Short course route to online MSc Planetary Sciences

We recommend these courses for this entry route for two reasons.

• It’s the recommended route set out by the programme coordinator.
• These are the courses that students taking the full online Masters degree will typically be starting with too. You’ll be studying alongside a cohort of online degree students. If you later transfer into the online degree, you’ll continue studying alongside these same students, giving you a smoother transition into the degree programme.

Yes, absolutely.

You can choose to take one or two 15-credit courses each term.

• A 15-credit course is around 10 – 15 study hours per week.
• A 30-credit course is around 20 – 30 study hours per week.

You can also take study breaks between terms, as long as you complete your qualification in time. You need to complete:

• a Masters degree within six years
• a Postgraduate Diploma (PgDip) within four years
• a Postgraduate Certificate (PgCert) within two years.

You’ll be eligible to apply to transfer to the online Masters when you:

• pass 30 credits’ worth of recommended short courses from this Masters degree successfully
• receive your official passing grades for these courses, and
• meet this degree’s English language requirements if English is not your first language.

If you fulfil these requirements, you can apply to transfer. The programme coordinator makes the final decision on degree transfers.

You can transfer once a year, in August. We carry out transfers in August because:

• August is the start of the new academic year, and
• it gives you time to choose your courses ahead of teaching starting in September.

The transfer process takes place once a year, in August only.

The School will contact you during your studies to find out what your intentions are for the next term. It’s at this point you can apply to transfer in August. The School will support you through the transfer process.

If you’re taking the short course route, you do not need to apply for the Masters degree separately via our Applicant Portal. Instead, the School will fast-track you into the online Masters, providing you meet the eligibility criteria.

If you fail your first attempt at a short course, you’ll be offered one chance to resit the course assessment.

If you fail this resit, you cannot take the course again.

We would then be able to advise you as to your options – you may still be able to qualify with a postgraduate qualification in a different specialism.

No. Once you’ve completed your entry-route short courses, you will not need to study them again when you transfer to the Masters degree.

The credits you have completed will count towards the Masters degree.

Once you’ve transferred to the Masters, you will not need to pay for the courses that you have already studied. Your Masters fee will be adjusted to deduct the cost of the courses you have already paid for.

A pay-as-you-go degree

We never charge the full fee for a Masters degree upfront. Instead, we charge for our degrees one term at a time, so you can spread the cost.

How pay-as-you-go works

Each term, you decide how many courses you’d like to take. Then you pay for these courses just before term starts. This gives you control over your degree fees and your workload, term by term.

Each 15-credit course is around 10 – 15 study hours per week.

This is an indicative guide to the time required for a typical student at this level to achieve the learning outcomes. This includes time for independent study, as well as teaching and assessments.

You’ll find more detailed and course-specific study hours on each of our online course pages.

Studying around work?

If you’re planning to study part-time, especially if you’re studying around full-time work, we recommend taking a maximum of 30 credits per term.

If you’ve already submitted an application for this degree, please:

• email our Postgraduate Admissions team with your applicant number and ask them to cancel your degree application
• then purchase and join your chosen short course(s).