How competitive for masters.

Hey guys,

Im planning on doing a masters and the course that appeals to me the most is MSc Evolutionary and Comparative Psychology at St Andrews. I know how competitive the undergrad is and i was wandering if anyone could shed any light on the competitiveness for postgraduate places as they dont seem to publish any stats.

Im a psychology undergrad looking at 2:1/1st from a top 15 uni btw.

Thanks.

Hey guys,

Im planning on doing a masters and the course that appeals to me the most is MSc Evolutionary and Comparative Psychology at St Andrews. I know how competitive the undergrad is and i was wandering if anyone could shed any light on the competitiveness for postgraduate places as they dont seem to publish any stats.

Im a psychology undergrad looking at 2:1/1st from a top 15 uni btw.

Thanks.

Masters as a whole is less competitive than undergrad. Of course it depends on the course. MSc in Finance is a very competitive degree for example because it often leads to jobs in banking. I think you have a very good chance though for St Andrews with a high upper 2nd or a first from a top 15 uni.

That master's degrees are a whole lot less competitive is just a myth. Overall speaking for all universities wherever in general maybe, but definitely not at top institutions. The acceptance rates at Oxbridge are only circa 2% higher for postgraduate studies, and on my MSc course a substantial portion already have gotten a master's degree somewhere (one from Cambridge), with one already with a PhD (from SOAS). But that's just the academic side of it, with postgraduate studies most people shine with their work experience, in academia or the real world.

The thing with masters is you can apply to both Oxford and Cambridge and because fewer people apply for masters than for undergrad it often is less competitive. Oxford and Cambridge are willing to accept those with a 2:1 for many of its masters programmes, this would scarcely happen for undergrad. I'm sure there are some masters courses harder than others, but people generally stay the same or go up a tier when applying for masters programmes.

Oxbridge would reject people going for a second bachelor's degree with a 2:1 already in their first one? News to me.

What people seem to have forgotten is that most people who apply for postgraduate degrees very often already have gotten at least one degree and plenty of work experience, something sixth formers lack.

It's like saying it's less competitive to run for American presidency because there were only a few candidates than running for class monitor at primary school because ten schoolchildren wanted the position.

I see your point but its still apparent to me that people seem to move up but not as often down for their masters.

I think its also because masters degrees are also a way for people to get into a higher tier school move to a new country (gives them some local credentials and time to get accustomed to the culture) or get into a specialized/different field. If you did your undergrad at a top uni, you are likely to get a job with that degree. If you did your undergrad at a less good uni, you are more likely to want to do a masters at a better uni to bolster your credentials.

The competition for masters is reduced becasue the students from the best unis tend to just get a job rather than do a masters. The truth is a lot of people do masters because they still haven't decided what they wanted to do or they can't find a job they like. Also, it is a way for universities to earn a bit more cash out of students and so requirements are usually less.