ucl phd project management

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The UCL Doctoral School is responsible for the overall strategy for doctoral education at UCL and oversees the standards of our research degrees.

We support your PhD training

We aim to ensure that your time at UCL fulfils your needs and expectations, equips you for leadership roles not only in academia, but also in a range of other careers which require originality, rigour and methodological reasoning. We want you to become “creative, critical, autonomous intellectual risk-takers”.

In addition, UCL believes that in order to have a successful and innovative research culture, we need to have researchers from all backgrounds and the widest possible talent pool. We therefore strongly encourage applicants from all backgrounds and experiences. 

We also provide support for UCL's research student community in a number of different ways. A number of the key initiatives are listed below.

UCL Code of Practice for Graduate Research Degrees

The Doctoral School issues a Code of Practice for Graduate Research Degrees, designed to help graduate research students during their time at UCL. It complements the formal UCL academic regulations for research degree students, in the UCL Academic Manual. In contrast to the regulations, which provide the minimum framework and requirements for completion of a degree, the Code contains guidance on good practice, outlining what you can expect from your supervisor and department, as well as your responsibilities as a research student.

Research Student Log

Use of UCL’s on-line Research Student Log is mandatory for all UCL research degree students and is intended to be used in a flexible manner, to allow for different research processes between disciplines. The student documents academic progression and skills development training in the Log and it is their responsibility to maintain this Log for their own long-term benefit. The Log reflects a dialogue between you and your Principal and Subsidiary Supervisors and records a series of review meetings on academic progress (including important milestones such as the upgrade from MPhil to PhD upgrade) as well as your generic and transferable skills development.

Doctoral Skills Development Programme

The Doctoral Skills Development Programme gives all research students the opportunity to assess and expand your personal and professional development training. These courses are intended to help your research skills, as well as your transferable skills, with the aim of enhancing your employability, both within and outside academia. The courses are open to all research students and are free-of-charge, and are in addition to specific training offered by academic departments and faculties.

The training programme is regularly reviewed and updated to meet changing needs and new developments. Full details can be found on the Doctoral School's website.

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The Doctoral School runs various events and competitions throughout the year. These include the Research Images as Art Competition, a research poster competition and, in conjunction with the Postgraduate Association of the Students' Union, the UCL heats of the national Three Minute Thesis Competition. 

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The Doctoral School plays an important role in providing intellectual and social contacts between research students, enabling you to meet fellow students from different disciplines, countries and backgrounds.

One element of this is the provision of central space dedicated to research students in addition to whatever facilities are provided to you by your department and/or Faculty. More information on these facilities can be found at the Libraries and study spaces webpage. 

You may also join one of the supported academic societies, which organise graduate seminars and social events.

Welcome events for new research students provide an excellent introduction to the services and facilities on offer, and to the activities of the Postgraduate Association of the Students' Union.

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PhD in Project Management

Some of our readers may be interested in exploring existing postgraduate programmes of study in the fields relevant to OMEGA.  We have decided to publish the prospectus of the Project Management PhD programme offered by Alma Mater Europaea.

Some of our readers may be interested in exploring existing postgraduate programmes of study in the fields relevant to OMEGA. We have decided to publish the prospectus of the Project Management PhD programme offered by Alma Mater Europaea.

The Alma Mater Europaea PhD in Project Management is focused on project, program and portfolio management. The study is designed for professionals and researchers who wish to improve their competences in creative leadership. This III Bologna cycle doctoral program, staff and learning outcomes are recognised by the EU, and therefore acknowledged globally.

Check the official  Alma Mater Europaea brochure  for additional information.

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Project and Enterprise Management MSc

Ucl (university college london), different course options.

• Key information

Course Summary

Tuition fees, entry requirements, university information, similar courses at this uni, key information data source : idp connect, qualification type.

MSc - Master of Science

Subject areas

Enterprises Project Management (Business / Industry)

Course type

The programme aims to equip students with an advanced understanding of management thinking relating to the management of enterprises and projects, particularly with regard to the roles that enterprises play in construction; and to give students a sound appreciation of the way projects should best be defined, developed, and delivered. The programme teaches concepts, tools and techniques employed in managing projects from their earliest stages through to operations and maintenance. Projects will primarily be in construction (building, civil engineering, process engineering), but there will also be reference to other projects, including aerospace, automotives, electronics, organisational change, pharmaceuticals, software and IT.

A comprehensive and stimulating programme, delivered by leading academics and with RICS accreditation, this MSc also offers each student the opportunity to tailor their study to those areas which are of most interest, by choosing from a wide range of optional modules. In addition, there is a strong focus on student career progression. Each year the School hosts a series of events and presentations attended by professionals from industry/organisations. UCL Careers also offers a regular programme of careers fairs and practical sessions on careers advice.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is the world's leading professional body for qualifications and standards in land, property, infrastructure and construction.

UK fees Course fees for UK students

For this course (per year)

International fees Course fees for EU and international students

The normal minimum qualifications are a lower second-class Bachelor's degree from a UK university or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard.

UCL (University College London) is consistently ranked among the top ten universities in the world, conducting leading research across a wide range of subject areas. Throughout its long and prestigious history, it has inspired and educated countless minds and produced 30 Nobel prize recipients. With one campus located in the heart of Bloomsbury and a second campus in vibrant east London, the university is home to around 42,000 students... more

Creative and Collaborative Enterprise MA

Full time | 1 year | 23-SEP-24

UCL Researchers

Find Your Future

Transitioning from PhD to consulting

By uczjsdd, on 24 February 2015

How did you make the decision to leave academia?  

Whilst working at GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals, I enjoyed working as part of a vibrant team where scientists put their knowledge and skills together to deliver results. I also found it extremely rewarding to understand the relevance of my project in the context of the company’s drug-development strategy. I felt that my future career needed to have elements of teamwork, fast-pace and a strong customer focus.

After my participation in extracurricular activities whilst at UCL, in addition to personal experiences such as travelling and team sports, I discovered my leadership abilities and realised that my excellent interpersonal skills were not being fully utilised in academic research. Moreover, I attended a range of business and entrepreneurship courses at UCL and enjoyed reading about business, psychology and management, and realised that my interests are not limited to science, which made me really curious about exploring other career options.

Why management consultancy?

I first learned about Management Consulting at the UCL Management Consultancy fair, and the diversity and fast-paced nature of the career really attracted me. I followed up this initial interest by attending additional company presentations (at UCL and off-campus) and speaking with current consultants. I realised that a career in Management Consultancy would allow me to build on the skills developed during my PhD, such as problem-solving and delivering effective presentations, combined with the opportunity to developing leadership and project management skills.

I also strongly believe that understanding how organisations are structured, the challenges they face and how to improve their performance will equip me with the skills and contacts to build my own venture in the future. Strategic consulting offered an excellent match as it addresses the important questions that can change the direction of the world’s biggest organisations.

How do you think the skills you learned during your PhD will help you in the role?

In my opinion, running a PhD project is analogous to managing a small company, where you need to spot a “gap in the market” (something unique in your research area), plan a strategy to tackle the issue, mobilise resources, meet deadlines, manage expectations and communicate clearly with your stakeholders (such as the PhD supervisor). I feel that overcoming the uncertainties and complexities of a PhD helped me build the strength and endurance to tackle any challenge in my life. I came out of my PhD as a more entrepreneurial and confident individual, ready to make something new happen and embark in new challenges!

A series of skills developed during my PhD are extremely relevant to consulting. For instance, breaking down complex problems into manageable solutions, and then putting the parts together and reaching conclusions in the context of the overall problem. In addition, communicating research findings in a clear and effective manner to audiences who are not necessarily familiar with details of your work (such as the CEO of a major corporation) is part of a daily life of a consultant.

Are the skills acquired during your PhD enough to break into business?

The simple answer is: NO . I have met several PhD students who decided to move into business towards the end of their PhDs without having complemented their CVs in order to get there. Although some organisations do hire PhD students primarily based on the analytical/research component of their PhD (eg. maths/physics students who can develop ultra-robust algorithms for trade modelling in finance), most companies are looking for a broader skill-set in addition to the problem solving, self-motivation and attention to detail PhD students usually excel at. Relevant skills include leadership, commercial awareness and teamwork – which can all be developed through both your research and extracurricular activities.

I decided early on during my PhD to build my CV to make the transition into business. My first “target” was leadership skills. I joined a very entrepreneurial society called Enactus, which basically uses business skills to develop projects that bring benefit to society. I set up the UCL plus project and led a team of 9 students helping young people write CVs, prepare for interviews and develop transferable skills, in partnership with UCL Careers Services. We run over 50 hours of workshops in five schools and community organisations in deprived areas of Camden (North London). This project also served as a good example of Entrepreneurship since we did something no one at UCL had done before and received really good feedback from teachers and the young people.

I developed invaluable skills in business and management after attending a range of courses run by UCL Advances, such as Business Marketing, Enterprise Bootcamp and the Value Creation Workshop. I also attended a London Business School MBA elective course titled strategic innovation, where I learned about the challenges that businesses face and how decisions are made, in often ambiguous and uncertain scenarios. I would really recommend these courses. UCL is such a fantastic and entrepreneurial university and I feel very privileged to have had access to all these resources.

How did you make sure your applications and interview performance were as good as possible?

Put simply, the interviews for the most prestigious consulting companies are tough. The case-type interviews require a great deal of preparation. Although there are examples of students succeeding with only one-two weeks of preparation, I strongly believe those are exceptions. At the beginning I felt helpless at solving cases. However, with effort and preparation you can get there! I prepared for about 2 months (15 hours/week), initially by reading case books and then solving a total of about 30 to 40 one-to-one cases in the website Preplounge , which I would really recommend. I practiced with people from all over the world, including MBA students from the world’s top business schools.

In the case interview (which probably requires a separate blog article), the candidate is required to tackle a business problem in a structured and logical manner. You need breadth/creativity and depth. For instance, list a range of factors relevant to the given problem, but also justify why and prioritise (ie. which factors are the most important and why). When given graphs and tables, you need to identify the key drivers, perform some basic maths, relate your findings to the overall problem and suggest a course of action. The ability to summarise and communicate your findings at the end is also very important.

Regarding the competency part of the consulting interview, I was asked about examples of leadership and managing conflict in a team. Again, having a high-impact and interesting story (usually in the context of managing and working with people) will put you in a good spot. It is also important to structure the answer well, and you can book an appointment at UCL Careers to practice.

Any final thoughts?

My take-home message is: be curious, get out of the lab and try the amazing resources UCL has to offer, even if you are not sure if you want to leave academia. You never know what you may discover about yourself and the opportunities out there. I also strongly recommend the employer events run by UCL Careers service and the one-to-one appointments with the Careers Consultants, some of whom are ex-academics themselves and have experience supporting PhD students who are exploring alternative career options. Wish you the best of luck in finding the path that will help you shine!

Filed under PhD , Uncategorized

Tags: Careers case study , management consultancy

9 Responses to “Transitioning from PhD to consulting”

Interesting post on the transition from PhD to management consulting

Interesting post on the transition from PhD to management consulting http://www.myconsultingcoach.com/news/4-obstacles-phds-face-in-getting-into-management-consulting

[…] https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/ucl-researchers/2015/02/24/transitioning-from-phd-to-consulting/ […]

[…] we’re honest, there are some classic ex-academic destinations people tend to report. Management consultancy anyone? Or is data science more your thing? Patent law? How about a bit of science writing? Science […]

Thanks for sharing such a nice article.Simple and clear explanation.Good job.

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Thanks for sharing great information. I appreciate it, keep it up.

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