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Key information
Award:
MPhil
PhD
Study mode:
Full time
Part time
Campus:
Waterloo Campus
Duration:
2-4 years FT, 6-7 years PT. There are two entry points for the programme each academic year in October and February
Overview
The Centre for Language, Discourse & Communication (LDC) welcomes applications for the MPhil/PhD in Language, Discourse & Communication. The MPhil/PhD programme offers you the chance to undertake a piece of research that is worthy of publication and which makes an original contribution to your field of study.
The Centre is housed in the School of Education, Communication & Society (ECS) at King’s College London and is a globally influential centre for language research with exceptional strengths in discourse studies and sociolinguistics. The over-arching research theme in the Centre is ‘Identities and Mobilities’, which reflects its core strength in research on (multingual) identities in a variety of everyday, institutional and mediated contexts.
Doctoral students are members of and supervised by academic staff in the LDC. We recommend that prospective students read through the LDC webpages to find their preferred area of research and potential supervisors.
Course Description
The MPhil/PhD in Language, Discourse & Communication aims to foster your scholarly and career interests and to prepare you for the world of academic research.
The Centre offers extensive research training and supervision on a range of (socio)linguistic methods and frameworks, including: cognitive linguistics, conversation analysis, corpus-assisted discourse studies, discourse & sociolinguistic approaches to social media communication, identities-in-interaction, narrative analysis and small stories research. We are looking for outstanding candidates to join a supportive and dynamic research community.
We welcome proposals on topics within the following broad areas:
- Discourse, interaction & identity
- Health Communication
- Language and mind
- Language education
- Language, ethnicity and social class
- Social media and digital text
Head of group/division
Professor Alexandra Georgakopoulou-Nunes and Professor Beatrice Szczepek Reed
1. Application Procedure
First identify a potential supervisor who will be able to support the application, by searching our Research Centre pages. You will need to complete a case for support, the specific nature of this will vary according to the supervisor.
After you have applied
Your application will be considered carefully. Applicants may be invited for an interview (either in person or via phone/skype). We try to process all applications within six weeks of the receipt of a completed application form.
We strongly encourage you to apply well in advance of the time when you would like to begin your study. Starting an MPhil/PhD can involve a lot of organisation, arranging accommodation, financial support etc.
For more guidance see our Application FAQs.
2. Personal Statement and Supporting Information
See all supervisors
This requires a research proposal of 500 - 1,000 words covering the research questions, the research area, the potential fieldsite, the methodology, timescale of the project and an indication of the relevant literature. In addition a Personal Statement up to 500 words explaining your personal and/or professional interest in the research area and topic.
3. Course Intake
No set number.
4. Joint PhDs - Application advice
Applicants for the Joint PhD programme must contact the relevant departments at both universities before submitting an application in order to discuss the suitability of their topic for the joint programme and to locate potential supervisors. Applications should initially be submitted to the proposed home institution only, ie where the student will start and finish their programme. Students should note that acceptance onto the programme may take slightly longer than for single-institution PhDs because of the additional steps involved. Further details, including FAQs, can be found on the King’s Worldwide web pages.
Applicants who choose King’s as their home institution should apply through the online system, selecting the appropriate Joint PhD option from the drop-down list. In addition to the standard supporting documentation, applicants should submit a Travel Plan form indicating how they intend to divide their time between the two partner institutions. Students must spend a specified amount of time in each institution, details of which can be found in the ‘Notes’ section of the Travel Plan form.
It is recommended that students submit applications for the Joint PhD programme by the end of March to begin the following September.
5. Application Closing Date
We encourage you to apply as early as possible so that there is sufficient time for your application to be assessed. We may need to request further information from you during the application process.
The final application deadlines are detailed below; on these dates, the programme will close at 23:59 (UK time) and we will open for the corresponding intake in 2026 soon after the same intake has passed in 2025.
- February 2025 entry – 20 October 2024 for Overseas fee status and 20 November 2024 for Home fee status
- October 2025 entry – 25 July 2025 for Overseas fee status and 25 August 2025 for Home fee status
- February 2026 entry – 20 October 2025 for Overseas fee status and 20 November 2025 for Home fee status
Please note that funding deadlines may be earlier than the application deadlines listed above.
UK Tuition Fees 2024/25
Full time tuition fees: £6,936 per year
Part time tuition fees: £3,468 per year
International Tuition Fees 2024/25
Full time tuition fees: £26,070 per year
Part time tuition fees: £13,035 per year
UK Tuition Fees 2025/26
Full time tuition fees: £7,500 per year
Part time tuition fees: £3,750 per year
International Tuition Fees 2025/26
Full time tuition fees: £28,000 per year
Part time tuition fees: £14,000 per year
These tuition fees may be subject to additional increases in subsequent years of study, in line with King's terms and conditions.
Base campus
Waterloo Campus
Waterloo campus is home of the Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing & Midwifery and facilities for other faculties
Study Environment
The School is located on the Waterloo Campus right in the heart of London, next to London's South Bank Centre which includes the British Film Institute (BFI), Hayward Gallery, and the National Theatre. The Waterloo campus is home to the Franklin Wilkins library, with the Strand campus and the Maughan Library only a short walk away across the river.
The School offers a supportive, lively and outward-looking intellectual environment. There are plenty of opportunities for informal interaction and designated study rooms for doctoral students. As part of the Faculty of Public Policy and Social Sciences, students also have the opportunity to build ties across the social sciences and humanities, as well as active cross-institutional links.
Postgraduate training
Our extensive research training for MPhil/PhD students consists of an initial foundation training programme which covers different approaches, assumptions and philosophies and introduces a range of tools, techniques and methods used in empirical work.
You will be allocated two supervisors who will work with you throughout your studies. The LDC prides itself in a supportive and vibrant research culture which always includes, and is often led by, PhD students.
Regular events include:
- The LDC Doctoral Lab, in which research students present and debate their work with staff and peers;
- The Language and Popular Culture Lab, where Undergraduate, Postgraduate and PhD students select artistic and media events for linguistic analysis;
- The Micro Discourse Analysis data sessions, where staff and PhD students working on interactional data bring data extracts for joint analysis;
- The Communication Lab, where staff and students working on communication research present and discuss their work;
- The Media and Culture workshops organized by King’s students as part the LISS DTP.
In addition, there are regular seminar series in Corpus Linguistics, ‘Language, Mind & Society’, and the Language Teaching Forum. LDC also organizes a range of regular collaborative research events with other institutions, such as the Cross-London Sociolinguistics Seminar.
Students are encouraged to participate in the training provided by the King's Doctoral College and the London Interdisciplinary Social Sciences Training Partnership (LISS-DTP) supported by the UK’s Economic and Social Research Council.
UK requirements
|
Minimum 2:1 undergraduate degree and a Masters degree with at least a high Merit in a subject appropriate to the research area. Applicants should provide evidence of capacity to work at distinction level, and a piece of independently produced academic work (e.g. a Master’s essay/dissertation or published or unpublished paper) that has been assessed by the supervisor and admissions tutor as showing potential for doctoral level work. An approved professional qualification and extensive practical experience in the relevant field may be taken into account when evaluating an application. Those applying for the joint degree are encouraged to contact an academic at King's to develop research links with the partner institution. |
Equivalent International qualifications
English language requirements
English language band:
B
To study at King's, it is essential that you can communicate in English effectively in an academic environment. You are usually required to provide certification of your competence in English before starting your studies.
Nationals of majority English speaking countries (as defined by the UKVI) who have permanently resided in this country are not usually required to complete an additional English language test. This is also the case for applicants who have successfully completed an undergraduate degree (of at least three years duration), a postgraduate taught degree (of at least one year), or a PhD in a majority English speaking country (as defined by the UKVI) within five years of the course start date.
For information on our English language requirements and whether you need to complete an English language test, please see our English Language requirements page.
1. Application Procedure
First identify a potential supervisor who will be able to support the application, by searching our Research Centre pages. You will need to complete a case for support, the specific nature of this will vary according to the supervisor.
After you have applied
Your application will be considered carefully. Applicants may be invited for an interview (either in person or via phone/skype). We try to process all applications within six weeks of the receipt of a completed application form.
We strongly encourage you to apply well in advance of the time when you would like to begin your study. Starting an MPhil/PhD can involve a lot of organisation, arranging accommodation, financial support etc.
For more guidance see our Application FAQs.
2. Personal Statement and Supporting Information
See all supervisors
This requires a research proposal of 500 - 1,000 words covering the research questions, the research area, the potential fieldsite, the methodology, timescale of the project and an indication of the relevant literature. In addition a Personal Statement up to 500 words explaining your personal and/or professional interest in the research area and topic.
3. Course Intake
No set number.
4. Joint PhDs - Application advice
Applicants for the Joint PhD programme must contact the relevant departments at both universities before submitting an application in order to discuss the suitability of their topic for the joint programme and to locate potential supervisors. Applications should initially be submitted to the proposed home institution only, ie where the student will start and finish their programme. Students should note that acceptance onto the programme may take slightly longer than for single-institution PhDs because of the additional steps involved. Further details, including FAQs, can be found on the King’s Worldwide web pages.
Applicants who choose King’s as their home institution should apply through the online system, selecting the appropriate Joint PhD option from the drop-down list. In addition to the standard supporting documentation, applicants should submit a Travel Plan form indicating how they intend to divide their time between the two partner institutions. Students must spend a specified amount of time in each institution, details of which can be found in the ‘Notes’ section of the Travel Plan form.
It is recommended that students submit applications for the Joint PhD programme by the end of March to begin the following September.
5. Application Closing Date
We encourage you to apply as early as possible so that there is sufficient time for your application to be assessed. We may need to request further information from you during the application process.
The final application deadlines are detailed below; on these dates, the programme will close at 23:59 (UK time) and we will open for the corresponding intake in 2026 soon after the same intake has passed in 2025.
- February 2025 entry – 20 October 2024 for Overseas fee status and 20 November 2024 for Home fee status
- October 2025 entry – 25 July 2025 for Overseas fee status and 25 August 2025 for Home fee status
- February 2026 entry – 20 October 2025 for Overseas fee status and 20 November 2025 for Home fee status
Please note that funding deadlines may be earlier than the application deadlines listed above.
UK Tuition Fees 2024/25
Full time tuition fees: £6,936 per year
Part time tuition fees: £3,468 per year
International Tuition Fees 2024/25
Full time tuition fees: £26,070 per year
Part time tuition fees: £13,035 per year
UK Tuition Fees 2025/26
Full time tuition fees: £7,500 per year
Part time tuition fees: £3,750 per year
International Tuition Fees 2025/26
Full time tuition fees: £28,000 per year
Part time tuition fees: £14,000 per year
These tuition fees may be subject to additional increases in subsequent years of study, in line with King's terms and conditions.
Base campus
Waterloo Campus
Waterloo campus is home of the Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing & Midwifery and facilities for other faculties
Study Environment
The School is located on the Waterloo Campus right in the heart of London, next to London's South Bank Centre which includes the British Film Institute (BFI), Hayward Gallery, and the National Theatre. The Waterloo campus is home to the Franklin Wilkins library, with the Strand campus and the Maughan Library only a short walk away across the river.
The School offers a supportive, lively and outward-looking intellectual environment. There are plenty of opportunities for informal interaction and designated study rooms for doctoral students. As part of the Faculty of Public Policy and Social Sciences, students also have the opportunity to build ties across the social sciences and humanities, as well as active cross-institutional links.
Postgraduate training
Our extensive research training for MPhil/PhD students consists of an initial foundation training programme which covers different approaches, assumptions and philosophies and introduces a range of tools, techniques and methods used in empirical work.
You will be allocated two supervisors who will work with you throughout your studies. The LDC prides itself in a supportive and vibrant research culture which always includes, and is often led by, PhD students.
Regular events include:
- The LDC Doctoral Lab, in which research students present and debate their work with staff and peers;
- The Language and Popular Culture Lab, where Undergraduate, Postgraduate and PhD students select artistic and media events for linguistic analysis;
- The Micro Discourse Analysis data sessions, where staff and PhD students working on interactional data bring data extracts for joint analysis;
- The Communication Lab, where staff and students working on communication research present and discuss their work;
- The Media and Culture workshops organized by King’s students as part the LISS DTP.
In addition, there are regular seminar series in Corpus Linguistics, ‘Language, Mind & Society’, and the Language Teaching Forum. LDC also organizes a range of regular collaborative research events with other institutions, such as the Cross-London Sociolinguistics Seminar.
Students are encouraged to participate in the training provided by the King's Doctoral College and the London Interdisciplinary Social Sciences Training Partnership (LISS-DTP) supported by the UK’s Economic and Social Research Council.
UK requirements
|
Minimum 2:1 undergraduate degree and a Masters degree with at least a high Merit in a subject appropriate to the research area. Applicants should provide evidence of capacity to work at distinction level, and a piece of independently produced academic work (e.g. a Master’s essay/dissertation or published or unpublished paper) that has been assessed by the supervisor and admissions tutor as showing potential for doctoral level work. An approved professional qualification and extensive practical experience in the relevant field may be taken into account when evaluating an application. Those applying for the joint degree are encouraged to contact an academic at King's to develop research links with the partner institution. |
Equivalent International qualifications
English language requirements
English language band:
B
To study at King's, it is essential that you can communicate in English effectively in an academic environment. You are usually required to provide certification of your competence in English before starting your studies.
Nationals of majority English speaking countries (as defined by the UKVI) who have permanently resided in this country are not usually required to complete an additional English language test. This is also the case for applicants who have successfully completed an undergraduate degree (of at least three years duration), a postgraduate taught degree (of at least one year), or a PhD in a majority English speaking country (as defined by the UKVI) within five years of the course start date.
For information on our English language requirements and whether you need to complete an English language test, please see our English Language requirements page.
Key information
Award:
MPhil
PhD
Study mode:
Full time
Part time
Campus:
Waterloo Campus
Duration:
2-4 years FT, 6-7 years PT. There are two entry points for the programme each academic year in October and February
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