The Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery & Palliative Care offers a supportive and intellectually stimulating environment. In the Postgraduate Research Experience Survey (PRES) 2015, results for the Faculty indicated that student experience was positive about all aspects of supervision, skills and development, infrastructure, intellectual climate, and knowledge of roles and responsibilities within the Faculty. Research students are allocated a supervisory team led by an experienced principal supervisor. The team meet regularly with the student for supervision and review of progress. Progress is also reviewed formally by the Faculty Postgraduate Research Students Committee at set points in the academic year. Supervisors provide advice on training needs and career development. Student representatives for full-time and part-time students play an important role in communicating student feedback about learning experiences and the support infrastructure to inform ongoing programme development. Research students have a study suite in the James Clerk Maxwell Building and access to Graduate Lounges on the different campuses.

Students on the MPhil/PhD programme are immersed in the academic culture and are encouraged to engage in a wide range of learning opportunities. Students will normally undertake two core research methods modules: Advanced quantitative research methods offers an in-depth study of quantitative research methods including epidemiological studies and randomised controlled trials, and Advanced qualitative research methods offers an in-depth study of different qualitative methods and their relationship to epistemological theory. Students can also access doctoral training courses organised by King's Graduate School and the ESRC training centre where places permit, and all students are encouraged to become actively involved in research seminars and fora. Research students are encouraged to present their doctoral research at conferences and a School competition fund exists to support this.

Support for Postgraduate Research Students within the Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery & Palliative Care

• A model of three-supervisors has been introduced to improve students’ support and access to clinical and methodological expertise. Where appropriate and required, MPhil/PhD students within the Faculty will be provided with a team of three supervisors.
• Research methods training modules offered by the Faculty itself include Advanced Quantitative Research Methods; Advanced Qualitative Research Methods; Evidence Based Decision Making in Healthcare; Research Methods and Statistics; and Epidemiology.
• Our own Nightingale-Saunders Clinical Trials & Epidemiology Unit offers an advanced level of expertise on quantitative topics of which students can avail.
• In addition, our MPhil/PhD students have access to a wide range of supplementary courses and activities, including workshops, symposia and funding offered by Centre of Doctoral Studies, the Health Sciences Doctoral Training Centre (HSDTC) and the London Interdisciplinary Social Science Doctoral Training Partnership (LISS DTP).
• The Faculty also runs three Journal Clubs (for Nursing & Midwifery, Mental Health and the Cecily Saunders Institute of Palliative Care respectively) and students have an opportunity to participate in fortnightly research seminar programmes delivered by one of the research divisions. Students’ active involvement in developing the range of activities and their delivery is strongly encouraged.

Meet our students and learn more about the great work they are doing.

On- and off-campus studying

We understand the diverse needs and backgrounds of our doctoral candidates and some projects offer flexibility for our students to be located both on- or off-campus during their PhD studies (for example, when field work abroad is required). Our approach is designed to support both academic excellence and personal circumstances:

• If the project permits off-campus study, then PhD students are only required to be physically present in London/the UK for a total of six months over the course of their PhD programme.
• These six months do not need to be consecutive, but the scheduling of off campus periods should be agreed upon with the supervisory team and approved by the Associate Dean for Doctoral Studies.
• Off-campus supervisory meetings and some teaching can take place online on university digital platforms, such as Teams.
• For students sponsored under the Student visa route, the expectation remains that the majority of the programme is undertaken in the UK, with any time spent overseas limited to temporary, programme-related activity such as fieldwork.