Program Overview

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Forensic & Investigative Sciences MPhil, PhD

Overview

Pursue your research studies with a pioneering group in analysis-based research and make a valuable contribution to scientific understanding and techniques in the forensics field. PhD candidates are encouraged to take an active role in the School's research community in areas of crime scene and evidence, forensic analysis and genetics.

Full Description

Forensic science is well-established as a discipline at our University. We collaborate with many different investigative organisations including police forces and fire and rescue services, other universities and various forensic analytical services and companies. We have strong relationships with our partners and this allows us to explore, diagnose, understand and develop areas of knowledge to improve the many aspects of forensic and investigative sciences used in court.

You will be joining the Forensic and Investigative Sciences Research Group, members of which include practitioners, consultants, professionals from the field and current researchers within chemical and biological forensic analysis, evidential scene analysis and interpretation.

We have a multidisciplinary academic team ready to support you in your research, working across several research areas within the Forensic and Investigative Sciences Research Group including:

• Crime Scene and Evidence
• Forensic Analysis
• Genetics
• Pedagogy

These research areas explore specialisms in crime scene examination, evidence processing and recovery, scene investigation, standard operating procedures in crime scene practice and issues of crime scene contamination such as fingermark visualisation, fire investigation, forensic medicine and pathology and archaeology. We also explore the chemical and biological analytical aspects of forensic science including evidence recovery methods, extraction of analytes from difficult and unusual matrices and the development and improvement of analytical methods for forensic samples.

Our up-to-date analytical equipment includes advanced optical and electron microscopes, IR, Raman and X-ray spectrometers, GC-MS, GC, ion chromatography, HPLC, AAS, ICP-OES and XRD, and a stable isotope facility.

There will be opportunities to present your work and represent us at internal, national and international scientific conferences, and you will be fully immersed in the group’s research activities. We also encourage cross-discipline interaction with other research groups in our University.

In addition to our Forensic Science PhD, we've also identified a range of innovative research project opportunities for you as a postgraduate researcher.

Completion Times

• MPhil: full-time 1-3 years, part-time 2-4 years.
• PhD via progression from MPhil, including that period: full-time 2.5-5 years, part-time 3.5-6 years.
• PhD: full-time 2-4 years, part-time 3-6 years.

Supervision and Support

Our supervisory staff are recognised experts in their field. Their research expertise includes:

• Dr Leesa Ferguson - Chemical analysis of finger marks
• Dr Lata Gautam - Drugs analysis and forensic toxicology
• Dr Kyprianos Georgiou - Chemical enhancement of latent finger marks using wet powder suspensions
• Joanne Morrissey - Recovery of fingermarks from ballistic evidence, use of drone at crime scenes
• Dr Rahul Pathak - Body fluid analysis, blood pattern analysis, forensic DNA analysis, entomotoxicology
• Dr Nathalie Zahra - DNA profiling, fingerprint comparison, and human identification methods

Where You'll Research

Your Faculty

The Faculty of Science & Engineering is one of the largest of the four faculties at ARU. Whether you choose to study with us full-time or part-time, on campus or at a distance, there’s an option whatever your level – from a foundation degree, BSc, MSc, PhD or professional doctorate.

Whichever course you pick, you’ll gain the theory and practical skills needed to progress with confidence. Join us and you could find yourself learning in the very latest laboratories or on field trips or work placements with well-known and respected companies. You may even have the opportunity to study abroad.

Everything we do in the faculty has a singular purpose: to provide a world-class environment to create, share and advance knowledge in science, technology and engineering fields. This is key to all of our futures.

Where Can I Study?

• Cambridge

Our campus is close to the centre of Cambridge, often described as the perfect student city.

Fees & Funding

Course Fees

• UK students, 2024/25 (per year): £4,786
• UK students, 2024/25 (part-time, per year): £2,392
• International students, 2024/25 (per year): £15,900
• International students, 2024/25 (part-time, per year): £7,950

Bench Fees

In some cases extra costs known as bench fees will be charged for a postgraduate research degree. These are to cover additional/exceptional costs directly related to a specific research project.

Some examples of these costs are (the list is not exhaustive): equipment hire, access costs to specialist equipment/workshops, volunteer expenses, specialist tissue/cell culture, specialist reagents or materials, specialist software, access to specialist databases, data collection costs, specialist media, recording or digital storage needs.

We charge bench fees in bands. They may apply for every year of your course. These bands are the same for full- and part-time students.

If you have to pay bench fees this will be made clear at your interview, and stated in your offer letter.

For 2024/25 the bench fee bands are:

1. £500
2. £1,200
3. £2,200
4. £4,500
5. £8,900

PhD by Published Work

• Initial registration: £1,500
• Full registration: £4,500

Writing Up Fees 2024/25

• £1,200

How Do I Pay My Fees?

You can pay your fees upfront, in full or in instalments – though you won't need to pay until you've accepted an offer to study with us.

Funding

For advice on the Doctoral Loan and other sources of funding, including ARU scholarships, visit our finance guide for postgraduate researchers.

You might also find The Alternative Guide to Postgraduate Funding helpful.

ARU Research

ARU's academic excellence was recognised in 2021, as part of the Research Excellence Framework (REF), an exercise which assesses the quality of academic research. Sixteen areas of our work were classed as generating world-leading research. The results showed that we're making a significant impact on the societies we live in.

Careers

Research and professional training will be part of your programme, with courses including scientific writing and publishing, research methods, subject updates and conference presentation.

Entry Requirements

• MPhil or PhD with progression from MPhil: You’ll need a Bachelors degree or equivalent with first or upper second class honours, in a related subject area.
• PhD: You’ll need a Masters degree or equivalent in a related subject area.

Please note we consider candidates for PhD with progression from MPhil in the first instance. If you want to be considered for direct entry to the PhD route then this can be discussed at interview if you are shortlisted. Please note you’ll also need to provide academic justification for this request.

If English is not your first language, you'll require a minimum IELTS score of 6.5, with a minimum of 5.5 in each component (or equivalent test). If you don't meet our English language requirements, we offer a range of courses which could help you achieve the level required for entry.

Important Additional Notes

Our published entry requirements are a guide only and our decision will be based on your overall suitability for the programme as well as whether you meet the minimum entry requirements.

You'll need a computer and reliable internet access to successfully engage with your research programme.