Essentials checklist

Here are some essential things to consider before beginning your research degree at Imperial College London.

Essentials tabs

Know your department

  1. Which department are you in? Imperial College London has four Faculties:
    1. Faculty of Engineering
    2. Faculty of Medicine
    3. Faculty of Natural Sciences
    4. Imperial Business School
      Each Faculty has several Schools, Institutes or Departments (SID). It is important to know within which SID you are.
  2. Where is your SID located?
  3. Who is your Head of Department?
  4. Who is your Director of Postgraduate Studies?
  5. Who is your Postgraduate Administrator?
  6. Where are your Department web pages for research students?

Know your degree

  1. Which degree are you studying?
  2. How long is your degree expected to take?
  3. Are you fully registered?
  4. Who are your supervisors?
  5. Who is responsible for your day-to-day supervision?
  6. What’s the broad topic of your research project?
  7. Where’s your desk?
  8. Where’s your lab?
  9. What are your requirements and milestones?

Research Welcome and Inductions

  1. When are the College Welcomes and Induction events?
  2. When are your Department Welcome events?
  3. When is your Research Induction?

Understand your finances

  1. Are you employed or on a tax-free bursary? Ensure you complete the necessary paperwork in plenty of time to avoid delayed payments.
  2. Who is responsible for your tuition fees and how much are they?
  3. How many years do you have funding for?
  4. Understand the funding for your project

Find out about accommodation

  1. Do you have accommodation arranged?
  2. Do you know your way around London?
  3. Do you have any special circumstances to take into consideration?
  4. Speak to the accommodation office if you need advice