KCL Postgrad Thread - 2011 Entry

Hi guys,

I applied to King's like 2 or 3 weeks ago for the MA in International Relations, so still waiting for the reply.
I guess I'll need to wait at least for another month..right?:/

It varies from department to department.

In my case, it took 3.5 months. In my wife's case, 2 months after submitting her application, she was told the course would not be offered because they lacked the numbers, and suggested she transfer her application to a similar one. She did, and got an offer within 2-3 days!

I think the average wait is 6-8 weeks.

Thank's for your answer!! By the way...wow they take sooooooo long...O.O how many applicants do they have per place? I applied to the department of war studies and I'm aware it is a really competitive department, but I'm giving it a shot. I do have what they require in terms of grades and all, but I do understand that a looooot of people apply there

do you mind if I ask you whether you have a first class honours degree or an upper second honours degree?

No problem, don't mind you asking - I've got a second upper honours degree.

If you read the blurb on the "admissions process", it says different departments have different ways of selecting applications. Some collect a pool of applications first, before reviewing them against each other. This obviously will take some time. Others assess applications as and when they come in, and decide based on the merits of each application. In this case, the earlier you apply, the better a chance you being admitted. I suspect departments use a hybrid system of both. Regardless, it's hard to tell applicants how long the selection process takes because of the factors involved.

Another issue is a crunch on the admin side of things. My impression is the admin staff are trying their best to keep up with things, but with so many parties involved in the selection process, things may slow down a little. It's the nature of bureaucracies, I think. I'm also not sure if KCL has been affected by funding cuts which has reduced the number of administrators. A friend who was seeking admission to another big-name UK university said he was surprised to find out that the admissions officer he was corresponding with did double-duty for another department. She'd spend half the week in one, and the other half in another. My friend would get lots of "out-of-office" automated replies!

I think it's reasonable to check with KCL on the status of your application about 8 weeks after you've submitted it. Hopefully they would have gotten back to you before then. But if not, just ask.

well, it is a really selective university and each department probably found the best method of choosing students.
I'm worried that my application would take a lot longer, since one of my referee didn't receive the automatic mail to upload the reference via referee portal. I asked him to send an email with the reference as an attachment,2 days ago and I sent it as well trough the student portal just to make sure...
Well, I didn't receive their reply either by student portal or mail..I do understand they are busy and probably they are experiencing fundings cuts as well.
i would avoid calling them because I'm not at home and a phone call to London from here would be quite expensive..what do you suggest me?Do they read the mails sent by student portal?Maybe they take long also to reply..

King's college is my first choice and even though is expensive if I get in, I would do everything I can to be in class in september...but I'm not giving it too much hope as I don't want to be disappointed!!

I've only communicated with the War Studies Dept via the application portal, and they've been quite prompt in replying. I usually received a reply within 2 days, usually 1 day. But that was from Aug - Nov last year. Maybe it's a busy period now?

I also don't think they start processing your application till they have both your referees' letters. So maybe there will be a delay.

Anyway, if you've already sent them a msg to check if your application is finally in order, I'd just sit tight and wait. All the best!

BTW, where are you from?

Recieved a conditional offer for MA Intelligence and International Security.
Anyone else on here planning to do the same course?!

i have an offer from king's with a 5000 gbp scholarship. However, i also have an offer from univ. Glasgow for 10,000 gbp. Since i'm an international student, i'll be paying about 12,000 gbp for king's and 5000 gbp for glasgow with those scholarships.

I got into glasgow for a cancer mres., and they seemed to rank high on the rae for cancer studies.

Does king's have a better research reputation? What would you lot do?

these are 2 vgood unis and it's is up to u to decide where u want to study. Kcl is notable for its research but glasgow is quite reputable although i suspect it does not get the deserving attn cause it's not situated in london! If funds are not a factor for u, then it's really a matter of whether u want 2 be in london or not. Too many ppl want 2 b in "london" without realising the disadvantage they may be putting themselves in. I would choose glasgow cause i knw of 2 ppl who studied there, 1 a couple years back & 1 more recently - they both were impressed, 1 is working in the uk for nhs & the other is doing phd research in the us. Glasgow seems to be the better option of the 2. Either way, best of luck in whatever u choose.

Thanks. What are the "disadvantages" of London?