Entry requirements

2:1 degree (any subject) or equivalent internationally recognised qualification, and a Masters degree in Law (or a relevant subject) or relevant professional experience.

An interview may be required as part of the admissions process, and if so it would be conducted by one of the academic staff members remotely via Skype, phone or other means.

Applicants will be required to submit a personal statement and a research statement. Please contact your proposed supervisor, where possible, to receive feedback and guidance on your research statement before submitting it. Learn how to prepare a research statement here.

Months of entry

January, October

Course content

Over the years, Brunel Law School has established itself as a major player in the UK law research landscape and is ranked as one of the top law schools in the UK for research.

The impact of our diversity within the Brunel Law School is evident in the breadth of our research activity which can be divided into public and private law. Our research activity embraces doctrinal, theoretical, critical, contextual and comparative approaches to the study of law. It reaches from the local to the global, addressing important challenges in domestic law as well as universal legal, economic, and social issues. We investigate in depth how best to create and maintain just societies that fairly balance both personal freedom and authority, and the rights and responsibilities of individuals and society.

Find out about the exciting research we do in this area. Browse profiles of our experts, discover the research groups and their inspirational research activities you too could be part of. We’ve also made available extensive reading materials published by our academics and PhD students.

Learn more about research in this area.

You will benefit from this integrated PhD programme immensely if you want to:

receive a more much guided and hands-on supervision of your learning and research process, especially if you come from more traditional teaching cultures
increase your chances for timely completion of your PhD programme in comparison to students taking traditional route PhD, cutting down the expenses associated with prolonged study
access to tailored, highly specialist research training not available as part of the support provided to traditional route PhD students
maximise your chances for a successful research analysis by applying practical assignments and training which are part of the integrated PhD directly to the research you do for your thesis
receive an official Postgraduate Diploma in Research in addition to your PhD award to certify the completion of skills training which may be required by employers in some countries if you wish to pursue an academic career

Information for international students

If you require a Tier 4 visa to study in the UK, you must prove knowledge of the English language so that we can issue you a Certificate of Acceptance for Study (CAS). To do this, you will need an IELTS for UKVI or Trinity SELT test pass gained from a test centre approved by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) and on the Secure English Language Testing (SELT) list. This must have been taken and passed within two years from the date the CAS is made.

English language requirements

· IELTS: 7.0 (min 6.0 in all areas)
· Pearson: 64 (min 59 in all subscores)
· BrunELT: 68% (min 58% in all areas)
· TOEFL: 98 (min 20 in all subscores)

Fees and funding

Brunel offers a number of funding options to research students that help cover the cost of their tuition fees, contribute to living expenses or both. Recently the UK Government made available the Doctoral Student Loans of up to £25,000 for UK and EU students and there is some funding available through the Research Councils. Many of our international students benefit from funding provided by their governments or employers. Brunel alumni enjoy tuition fee discounts of 15%.