Program Overview

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Spanish, Portuguese & Latin American Studies Research MPhil/PhD

Key information

Award: MPhil, PhD Study mode: Full time, Part time Campus: Strand Campus Duration: MPhil: two years full-time, three years part-time. PhD: three-four years full-time, four-six years part-time. October to October, February to February or June to June.

Overview

The Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures offers research strengths and opportunities for PhD supervision across all periods of Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American studies, including the study of literature, history, cultural studies, film, drama and music. Spanish was first taught at King’s in 1831, and the teaching of Portuguese in British universities was pioneered by King’s in the 1860s. Since the establishment of the Cervantes Chair in 1916 and the Camoens Chair in 1919, King's has become a world-leading centre for Spanish and Portuguese studies and our commitment to this field within the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures at King’s continues this tradition of innovation and research strength. Our commitment to all areas of Spain, Portugal, Brazil, Latin America and Lusophone Africa, combined with the wide-ranging teaching and research interests of the staff, means that we are able to offer an unrivalled variety of supervision topics for postgraduate study.

Research Environment

The Department has a vibrant and energetic research culture, in which postgraduate research students are fully involved. In the recent Research Excellence Framework assessment of our research (REF 2021) our research environment was rated 100% ‘world-leading’ (4), and research impact was rated 87.5% ‘world leading’ and ‘internationally excellent’ (3).

Current number of academic staff (permanent): 13 (all research active)

Current number of research students: 14

Recent publications

• Magazines and Modernity in Brazil: Transnational Networks and Cross-Cultural Exchanges
• Sátiras e outras subversões: textos inéditos
• A Fistful of Shells: West Africa from the Rise of the Slave Trade to the Age of Revolution
• Brokers of Change: Atlantic Commerce and Cultures in Pre-Colonial Western Africa
• Artículos de costumbres
• The Reinvention of Theatre in Sixteenth-century Europe: Traditions, Texts and Performance
• De ultramodernidades y sus contemporáneos
• The Basque City: The Political Economy of Nation Building
• García Lorca: The Poetics of Self-Consciousness
• Thinking Through Islamophobia: Global Perspectives

Current research projects

• cultural responses to Spain’s transition from dictatorship to democracy
• Language Acts and Worldmaking
• ‘Out of the Wings’
• translating cultural extremity
• West African engagement with the early Atlantic world
• the lusophone postcolonial novel
• exile and national identity
• the representation of society and selfhood in the 18th century
• visual culture in Latin America

Partner organisations

• Instituto Camões Centre for Studies in Portuguese Language & Culture
• King’s Brazil Institute
• University of Oxford
• Queen's University Belfast
• Instituto Camões
• Federal University of Minas Gerais
• University of São Paulo

How to apply

1. Your proposal

Before you submit your application via the admissions portal, you should consider the following guidance and take the following steps in preparation of your application:

• Define your topic: begin with an idea of the area you wish to do research in.
• Refine your proposal. As part of the application process you (see below) will be required to submit a research proposal. This should include the following:
  • the central research question(s) you intend to address;
  • a critical assessment of the relevant published scholarship on the research topic and its related field, indicating how you expect your own project to expand, complement or challenge that existing body of scholarship by the discovery of new materials and data or new analytical insights;
  • The material scope of the project, e. the materials and resources that will be your object of study
  • Methodological tools and approaches to be employed (including any training you may require; you should already have the language proficiency appropriate to your research programme);
  • A proposed plan and schedule of work, to show that your project can be completed within three years (four years including writing up) if you are a full-time student, or seven years (eight including writing up) if you are a part-time student. These are now the maximum allowed registration times for PhD students.

2. Approach the department

• Find a supervisor: Search for academics working in the field you wish to study (see the ‘People’ section of the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures website, or the King’s ‘Research Portal’( There need not be an exact correlation between your proposal and their research interests, after all it should be a 'unique' project, but they should be equipped to advise you on secondary reading and where to find sources if relevant.
• Contact your supervisor: It is best to contact your proposed supervisor before you apply. You can then discuss your proposal with them, ensuring that they are happy with the topic. They will also at this time be able to give you advice on your Research Proposal - particularly important if you are hoping to apply for funding.

3. Applying and interviews

• Apply: Once you have been in touch with the supervisor and they have provisionally agreed to your proposal, apply to the college for a place.
• Interviews: Candidates seriously being considered for entry onto the PhD programme are normally invited for interview by two or members of the Department’s academic staff, normally including the prospective supervisor and the Research Admissions Tutor.

4. Personal statement and supporting information

You will be asked to submit the following documents in order for your application to be considered:

• Personal statement: A personal statement is required. This can be entered directly into the online application form (maximum 4,000 characters) or uploaded as an attachment to the online application form (maximum 2 pages). The personal statement should include an account of your academic career to date, your reasons for wishing to pursue a graduate research programme and the particular project as proposed.
• Research Proposal: The proposal should explain in some detail precisely the field of study that you want to contribute to, what you want to do and how you propose to do it (see below for further guidance).
• Previous Academic Study: A copy (or copies) of your official academic transcript(s), showing the subjects studied and marks obtained. If you have already completed your degree, copies of your official degree certificate will also be required. Applicants with academic documents issued in a language other than English will need to submit both the original and official translation of their documents.
• References: One academic reference is required. A professional reference will be accepted if you have completed your qualifications over five years ago.
• Writing Sample: If you have any relevant recent examples of substantial research-based writing, e.g. from an MA degree, then these can be attached to your application.
• Other: You may also wish to include a CV (Resume) or evidence of professional registration as part of your application.

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
• June 2025 entry – 20 March 2025 for Overseas fee status and 11 April 2025 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
• June 2026 entry – 20 March 2026 for Overseas fee status and 11 April 2026 for Home fee status

Fees or Funding

UK Tuition Fees 2024/25

• Full time tuition fees: £6,168 per year
• Part time tuition fees: £3,084 per year

International Tuition Fees 2024/25

• Full time tuition fees: £24,786 per year
• Part time tuition fees: £12,393 per year

UK Tuition Fees 2025/26

• Full time tuition fees: £6,600 per year
• Part time tuition fees: £3,300 per year

International Tuition Fees 2025/26

• Full time tuition fees: £27,100 per year
• Part time tuition fees: £13,550 per year

These tuition fees may be subject to additional increases in subsequent years of study, in line with King’s terms and conditions.

Scholarships

• Baroness von Schlippenbach Studentship is available to two students wishing to pursue the MPhil/PhD Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American Studies Research. Find out additional information here.

Study environment

Base campus

Strand Campus

Located on the north bank of the River Thames, the Strand Campus houses King's College London's arts and sciences faculties.

Postgraduate Research Environment

As a postgraduate research student in the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures you will join a vibrant research culture which features sustained reflection and dialogue on our subject areas. You will work closely with designated primary and secondary supervisors, and benefit from regular feedback from other staff members. You will see your primary supervisor regularly and are strongly encouraged to attend research seminars and research-related events in the department and beyond. There are multiple opportunities to gain experience in the presentation and dissemination of your research and to exchange ideas with fellow students and members of staff.

We offer a dedicated study space for our postgraduate research students in the Virginia Woolf building.

Due to its unique concentration of expertise across all periods of Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American studies, including the study of literature, history, cultural studies, film, drama and music, the Department is able to offer unrivalled opportunities for PhD supervision. You can discover more about the research interests of particular members of staff and the topics they may supervise on their staff profiles. Dissemination of our research takes a number of forms, which include: enhancing publishing and programming of the arts, shaping critical practice in musical, visual and literary culture, and influencing public policy. Spanish, Portuguese & Latin American Studies has recently attracted major grants both from the Arts & Humanities Research Council and from UK-based charitable foundations like the Leverhulme for collaborative projects and research positions. In 2016 a team of academics led by Professor Catherine Boyle was awarded almost £3 million under the AHRC’s Open World Research Initiative (OWRI) for the Language Acts and Worldmaking project, to lead research that will seek to inform the future of the study and teaching of Modern Languages. You can find out more about the projects taking place in the Department on the Research Portal.

Postgraduate training

Training for postgraduate research students is offered at various levels throughout PhD registration, including, at King’s, the courses and sessions offered by the Department, the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, the Centre for Doctoral Studies and the King’s Language Centre. Further afield training is offered by the London Arts and Humanities Partnership and the Institute of Modern Languages Research of the University of London. Research training will include a range of different kinds, including research ethics and integrity, bibliographic and referencing skills, the opportunity to learn or improve language skills, career support, job applications, networking, working with community partners, and much more. The Institute of Latin American Studies organises a graduate research training programme in the first two terms of the academic year, open to all students researching on Latin America in the colleges of the University of London and in other universities. The programme includes an introduction to library resources and use and is particularly concerned with methodology and issues related to fieldwork.

Entry requirements

UK requirements

• Master's degree in a relevant subject. In exceptional circumstances, very strong applicants with a Bachelors degree with 1st class or 2:1 honours may be considered without a Master's degree.

Equivalent International qualifications

Select a country to view the equivalent qualifications.

English language requirements

English language band: C

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.