional information on:

  • A student’s life: grants & finance/housing/welfare
  • Orientation and enrolment

You may also find Study in France helpful.

Popular institutions

Popular institutions for study in France include:

The International Admissions Service (SAI) at the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry manages a selection process common to five French business schools for entry into their Master in Management Programme. These B-schools are: Audencia Nantes, Emlyon Business School, ESCP Europe, HEC Paris and SKEMA Business School. The SAI selection is exclusively opened to high profile graduates holding a degree from a non-French university at Bachelor level. Applications to the selection process are made on the SAI website.

Germany

The best source of information about studying in Germany is DAAD – the German Academic Exchange Service / Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst. They have an office in London and their extensive website provides information on all aspects of studying and researching in Germany, including funding, and details of the many programmes taught in English. Other useful websites include Studienwahl and Studying in Germany.

Many courses in Germany do not charge tuition fees – more information is available on the QS Top Universities site. There will of course still be other costs to take into account, including administration fees and your living costs. Many institutions offer Master’s degrees and PhDs in English.

Popular institutions

Popular institutions in Germany include:

Austria

OeAD is the Austrian agency for international mobility and co-operation in education, science and research. It provides general information on study in Austria, links to universities and other institutions, and a funding database. See also the Austrian Grants website and Study in Austria.

Baltic States

Belgium

Czech Republic

  • Study in Czech Republic: provides information about higher education in the Czech Republic, including courses taught in English. Another useful website is DZS.

Denmark

More than 600 programmes are offered in English.

Finland

Finland has over 20,000 international students and was voted the world's happiest country for the second year in a row in the World Happiness Report 2019.

Greece

  • Official government Study in Greece website: programmes are mainly offered in Greek but an increasing number are taught in English.
  • Study in Greece is another useful site.

Hungary

  • Study in Hungary: 500+ programmes in English, French, German and other languages.
  • Tempus Public Foundation: information pages from a government non-profit managing international cooperation and education.

Ireland

Italy

  • Study.eu: Italy: information on the higher education system, admissions procedures and study programmes, including a course search feature.
  • CIMEA: general information about equivalent qualifications.
  • A useful article on the Telegraph website.

Luxembourg

The Netherlands

May have the highest number of programmes taught in English in continental Europe, and fees are generally lower than in the UK.

  • Study in Holland: includes information on scholarships and exchange programmes, and provides a course search database and a list of Dutch educational institutions. There are numerous programmes available taught in English. 
  • I am Expat: general information on living in the Netherlands, including study information.

Norway

Study in Norway: lists of courses and institutions, including a list of English-language programmes and information on scholarships.

Poland

Portugal

Spain

Sweden

  • Study in Sweden: includes a course search and information on scholarships. Hundreds of the courses are taught in English.
  • Universityadmissions.se: official website for applying to study in Sweden.

Switzerland

Geneva is home to over 300 international NGOs and organisations, such as the UN, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) – if you’re interested in studying international development or working for this sort of organisation, it’s worth finding out which universities locally have research or placement links with NGOs. The Graduate Institute Geneva is one example.

Japan

Some courses are taught in English as part of a drive to encourage more international students to study in Japan. For details, see Japanese Embassy: Study.

Funding

China

Possibilities for studying in China include learning Mandarin, or following a course taught in English. The following websites will be useful:

  • Study in China: university search, online live Chinese lesson, scholarships and visa application information. 
  • Tsinghua University: lists masters programmes in English for international students
  • 2 Graduate: China: provides information on China’s Universities, colleges, schools, educational institutions for graduate study, MS, MBA, Ph.D Programmes
  • China Education Center: information on study abroad opportunities in China

Scholarships

Hong Kong

Selected Institutions

Many of these teach programmes in English.

South Korea

Indonesia

The Ministry of Education and Culture, Republic of Indonesia, offers the Darmasiswa Programme scholarship to foreign students (including students from the UK and Ireland) of any major to study in Indonesia for 6 months or 1 year. The main purpose of the Darmasiswa Programme is to promote and increase interest in the language and culture of Indonesia among the youth of other countries. Details of this scholarship and other opportunities can be found on the website of the Indonesian Education Attaché in London. One student's experiences are documented on the One World 365 website, and the StudyLink website has general information.

Find out more about courses and scholarships on the website of the Association of Commonwealth Universities.

Australia and New Zealand

Study Options is a free service for anyone wishing to apply to study in Australia or New Zealand. They provide details of courses, visas and funding.

Some scholarships for study in Australia are administered via the Menzies Centre at King’s College London, and there are also international postgraduate research scholarships funded by the Australian government. In addition:

Canada

Each University in Canada has its own admission requirements, but standardised test scores such as GMAT or GRE may be required, as well as a personal statement / statement of purpose. Consult our information on Postgraduate Study in the USA for further information on GRE and GMAT.

Masters courses are sometimes one year, sometimes two. PhD courses potentially take four to five years and often include taught elements (similar to the US).  A popular route of funding oneself (especially in the arts and humanities) is through teaching undergraduates. Check any requirements for French language skills, especially if you are applying to a University in French-speaking Canada. There is usually an application fee per application.

More details about the application process can be found at Infozee: Canada Application Procedure and details about visas/study permits at Government of Canada: Study in Canada.

Universities of Canada is the official website for study. For general information about study in Canada see Education in Canada and Study in Canada.

The Foundation for Canadian Studies may have some funding for students whose research is about Canada. Other funding information can be found at Government of Canada: Scholarships & Bourses.

Singapore

Information about studying in Singapore can be found in Singapore: Ministry of Education. The Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy offers some scholarships for its Masters programmes.

If you are interested in studying outside the UK, but don’t want to commit to a full-time programme, it is possible to undertake shorter summer school programmes in many international universities. We advertise some of these via CareerConnect, particularly those where there are scholarships available. These include the International Alliance of Research Universities (IARU) Global Summer Program and programmes at some Chinese universities. A quick search online will find you many more opportunities.

Some universities offer short-term research scholarships for DPhil students and post-doctoral researchers. There are also some research internships at international universities offered via our Summer Internship Programme – these are advertised from January each year on CareerConnect.

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