Postgraduate research in Law

For over 85 years Birmingham Law School has made a major contribution to teaching and scholarship. Our academic staff are amongst the country's most eminent legal scholars and provide a supportive research culture that encourages and facilitates research activities.

As well as providing expert supervision from an experienced member of staff, the School cultivates a friendly and supportive environment for its community of research students. We currently have over 70 students engaged in research degrees in the School.

We offer three types of research degree:

• MJur – undertaken over one year full-time or two years part-time, this programme requires you to research and write a 40,000-word thesis.
• MPhil – undertaken over two years full-time or four years part-time, this programme culminates in a 60,000-word thesis.
• PhD – the most advanced research degree, this doctoral programme is undertaken over three years full-time or six years part-time and is completed with an 80,000-word thesis. The PhD is available via distance learning as well as on campus.

Our expertise

Academics working in the School are well known for carrying out important applied legal research, much of it commissioned by the government and other public bodies.

We can supervise theses in the following research areas:

• Commercial and company law
• Comparative law
• Constitutional and administrative law
• Criminal law and criminal justice
• Environmental law
• European Union law
• Family law
• Health and health care law
• Human rights and civil liberties
• International law and global legal studies
• Jurisprudence and legal theory
• Law and society
• Legal education and the legal profession
• Private law
• Property law

Your application

Applications are accepted at any time though we strongly encourage students to begin their studies at the start of the UK academic year in September.

Full details of our requirements can be found on our Law PhD applications page.

We have also provided detailed guidance on what to expect from the application process and postgraduate research in the College of Arts and Law, which is home to Birmingham Law School.