oxford mba thesis

Theses and dissertations

Read our guidance for finding and accessing theses and dissertations held by the Bodleian Libraries and other institutions.

Start date: September 2024

Time commitment:

About the programme

Oxford University has a rich tradition of developing leaders.

Our Masters of Business Administration (MBA) programme builds on this legacy, providing you with a solid foundation in core business principles while developing a broadened mindset and understanding of the role of business in society. You will be challenged to delve deep into the areas that interest you most and gain the strategic skills and insight to lead a successful, purposeful career.

The programme exposes you to:

• a global connected network
• a diverse student group
• diverse career opportunities
• thought leaders
• a rigorous academic experience

Experience Oxford through our students

What you will learn

Fundamental skills.

• Develop your ability to think logically, laterally and independently
• Build fundamental skills through the core courses
• Shape and define your career goals through industry specific electives
• Empower yourself to become a global leader

Real-world skills

• Entrepreneurship
• Conflict management
• Negotiation
• Strategy building

Class profile

The class represents a breadth of diversity, a multiplicity of perspectives and expertise, along with a willingness to interchange ideas and concepts. We seek professionals from a range of industries, from finance to consulting, and tech to healthcare.

Class size (2023-24)

Nationalities

International students

Average work experience

Median GMAT

Nationality breakdown

We have a truly international 2023-24 cohort, with 97% international students representing 63 nationalities.

• East Asia 15%
• Latin America & the Caribbean 3%
• Middle East 5%
• North America 12%
• South Asia 23%
• South East Asia 14% 

Your community

The diverse and vibrant Saïd Business School and wider Oxford community is here to support you through every step. Whether you're coming from a military background, relocating to the UK with your spouse or family, or interested in joining supportive networks, our community will help you feel at home.

Who are we looking for?

Who you are.

• Strong professional experience
• Background in varied and multicultural environments
• Exceptional maturity and outstanding leadership
• Ability to make insightful contributions to your class, based on your professional and personal experience
• Strong academic foundation

What you need

• Undergraduate degree or equivalent
• Written supporting statement
• Online assessment
• Either a GMAT or GRE score
• Professional experience with a minimum of two years work experience
• An understanding of your career goals
• English capability
• Two references, either professional or academic
• One page CV using this template as a guide

How to apply

Application deadlines.

Applications for the class of 2024-25 are now open.

You will need to submit your online application form with all  application requirements  by your chosen application deadline. 

Application deadlines are:

• Stage 1:  Wednesday 27 September 2023
• Stage 2:  Friday 5 January 2024
• Stage 3:  Wednesday 20 March 2024

Interview decisions

The admissions committee will review your completed application.

We will tell you whether or not you have been shortlisted for an interview for the 2024-25 intake on the date below:

• Stage 1:  Wednesday 8 November 2023
• Stage 2:  Wednesday 31 January 2024
• Stage 3:  Wednesday 17 April 2024

Final decisions

After all interviews have been conducted, the admissions committee will decide which candidates will receive an offer to join the MBA programme.

Final decisions for 2024-25 will be emailed to all candidates on the final decision deadline of the stage in which you have applied below:

• Stage 1:  Wednesday 13 December 2023
• Stage 2:  Friday 8 March 2024
• Stage 3:  Friday 17 May 2024

Scholarships

Scholarships are available from Saïd Business School , Oxford University and Colleges , or external sources. We recommend applying early to maximise the number of scholarship opportunities for which you are considered. Additionally, some scholarships have fixed application deadlines. For the majority of Saïd Business School and Oxford University scholarships, only the standard course application is usually required. If you meet the eligibility criteria, you will be automatically considered.

Learn more about the programme and our diverse community by attending an event and meeting our team, students, and alumni. We hold events here at Saïd Business School, overseas and online. Check out our upcoming events to register for information sessions or MBA fairs in your nearest city, open days or campus visits here at the school, or virtual events such as webinars, Q&A sessions, taster lectures, and more. You can also register for a one-on-one profile review with a member of our Recruitment and Admissions team.

Alumni feedback

I was attracted by the theoretical and practical approach of the MBA programme itself. The programme imparts skills to develop a business concept and implement it, all with a holistic view of business on an interlinked world stage. Harriet Okwi Asiyo MBA Student

Career development

Making a career change is often one of the most cited reasons for pursuing an MBA. Through coaching, talent development and employer engagement, we enable our students to develop, discover, articulate and take ownership of their career and professional development plans. Our 2022-23 MBA cohort have excelled in securing a range of positions in 51 cities globally through both traditional and non-traditional career paths. They have achieved this by transitioning sectors, countries or function (88%) or by venturing into entrepreneurship. From a class of 311, 80% of students secured new roles, with an average salary increase of 9% to £91,198.

Student experiences

Read news and updates from our students and alumni as they reflect on their academic challenges and highlights, as well as opportunities presented to them through the programme. Gain insights into MBA life, Saïd Business School life, and college life, as well as get a behind the scenes look at what being a postgraduate student in Oxford entails.

You will belong to one of the University’s 39 autonomous colleges. Each has a self-governing academic community of students and faculty with its own distinctive history and identity.

The collegiate system allows you to connect with students from other disciplines. Your college will provide you with the chance to establish a new circle of friends, access to a range of varied social and sporting activities, and opportunities to participate in a lively intellectual community.

Oxford 1+1 MBA

The Oxford 1+1 MBA programme is a unique opportunity for talented individuals to combine a Master's degree from selected Oxford University departments with our one-year MBA.

This powerful joint degree allows you to gain deep knowledge and expertise in your specialist fields, as well as developing a comprehensive understanding of business, exceptional leadership skills and practical experience.

Connect with us

Browse our  FAQs page for more information on a variety of topics. 

You can also contact our admissions and recruitment team or register for an upcoming event.

2023-2024 Oxford Saïd MBA Essay Tips and Example Essays

Aug 1, 2023

• Who is Oxford Saïd looking for?
• How should I answer the Oxford Saïd  MBA essay questions?
• Make Your Oxford Essays Shine
• Oxford Saïd Deadlines

UPDATE : This article was originally posted on September 4, 2020. It has been updated with new information and tips below. 

With its focus on ethical leadership and social impact, Oxford is at the top of the list for an increasing number of applicants who seek to pursue (or continue pursuing) a high-impact, global career. 

However, with impressive recruiting statistics and its unique 1+1 MBA + Master’s program, the competition to join Oxford’s elite MBA is more difficult than ever. 

That’s why we’ve prepared this guide to help you use your Oxford admissions essays to stand out. We’ve rounded up our best tips and links to Oxford Saïd MBA sample essays to ensure you give your Saïd application your best shot. 

1. Who is Oxford Saïd looking for?

Source: @ oxfordsbs on Instagram

“Oxford University has a rich tradition of developing leaders. Our MBA programme builds on this legacy, providing you with a solid foundation in core business principles while developing a broadened mindset and understanding of the role of business in society.” Oxford Saïd Admissions

Every year, Oxford searches the globe (64 countries are represented in the Class of 2023) for outstanding professionals to join its annual class of 313 students. With a strong emphasis on diversity, there is no “typical” Oxford student, yet the average admitted student for the Class of 2023 had a 690 median GMAT score and five years of work experience .

Beyond the impressive statistics, though, Oxford is looking for candidates who want to make a positive impact on the world through their careers. That’s why, in addition to strong academic performance (demonstrated through the test scores and university grades), Oxford seeks candidates who possess the following qualities:

If this sounds like a community in which you’d be right at home, you’ll first have to prove you’ve got what it takes by successfully answering Oxford’s short admissions essay questions. 

2. How should I answer the Oxford Saïd  MBA essay questions?

Additionally, Oxford has numerous “hidden” responses about your goals when filling out your online application form. Our tips for answering these are also detailed below!

2.1. Essay 1 Tips

Tell us something that is not covered in your application which you would like the Admissions Committee to know about you. (Maximum 250 words)

For this short question, we recommend including at least one story to show off an aspect of your values, your profile, or your personality that the admissions committee has not seen in other parts of your application. This prompt is broad, so you’re free to choose elements from your personal and professional life. 

We suggest you choose your most high-impact story or personal characteristic and meaningfully explain both what happened and what it taught you/how it shaped you. To help you structure your response, we suggest you use the STAR format when shaping your story. 

To help you identify which stories would be best for this response, you must have a clear understanding of Oxford’s culture so you can demonstrate your “fit” with the school. Ask yourself, Which parts of Oxford’s culture do you identify with, and how do you see yourself putting those into practice during your MBA? How can you contribute to the Oxford community in a way no one else can? Check out this video that focuses on what Oxford students value most about the school community.

You can also consider other aspects of your profile and personal brand that you’ve already touched upon in other parts of your Oxford application – considering you will have a set of mini goals essays to answer within the online application form (more on these below). 

Additionally, if you have space to add a bit about how you will connect it to your Oxford MBA experience, this can be a great conclusion. 

For example, last year, our client Marcelo talked about how he was recruited to help his company solve a financial challenge at a branch in Angola and developed a solution, together with that country’s government, that not only solved the company’s financial issue but also provided a reliable food source for thousands of Angolans. He then wrote about his plan to share the challenges of performing business on an international scale and bringing discussions about global issues to the Oxford community. 

TOP TIP: If you’re having trouble fitting all of this information into just 250 words, our team of editing experts can be your ace up the sleeve by helping you incorporate as much content as possible to show off your profile in this super short essay. 

Need more guidance? 

Our MBA Resource Center has dozens of Oxford MBA essays that worked to get our clients admitted to help you plan out a winning Oxford Saïd essay. 

Our library also includes guides for all top global MBA programs, detailed essay brainstorms, interview tips and mocks, CV templates, and recommendation letter guides. Click to join ! 

2.2. 1+1 Essay Tips

If you are applying under the Oxford 1+1 scheme you also need to submit the following essay:

Explain why you see this as particularly beneficial for you and how it fits with your career and personal development aims. (Maximum 250 words)

For this question, we suggest a straightforward statement that includes why the additional degree is necessary to reach your goals and specific elements of the program that will support your growth both as a professional and as a person. 

As such, you might want to start by creating a list of ways you want to grow personally and professionally at Oxford, then work to connect elements of the 1+1 program to demonstrate that the program clearly supports your development goals. 

Since you have a short space here, you may want to limit yourself to 3-5 reasons. This will give you enough space to talk both about how and why you want to develop in a particular area and then state specific aspects of the 1+1 program that will help you grow in a way the MBA alone would not.

Writing a 250-word essay can be challenging, but we’ve prepared an in-depth post to help you maximize every word. 

2.3. Optional Reapplicant Essay Tips

Re-applicants will need to submit an additional essay: What improvements have you made in your candidacy since you last applied to the Oxford MBA? (Maximum 250 words) 

Here, make sure you clearly demonstrate how you have improved since your previous application. We have written extensively on the topic of reapplying to business school here . 

2.4. Short Goal Essays Tips

Inside the application form, Oxford has also “hidden” many small essays about your goals. Though there is no stated word count for these, you want to be sure to be complete yet concise. Something in the range of 100-250 words should be adequate, in our opinion! 

The topics and guidelines are below. 

-Describe below your immediate plan after graduating from the MBA.

With this short answer question, Oxford essentially has asked you to write a very short version of a traditional MBA goals essay. Furthermore, they have deliberately been very clear about what they want here: short-term goals only . 

TOP TIP: If you’re not sure what your goals are, check out this post designed to help you think through this critical component of your application!

When discussing your goals , clarity is king, so make sure you include a job title and industry in your description of your post-MBA aspiration. 

After clearly stating your goal, you should dedicate a bit of space to discussing what motivates you to pursue these goals. Here, you may choose to include a bit of background information that is relevant to your career choice, but be careful not to include information that overlaps with the “How do you meet these requirements” question below.  

Ending your essay with a killer conclusion sentence to leave your reader with a strong image of your profile is the perfect wrap-up.  

-How does your preferred sector in your preferred location recruit MBA talent and what do they look for in a candidate? Describe the research you have done so far.

Here, research is the key to success.

As such, we recommend that you start by interviewing as many people as you can who are related in some way to your post-MBA industry. Since Oxford asks how recruitment works in your preferred location make sure to narrow your focus to include only your target geography . 

You may want to consider speaking to the HR departments of companies you’d like to work for, speak to headhunters specialized in this area, and even talk to friends or colleagues who successfully recruited for your post-MBA role in the past. 

Then, when writing your essay, give a description of how recruitment works in your sector in your preferred location and what they look for in a successful candidate . For the latter, make sure to cite things like specific required skills (such as an ability to use advanced analytics tools or fluent Spanish), personal characteristics, and degree/certifications. 

Then, cite each of the steps you took to discover this information, mentioning the specific people and companies you spoke with and the insights they provided you. 

To wrap up, you may want to close with a sentence on why, learning what you have learned, you are confident you will be successful in your own recruitment process. You’ll go into more detail below, so make sure to keep this brief.

-Reflecting on your answer above, how do you meet these requirements?

A little bit about your work history is essential for this essay, which gives context to your goals and proof that you have relevant experience related to your goals.

When discussing your career progress to date, keep in mind the information the admissions counselors already have. The goal here is not to list every achievement you’ve made (they probably see that on your resume), but to give brief, strong examples of an accomplished career, especially focusing on achievements that relate to your future goals. 

For example, though you may have had a highly successful marketing internship, but have since forged a career in M&A, you may want to leave your marketing achievements out of your goals essay to focus on more relevant information. 

Nonetheless, not everyone has a perfectly linear path where each step logically leads to the next. Your work history might look disjointed on paper, but the key is to emphasize growth and highlight your capabilities. All of this needs to add up to show that you have what it takes to achieve your post-MBA goals . 

-What do you plan to do between now and starting your MBA to prepare and maximise your chances of success?

To answer this question, you must clearly demonstrate what you are doing or plan to do before your MBA to prepare yourself to reach the goals you stated above. 

For example, last year, our client Bruno, who was planning to leave his MBB consulting job to open his own startup, spoke about how he was spending his secondment period at a startup to learn best practices, had signed up for numerous entrepreneurship conferences, and had joined several professional groups on fintech innovation. He then cited how each of these would help him be more successful as an entrepreneur after his MBA. 

If you’re planning to switch industries, here make sure you also give a detailed description of the steps you’re taking before joining Saïd to enhance your skills and also cite your networking efforts. Showing you’ve connected with people in your target industry and area already building the network you’ll need to be successful will go a long way to reinforce you’re going to achieve your post-MBA goals. 

Finally, if you plan to return to your current company ( whether sponsored or not ), show how you plan to continue evolving in your responsibilities and preparing yourself to take the next step up the career ladder. 

-Should you not be successful in securing your first choice of role, what is your alternative?

It’s always good to have a backup plan, especially considering the tough economic realities present in many places in the world these days. For your Plan B, make sure it relates in some way to your “official” goal so as not to undermine your goals statements. 

For example, if your goal is to work in private equity, but your plan B is to start an eco-travel company, the admissions committee is going to wonder just how committed you were to those original goals in the first place. 

However, a job that allows you to achieve the same impact, just in a different format, would be ideal. 

For example, if you want to work in a biotechnology startup to learn best practices and shape health care, a good backup might be working in a more established biotechnology firm and later making the jump to an earlier-stage venture. 

2.5. Video Essay Tips

Online assessment: You will need to complete five questions via our online assessment platform.

To virtually meet you, get a sense of your personality and see how you think on your feet, you will need to complete an online assessment as part of your application:

– Two motivation-based questions – all candidates will answer the same questions

– Two competency-based questions – these will be randomised

– Written response – this will be randomised and light-hearted to show us how you can think on your feet!

The motivation-based questions give you the opportunity to demonstrate your motivations for undertaking an MBA and why the Oxford MBA is the right programme for you. The competency-based questions let you demonstrate the skills and qualities we look for, such as decision-making, problem-solving, influence, leadership, and strong communication skills. 

Once you have submitted your application for either the Oxford MBA or Oxford 1+1 MBA you will see a link in your application status portal. This will enable you to register with Kira Talent, our online assessment platform, and complete your assessment. This link will appear up to 24 hours after submitting your application, therefore we strongly encourage you to leave yourself enough time to practice and complete the online assessment by the deadline in which you are applying.

You will be provided with preparation time and practice sessions before going live with your real responses. The whole online assessment should only take up to 30 minutes for you to complete. All you need is a desktop or laptop computer with a functioning webcam, microphone and internet connection.

In addition to the written essays, you will be required to complete a set of video essays for your application to be considered complete. 

We have prepared an extensive guide on this component of the application, which you can access here !

Looking for Oxford Saïd MBA essay examples? 

Check out our real sample essays that got our clients admitted here .

3. Make Your Oxford Essays Shine

One of the most common mistakes we see in MBA essays is that candidates fail to tell compelling stories . This is important because if your stories are not compelling, they will not be persuasive. At the same time, they must be backed by strong examples that establish a track record of success and prove to the admissions committees why you belong at their school. 

Striking this balance between content and creativity can be tough, however, as succeeding means not only choosing the right stories but ensuring they are told in an optimal manner. 

This is why our iterative developmental feedback process here at Ellin Lolis Consulting helps you mold your message through the application of our storytelling expertise until it reflects exactly what makes your profile stand out and show fit with your target program.   

Not only can you take advantage of our iterative feedback process through multiple edits – you can also benefit from it after a single review! If your budget is tight, our editors will be happy to help polish your text as much as possible and leave “bonus comments” so you can keep working on it on your own!

No matter how long we work with you, we will always ensure your essays shine . Sign up to work with our team of storytelling experts and get accepted.

4. Oxford Saïd Deadlines

Here are the deadlines for the 2023-2024 admissions cycle. You can access the online application here . 

Oxford has not yet released their deadlines for this year. You can keep track of updates here . 

Real MBA Essays That Got People In

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• Graduate school
• Information for postgraduate research students
• Submitting your thesis

This section contains essential information and guidance for the preparation and submission of your thesis.

Preparation and Submission of your Thesis

IMPORTANT - When preparing your thesis please ensure that you have taken into account any copyright or sensitive content issues, and dealt with them appropriately. 

COVID-19  Additional academic support – Supporting Students to Submission

Additional academic support is available for postgraduate research students impacted by the pandemic. If your research has been disrupted by COVID-19, it will now be possible to have this taken into account in viva examinations.

Tips on planning your thesis

At an early stage you should:

• Prepare a detailed work plan for your research in consultation with your supervisor.
• Build some flexibility into your plan. It is difficult to give general advice about the allocation of time on theory‑oriented projects, because the nature of these is so variable. In the case of experiment‑based research projects, you should normally allow up to six months to write a DPhil thesis, or three to four months for a corresponding MSc by Research thesis.
• Consider attending available skills training courses, for example  Thesis and Report Writing .

It is not advisable to leave all the writing to the end, for several reasons:

• You will need practice at writing over a period of time in order to develop a good style.
• There will inevitably be hold‑ups in experimental work and it is better to use that time to work on part of your thesis, rather than to waste it. If you do some writing earlier the final completion of your thesis will not seem such a daunting task.
• Approaching your submission date will become more stressful than necessary.

About your thesis

The best way to find out what is required for a successful thesis in your subject area is to look at some written in recent years. You should obviously look particularly closely at theses written by previous members of your own research group, which are available in the University library.

The formal requirements for obtaining your degree are set out in detail in the ‘ Examination Regulations ’. The standard required for success in the DPhil examination is defined as follows: that the student present a significant and substantial piece of research, of a kind which might reasonably be expected of a capable and diligent student after three or at most four years of full‑time study in the case of a full-time student, or eight years in the case of a part-time student. For the MSc by Research the standard required is that the candidate should have made a worthwhile contribution to knowledge or understanding of the relevant field of learning after a minimum of one year or two years of full-time study.

Thesis structure - Integrated Thesis

Subject to approval, students registered on research programmes (DPhil, MSc (Res) and CDTs) in the following departments may submit an integrated thesis rather than a conventional thesis: Biology, Chemistry, Earth Sciences, Engineering Science and Statistics. Where a student is admitted to an interdisciplinary doctoral training programme (CDT/DTP), the regulations for the department that the student is hosted in will therefore determine whether an integrated thesis may be applied for.

An integrated thesis may either be a hybrid of conventional chapters and high-quality scientific papers, or be fully paper-based. Regardless of the format, the content of the thesis should reflect the amount, originality and level of work expected for a conventional thesis. It should not be assumed that the act of publication (in whatever form) means the work is of suitable academic quality and content for inclusion in a thesis, and students should discuss all papers in detail with their supervisor before including. It would be anticipated that the candidate would be a lead contributor, rather than a minor author, on at least some of the papers in order to consider this format. There is no minimum, or maximum, number of papers a candidate is expected/allowed to include as part of such a thesis and it will remain a matter for the examiners to conclude whether the contributions are equivalent to that which would be expected of a standard DPhil.

Any papers utilised must concern a common subject, constitute a continuous theme and conform to the following guidelines:

 (i) If a candidate for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy wishes to be examined through an integrated thesis (in the departments listed above), they should apply for permission to be examined in this way when they apply for confirmation of status, as detailed in the relevant departmental handbook. A candidate for the Degree of Master of Science by Research should normally apply to the DGS for permission to be examined in this way six months before submitting their papers for examination. To revert to being examined by a conventional thesis rather than an integrated thesis, the candidate must inform their department of the change as detailed in the relevant departmental handbook.

(ii) Work can be included regardless of its acceptance status for publication but candidates may be questioned on the publication status of their work by the examiners.

(iii) Any submitted/published papers should relate directly to the candidate’s approved field of study, and should have been written whilst holding the status of PRS or a student for the MSc (by Research), or DPhil.

(iv) The collection of papers must include a separate introduction, a full literature review, discussion and a conclusion, so that the integrated thesis can be read as a single, coherent document.

(v) The candidate must ensure all matters of copyright are addressed before a paper’s inclusion. A pre-print version of any published papers should be included as standard.

(vi) Joint/multi-authored papers are common in science based subjects and thus acceptable if the candidate can both defend the paper in full and provide a written statement of authorship, agreed by all authors, that certifies the extent of the candidate’s own contribution. A standard template is available for this purpose.

• Download the Statement of Authorship template as a Word document
• View the Statement of Authorship template as a webpage  

The length and scope of theses, including word limits for each subject area in the Division are set out in Departmental guidelines.

In all departments, if some part of the thesis is not solely your work or has been carried out in collaboration with one or more persons, you should also submit a clear statement of the extent of your contribution.

• Download the guidance for submitting an Integrated Thesis as a Word document
• View the guidance for submitting an Integrated Thesis as a webpage

Thesis page and word limits

Several departments place a word limit or page limit on theses. Details can be found in the  Examination Regulations  or  GSO.20a Notes of Guidance for Research Examinations .

Permission to exceed the page and word limits

Should you need to exceed your word/page limit you must seek approval from the Director of Graduate Studies in your department. You and your supervisor must submit a letter/email requesting approval, giving reasons why it is necessary to exceed the limit. This must be sent to the MPLS Graduate Office ( [email protected] ).

Proof-reading

It is your responsibility to ensure your thesis has been adequately proof-read before it is submitted.  Your supervisor may alert you if they feel further proof-reading is needed, but it is not their job to do the proof-reading for you.  You should proof-read your own work, as this is an essential skill in the academic writing process. However, for longer pieces of work it is considered acceptable for students to seek the help of a third party for proof-reading. Such third parties can be professional proof-readers, fellow students, friends or family members (students should bear in mind the terms of any agreements with an outside body or sponsor governing supply of confidential material or the disclosure of research results described in the thesis).   Proof-reading assistance may also be provided as a reasonable adjustment for disability.    Your thesis may be rejected by the examiners if it has not been adequately proof-read.  

See the University’s Policy on the Use of Third Party Proof-readers . The MPLS Division offers training in proof-reading as part of its Scientific Writing training programmes.

Examiners and Submission Dates

You are strongly advised to apply for the appointment of examiners at least four to six weeks before you submit your thesis.

Appointing examiners for your thesis

Approval of the proposed names of examiners rests with the Director of Graduate Studies. Two examiners are normally appointed. It is usual for one of the examiners to be a senior member of Oxford University (the ‘internal examiner’) and the other to be from another research organisation (the ‘external examiner’). The divisional board will not normally appoint as examiners individuals previously closely associated with the candidate or their work, representatives of any organisation sponsoring the candidate’s research, or former colleagues of a candidate. Your supervisor will make suggestions regarding the names of possible examiners. Before doing so, your supervisor must consult with you, in order to find out if you have any special views on the appointment of particular examiners. Your supervisor is also allowed to consult informally with the potential examiners before making formal suggestions. Such informal consultation is usually desirable, and is intended to determine whether the people concerned are willing in principle to act, and if so, whether they could carry out the examination within a reasonable period of time. (For example, there may be constraints if you have to return to your home country, or take up employment on a specific date).

See information on examiner conflicts of interest , under section 7.3.3 Examiners.

What forms do I need to complete?

You will need to complete the online  GSO.3 form. Supervisors complete the section indicating names of the proposed examiners, and they should provide alternatives in case the preferred examiners decline to act.

Timing for appointment of examiners

You are advised to submit your appointment of examiners form in advance of submitting your thesis to avoid delays with your examination process. Ideally you should apply for the appointment of examiners at least 4-6 weeks before you expect to submit your thesis for examination.

There are currently no University regulations requiring examination to take place within a certain time limit after thesis submission. However, your examiners would normally be expected to hold your viva within 3 months. If you need to have your examination sooner than this, you may apply for an early viva , by completing the 'Application for a time specific examination' section on the appointment of examiners form, this section must be endorsed by your supervisor and DGS in addition to their approval in the main body of the form. The request must be made at the time of completing and submitting the appointment of examiners form, it cannot be done after this.

Please bear in mind that the examination date requested must not be earlier than one calendar month after the date on which the thesis has been received by the Research Degrees Team or after the date on which the examiners have formally agreed to act, whichever is the latest. The actual date of the examination will depend primarily on the availability of both examiners. In the Long Vacation, a longer time is normally required. It is therefore essential that you leave sufficient time for your forms to be formally approved, and for your examiners to be formally invited.  If sufficient time has not be given this could impact on your early examination request .

If, for any reason, examiners wish to hold a viva within four weeks of receiving their copy of the thesis, permission must be sought from the Director of Graduate Studies. The internal examiner will need to give details of the proposed arrangement and the reasons for the request. Under no circumstances will a viva be permitted to take place within 14 days of receipt of the thesis by the examiners.

Special considerations

Your supervisor is permitted to indicate to the Director of Graduate Studies if there are any special factors which should be taken into account in the conduct of your examination. For example, a scientific paper may have been produced by another researcher which affects the content of your thesis, but which was published too late for you to take into account. The Director of Graduate Studies will also need to be told of any special circumstances you may require or need to inform your examiners of which may affect your performance in an oral examination, or if any part of your work must be regarded as confidential. The Director of Graduate Studies will then forward (via the Graduate Office), any appropriate information that they think should be provided to the examiners. The Graduate Office will also seek approval from the Proctors Office if required.

Change of thesis title

If during your studies you want to change the title or subject of your thesis, you must obtain the approval of the Director of Graduate Studies using the online form GSO.6 . If you are requesting the change at the time of submitting your thesis, you may do this on the application for appointment of examiners form. A change of title is quite straightforward; it is common for students to begin with a very general title, and then to replace it with a more specific one shortly before submitting their thesis. Providing your supervisor certifies that the new title lies within the original topic, approval will be automatic. A change of the subject of your research requires more detailed consideration, because there may be doubt as to whether you can complete the new project within the original time‑scale.

If following your examination your examiners recommend that your thesis title be changed, you will need to complete a change of thesis title form to ensure that your record is updated accordingly.

From MT19 y ou must submit your digital examiners’ copy of your thesis online, via the Research Thesis Digital Submission (RTDS) portal, no later than the last day of the vacation immediately following the term in which your application for the appointment of examiners was made.   If you fail to submit by this date your application will be cancelled and you will have to reapply for appointment of examiners when you are ready to submit. Y our thesis should not be submitted until your application for confirmation of status has been approved (this applies to DPhil students only) . For MSc by Research students you should ensure that your transfer of status has been completed .

If you are funded on a research council studentship, you will have a recommended end-date before which your thesis must be submitted. If you do not know this date, please consult your supervisor.

Please note that you must not submit copies of your thesis directly to your examiners as this could result in your examinations being declared void and you could be referred to the University Proctors.

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Submitting your thesis to ORA: Requirements

• Eligible degrees
• Requirements
• What to deposit
• Pre-deposit checklist
• Hardcopy thesis submission
• How to deposit
• Open Access
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• Restricted access to your thesis
• Edited/dissemination copy of your thesis
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This page outlines when a thesis can be deposited to ORA, and the requirements which must be met in order for the deposit to be eligible.

When to deposit

Current students must have been granted  leave to supplicate  following examination of their thesis to be eligible for deposit.

Theses should be deposited in good time (a minimum of five working days) in advance of graduation so that they can be processed by the ORA team.

Alumni and Oxford staff/researchers can deposit their thesis to ORA at any time.

Conditions of deposit

The following conditions must be met in order to deposit your thesis:

• The degree for which your thesis was written is eligible for deposit (see:  eligible degrees )
• The deposited file should be the final examined version as it was passed by the examiners with all corrections included (see: what to deposit)
• Inclusion of the thesis in ORA must not infringe copyright or any other rights including those rights of material included in the thesis where copyright is held by a third party. This is the responsibility of the depositor to check (see:  copyright )
• The author must agree to the ORA deposit statement for theses
• A digital version of the thesis must be submitted by the depositor (ORA cannot offer a digitisation service at the present time)
• A thesis record, including the thesis abstract, will be created for your theses and made publicly available via ORA, unless specific dispensation has been granted (see: dispensation ) 

Additionally, for current students:

• Any embargoes on access beyond 3 years must be approved by the supervisor or another appropriate person in the department which granted leave to supplicate.

For alumni and Oxford researchers/staff who graduated before the COVID-19 pandemic:

• A print copy of the thesis must have been deposited in the Bodleian Library

ORA reserves the right to refuse any item if any of these conditions are not met, or in any other exceptional circumstances.

Hardcopy Thesis Submission

Conditions regarding the deposit of physical theses to the Bodleian Libraries as detailed within the requirements surrounding a degree at Oxford have been changing. For information on physical theses deposit please see the section ' hard copy theses ' and refer to the requirements of your degree.

Oxford Glossary

Supplicate : Ask for a degree to be conferred at a degree ceremony.  E.g. candidates who satisfactorily complete a DPhil are granted ‘Leave to supplicate’, meaning they have passed.

• Oxford Glossary of terms Weblink to Oxford Glossary
• University of Oxford glossaries PDF containing a glossary of Oxford terms, acronyms and obsolete Oxford usages.
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• Last Updated: Jun 4, 2024 4:11 PM
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Prize-Winning Thesis and Dissertation Examples

Published on September 9, 2022 by Tegan George . Revised on July 18, 2023.

It can be difficult to know where to start when writing your thesis or dissertation . One way to come up with some ideas or maybe even combat writer’s block is to check out previous work done by other students on a similar thesis or dissertation topic to yours.

This article collects a list of undergraduate, master’s, and PhD theses and dissertations that have won prizes for their high-quality research.

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Table of contents

Award-winning undergraduate theses, award-winning master’s theses, award-winning ph.d. dissertations, other interesting articles.

University : University of Pennsylvania Faculty : History Author : Suchait Kahlon Award : 2021 Hilary Conroy Prize for Best Honors Thesis in World History Title : “Abolition, Africans, and Abstraction: the Influence of the “Noble Savage” on British and French Antislavery Thought, 1787-1807”

University : Columbia University Faculty : History Author : Julien Saint Reiman Award : 2018 Charles A. Beard Senior Thesis Prize Title : “A Starving Man Helping Another Starving Man”: UNRRA, India, and the Genesis of Global Relief, 1943-1947

University: University College London Faculty: Geography Author: Anna Knowles-Smith Award:  2017 Royal Geographical Society Undergraduate Dissertation Prize Title:  Refugees and theatre: an exploration of the basis of self-representation

University: University of Washington Faculty:  Computer Science & Engineering Author: Nick J. Martindell Award: 2014 Best Senior Thesis Award Title:  DCDN: Distributed content delivery for the modern web

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University:  University of Edinburgh Faculty:  Informatics Author:  Christopher Sipola Award:  2018 Social Responsibility & Sustainability Dissertation Prize Title:  Summarizing electricity usage with a neural network

University:  University of Ottawa Faculty:  Education Author:  Matthew Brillinger Award:  2017 Commission on Graduate Studies in the Humanities Prize Title:  Educational Park Planning in Berkeley, California, 1965-1968

University:  University of Ottawa Faculty: Social Sciences Author:  Heather Martin Award:  2015 Joseph De Koninck Prize Title:  An Analysis of Sexual Assault Support Services for Women who have a Developmental Disability

University : University of Ottawa Faculty : Physics Author : Guillaume Thekkadath Award : 2017 Commission on Graduate Studies in the Sciences Prize Title : Joint measurements of complementary properties of quantum systems

University:  London School of Economics Faculty: International Development Author: Lajos Kossuth Award:  2016 Winner of the Prize for Best Overall Performance Title:  Shiny Happy People: A study of the effects income relative to a reference group exerts on life satisfaction

University : Stanford University Faculty : English Author : Nathan Wainstein Award : 2021 Alden Prize Title : “Unformed Art: Bad Writing in the Modernist Novel”

University : University of Massachusetts at Amherst Faculty : Molecular and Cellular Biology Author : Nils Pilotte Award : 2021 Byron Prize for Best Ph.D. Dissertation Title : “Improved Molecular Diagnostics for Soil-Transmitted Molecular Diagnostics for Soil-Transmitted Helminths”

University:  Utrecht University Faculty:  Linguistics Author:  Hans Rutger Bosker Award: 2014 AVT/Anéla Dissertation Prize Title:  The processing and evaluation of fluency in native and non-native speech

University: California Institute of Technology Faculty: Physics Author: Michael P. Mendenhall Award: 2015 Dissertation Award in Nuclear Physics Title: Measurement of the neutron beta decay asymmetry using ultracold neutrons

University:  Stanford University Faculty: Management Science and Engineering Author:  Shayan O. Gharan Award:  Doctoral Dissertation Award 2013 Title:   New Rounding Techniques for the Design and Analysis of Approximation Algorithms

University: University of Minnesota Faculty: Chemical Engineering Author: Eric A. Vandre Award:  2014 Andreas Acrivos Dissertation Award in Fluid Dynamics Title: Onset of Dynamics Wetting Failure: The Mechanics of High-speed Fluid Displacement

University: Erasmus University Rotterdam Faculty: Marketing Author: Ezgi Akpinar Award: McKinsey Marketing Dissertation Award 2014 Title: Consumer Information Sharing: Understanding Psychological Drivers of Social Transmission

University: University of Washington Faculty: Computer Science & Engineering Author: Keith N. Snavely Award:  2009 Doctoral Dissertation Award Title: Scene Reconstruction and Visualization from Internet Photo Collections

University:  University of Ottawa Faculty:  Social Work Author:  Susannah Taylor Award: 2018 Joseph De Koninck Prize Title:  Effacing and Obscuring Autonomy: the Effects of Structural Violence on the Transition to Adulthood of Street Involved Youth

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Dissecting the Portfolio Allocation Strategy of an Oxford MBA: Part 1

As an undergraduate in Finance, I’ve been exposed to a steep learning curve at illio where I have picked up a lot of real world experience from various members of the team. However, I had the opportunity to read Alex Post’s Oxford MBA thesis which was part of his Financial Markets Trading module and found it fascinating in how it bridged the world of academia and practical application. 

In this three-part article, I summarise his thesis and explore his decision making and rationale for making the short term investment decisions he outlined in his paper. In part I am doing this to help me understand how an MBA student approached finance, but also to help future undergraduates learn too. 

Assignment description 

For the assignment, Alex was tasked to allocate £100 million capital in equity and/or debt and/or cash in the currencies of his choice with a three-week investment horizon and subsequently provide reasoning for those allocations. He was allotted 4 different instruments and did not have access to borrowing or repo facilities. 

What this means in English: Alex was given £100 million and was told to invest in a combination of equity, debt and cash.  

Before deciding where to invest, let’s understand how each of these investment vehicles behaves and compares.  

  Equity market:

‍ The equity market, or the stock market, is the space in which stocks are bought and sold. This term encompasses all marketplaces such as the NYSE, the LSE, the Euronext and the Nasdaq. 

Equity, or stock, represents a small part of a company someone can purchase. The owner of an equity stake may profit from dividends, which are a percentage of a company’s profits that is returned to its shareholders. 

When investing in equity markets, you must be wary of its volatility, a product of price changes caused by the social, political, governmental and economic forces at play. Strong performance can lead to major gains to the investor and vice versa.  

Debt market:

The debt market, otherwise known as the bond market, is an arena in which investments in loans or bonds are bought and sold. Investments in this market typically involve less risk than equity investments and offer a lower overall return on investment, or ROI, for two main reasons. Firstly, the issuer of the bonds must return the face value of the security to its holder on payment date. Secondly, most bonds pay investors at a fixed (or floating) rate of interest, whereas stock issuers have no obligation to pay dividends. 

Bonds carry the promise of their issuer to return the face value of the security to the holder at maturity and if they don’t then they would be in default. Stocks make no such promise from their issuer. 

Historically the bond market has been less vulnerable to price swings or volatility than the stock market, except for emerging markets whose bonds can be much more volatile. 

Bonds are the most common form of debt investment. They are issued either by private companies or the government to raise capital and typically come with a fixed interest rate.   

‍ The foreign exchange market, otherwise known as the Forex, FX, or currencies market, is an over-the-counter (OTC)1 global marketplace that determines the exchange rate of the world’s currencies.  

Commodity market: The commodity market is a marketplace used for buying, selling and trading raw materials.  

This market is split into hard and soft commodities. Hard commodities encompass natural resources that are mined or extracted while soft commodities refer to agriculture or livestock. 

What he did 

Alex noted that a 3-week time horizon is not long enough to take an investment view. Consequently, it is more about protecting the allocation with some upside opportunity. He concluded that a defensive or ‘hedged’ investment thesis is a sensible allocation decision given the aforementioned.  

To understand how to allocate his funds defensively, Alex started by forming an economic outlook within his timeframe.  

  His global macroeconomic outlook 

Equity Market - Bearish2 

Debt Market – Bearish 

FX Market – Reserve Currencies3 Bullish4 

Alex noted that in June of 2022 “the global economy is facing unprecedented inflationary pressure and expected market down-turn” (Bloomberg, 2022). Consumer Price Inflation is (CPI) 8.3% in the US and a record 8.1% in the EU” (Mckinsey & Company, 2022).  

On the supply side, he cited the war in Ukraine which caused major supply chain disruptions as “Ukraine accounts for 10% of the global wheat and maize trade” (EC, 2022) and China’s zero COVID policy which “brought lockdowns of cities and industries resulting in reduced manufacturing/export capabilities.” On the demand side, he cited the sudden drop in consumer spending in China, the US and Western Europe (11%-26%) in early-stage COVID, which “the personal savings rate to end 2020 at 14.2%, double the rate in December 2019” (Deloitte, 2021).  

From this, Alex asserted that both supply and demand side factors indicate that inflation is here to stay for the medium term at least and that a recession may be on the horizon, hence why global central banks have begun both quantitative tightening and raising interest rates: 

How this impacted his portfolio allocation  

  Because of the expected market downturn, Alex allocated 20% of his portfolio into ProShares Short QQQ (PSQ) (alternatives). PSQ is a 3x leveraged exchange-traded fund (ETF), meaning that it seeks to return the daily results of the Nasdaq 100 index times negative three. The Nasdaq 100 tracks the largest, most actively traded U.S companies on the Nasdaq stock exchange. The Nasdaq contains numerous growth shares which have historically been impacted more heavily than value shares by rising rates so, given Alex’s economic outlook, it would be sensible to choose a position that bets against the market. 

Alex allocated 30% of his portfolio to a UK Gilt 0.125% coupon Jan 31st 2023 maturity (fixed income), a short duration (seven month) government bond. This is a safe investment as it will not be significantly impacted by interest rate increases and because it is short duration, it can generate some yield over a three-week horizon.  

Furthermore, he put 20% into Invesco DB Agriculture Fund (commodities), another ETF which tracks the performance of specific agricultural commodities. The fund aims to reflect the overall price movements of the agricultural sector. Alex anticipated increased supply chain constraints and rising food and energy prices, which would in turn boost the price of the ETF. 

Lastly, he kept £30 million in cash. Both ETF investments were done in USD, 40% of Alex’s portfolio: “Any US rate hike will likely strengthen USD as it is expected that the Fed may raise rates the same or more than other central banks. As a Sterling investor, with 40% in USD the rest of the portfolio is in GBP to hedge this FX risk.” 

Given the time frame and his defensive / hedged approach, Alex was seeking a slightly positive return of up to 0.25%. 

In the next article, I will look at the results as outlined in his thesis. 

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MSc in Sustainability, Enterprise and the Environment

• Entry requirements
• Funding and Costs

College preference

• How to Apply

About the course

The MSc Sustainability, Enterprise and the Environment addresses two pervasive and unmet challenges of our time: making the transition to a zero-carbon and environmentally sustainable economic model, whilst simultaneously enabling sustainable development for all. The course views these challenges through the lenses of finance, economics and enterprise – both public and private – whilst also leveraging the environmental, systems, and data sciences. 

The MSc will equip current and future thought-leaders and decision-makers with the rigorous academic knowledge and applied skills needed to understand and accelerate the transition to a zero-carbon, environmentally sustainable economic model. 

The objectives of the MSc are three-fold:

• Develop a critical understanding of the nature, drivers and trajectories of climate change and economic development.
• Examine the role of enterprise and its relationship to environmental and development challenges across a range of risks, technological innovations, investment opportunities and policy responses.
• Enable students to integrate and apply their interdisciplinary knowledge, advanced methodological skills and science-policy-enterprise network to foster innovation and scalable progress toward net zero and sustainable development.

The Programme Learning Outcomes of the MSc will equip students with knowledge, skills and networks to understand:

• the nature, science and trajectories of the net zero and sustainable development challenge (NZSD)
• the scope and limits of innovation and the different roles of enterprise – public and private - in effective responses to NZSD
• the data and methods required to measure progress to NZSD and attribute impact, and a critical appreciation of data
• the economic frameworks, methods and tools to apply to measure the NZSD problem and accelerate progress towards it
• the broad range of socio-technical drivers that can accelerate progress to NZSD
• the theory and practice of sustainable finance and investment, and how to engage with sector stakeholders
• the drivers reshaping economical social and environmental relationships
• the scope for markets to spur conservation and investment.

In addition, the course aims to equip graduates with a range of person and professional skills; in particular, leadership competencies.

The course caters for – and is intentionally designed for – a wide range of life and career stages: just-finished undergraduates, recent graduates and early- to mid-career professionals. It combines directed teaching, self-regulated learning, structured engagement, formal assessment, and regular interaction with practitioners.

Core modules

The course objectives are addressed through ten core modules, two electives and a dissertation. Expand each core module title below to read a list of learning objectives:

Climate Change and Net Zero

• Define and situate the concept of net-zero and related terms
• Understand the nature, drivers and trajectories of climate change and analyse mitigation strategies
• Analyse the interdependencies between ecological, social and economic systems in getting to net zero

Sustainable Enterprise

• Demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of the role of private enterprise (business) as a cause of – but also solution to – social and environmental challenges
• Summarise the ideas of shareholder-primacy vis-à-vis stakeholder views of business, and relate these ideas to the concepts of sustainability; corporate social responsibility (CSR); triple bottom line; Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG); social licence to operate; legitimacy; and business ethics
• Understand and apply key concepts pertaining to business structure, strategy and organisational change
• Understand key concepts pertaining to human behaviour that explain interactions, interests and incentive drives in organisations and society

New Environmental Economic Thinking

• Identify the limitations of conventional economic models for addressing NZSD
• Integrate new thinking “outside” of conventional economics (eg complexity theory, climate science) into economic and policy analysis
• Become comfortable using analytical frameworks that capture multiple equilibria, coordination, complementarities, lock-in, path dependence, and tipping points
• Draw insights from complex datasets such as patent, social, and export networks
• Acquire the ability to go from real-world problems with these features to possible solutions

Spaces, Infrastructure and Technology for Net Zero and Sustainable Development

• Understand and contextualise disruptive drivers that are re-shaping economic, social and environmental relationships
• Engage critically with these issues through the lens of infrastructure and technology and debate the implications of glocalization and urbanization for NZSD
• Develop an applied understanding of constructive responses to these disruptive drivers

Methods and Data

• Critically analyse the role of the scientific method of inquiry in the production of knowledge and evaluate how and why scientific data is used by different actors within society
• Understand and apply qualitative and quantitative methods to measure progress and attribute impact pertaining to NZSD
• Comprehend the strengths, weaknesses and limitations of different methodological approaches and demonstrate sound judgement in selecting and applying the optimal approach to the given context
• Apply a critical lens to data and data-driven methods – including biases – and analyse how data is used in decision-making pertaining to NZSD

Sustainable Finance

• Develop sufficient understanding to navigate and critically analyse the key aspects and developments in sustainable finance and investment
• Engage critically with systems and theories in sustainable finance and investment
• Consider how to translate knowledge into strategies for effective engagement with the financial sector

Socio-technical Interventions and Sustainable Law

• Compare and critique frameworks for contextualising, understanding, and applying the dynamics of socio- technical transitions and interventions that might drive and accelerate change towards net zero sustainable development
• Engage critically with this goal through the lens of understanding the speed of transition possible in each of the socio-technical frontiers of policymaking, finance, law, behaviours and norms, and technologies, and understand their potential for cascading interaction
• Identify and constructively stimulate interventions in each of these socio-technical frontiers to drive sustainable decarbonisation, and critically analyse the strengths, weaknesses, and trade-offs of different approaches
• Engage in benchmarking and comparative exercises, through case studies, to critically analyse both successful and less successful transitions and interventions and derive practical takeaways from their example

Systems Change, Enterprise, and Innovation

• Articulate and account for the multiple-and-oft-conflicting tensions and interests between private enterprise, their stakeholders and broader economic, social and ecological systems; and conceptualise ways to mitigate tensions and incentivise behaviours toward shared value creation, concession and compromise
• Understand the interdependence between public and private enterprise (including the limitations of each and their strengths and weaknesses) in being a cause of, and solution to, NZSD challenges
• Conceptualise plausible opportunities for business model innovation and collaboration in addressing NZSD

Natural Capital, Markets and Society

• Identify the causes and consequences of institutional and market failures to value and manage natural capital
• Understand and compare different models of governing natural capital and identify strengths and weaknesses of different types across a range of contexts
• Learn and apply methods for designing and evaluating natural capital markets and institutions, whilst leveraging and integrating relevant natural science and technical knowledge
• Examine and debate case studies of valuing and managing natural capital across climate, energy, water, food and biodiversity

Water, Inequalities and Social Enterprise

• Introduce social theory and methods related to social inequalities and water risks
• Examine and evaluate methods, concepts and frameworks in the context of water-related enterprise
• Explore processes shaping global and national discourse and debates related to sustainable development goals
• Apply methods, concepts and frameworks to case study material on how water inequalities interact with natural science perspectives and water management practices

Teaching and Learning

Teaching takes place through lectures, seminars, workshops and field trips, which provide in-depth exploration of key issues. The elective modules offer a tutorial-style teaching and discussion environment in smaller groups. Teaching is delivered by core faculty from the Smith School and School of Geography and the Environment - as well as from other departments across the University - and guest lecturers from enterprise, including some of the Smith School's Business Fellows.

The course is structured across three terms, following a progression from broad-based concepts and skills to increasing application and engagement.

• Nature and sources of climate emergency and development challenges, including scientific underpinnings and conceptual building blocks aimed at framing and understanding the problems and trade-offs posed by NZSD: Michaelmas term.
• Integrated assessment of potential solutions and pathways, offering applications and solutions: Hilary term.
• Implementation of knowledge and solutions through the enterprise forum and dissertation preparation: Trinity term.

Dissertation

An independent and original dissertation (15,000 words) is an integral component of the course and enables students to translate their foundational and applied knowledge to a context/challenge related to enterprise and NZSD. Training in qualitative and quantitative methods, data and research design and research skills will help you to develop transferable skills, carry out independent and original research and master methods used widely in academic and professional research.

Integrating impact and enterprise

The course aims to equip students with knowledge, skills and networks to understand and accelerate NZSD. As such, the theme of achieving impact runs through all course modules, and is integrated in a number of specific ways:

• The enterprise forum will run in parallel with the core modules throughout course. It will form the focal point for engagement with enterprise, and will give students the chance to work with enterprise from the outset and put their learnings into practice, bringing to life the key concepts explored in the core modules. The enterprise forum will include leadership skills development, mentorship, and case-based learning, as well as being an incubator for dissertations. The enterprise forum will also be a standing feature of weekly course meetings, providing a roadmap for the field trips, group projects and dissertation research involving enterprise partners
• Regular guest lectures from enterprise partners will complement the core modules, and enterprise partners will help to identify and possibly participate in dissertation projects
• Weekly business case workshops
• The course will involve practicums with partners in public and private enterprise, such as innovative workshops, hackathons and related activities
• Field trips will explore the role of enterprise in tackling the NZSD challenges. Two one-day trips will take place in each of Michaelmas and Hilary terms. An induction field trip will also take place in Michaelmas term introduction week. In addition, a field trip at the end of Hilary term will be a week-long capstone, where students will visit a selected region to connect individual companies and their supply chains in order to bring to life key concepts and enable students to apply their learning.

Supervision

The course has an Academic Director and a Course Director who looks after the day to day running of the course. You will have a personal advisor who is a member of the School’s academic staff and who provides academic welfare support.

The allocation of graduate supervision for this course is the responsibility of the School of Geography and the Environment (SoGE) and it is not always possible to accommodate the preferences of incoming graduate students to work with a particular member of staff. Under exceptional circumstances a supervisor may be found outside the School of Geography and the Environment.

Dissertation supervision will equate to approximately eight hours in total per student, in line with SoGE guidelines. As such, it is likely that a student will meet with their supervisor at a minimum once a fortnight or most likely once a week. The frequency of supervision meetings will likely change depending on the stage of the dissertation that the student is at and their unique needs. Supervision meetings will commence late in Hilary Term and conclude at the end of Trinity term.

The Course Director will work closely with each student to try and match their theoretical and contextual interests with an appropriate supervisor. Regarding differences between part-time and full-time versions of the course and according adjustments to supervisor arrangements, this does not apply as the MSc is only offered on a full-time basis. For any students doing the MSc alongside an MBA as part of the 1+1 programme, any necessary adjustments to supervision will be made.

The core modules are assessed by written examination. The two elective modules are each assessed by an essay. You will also be assessed on your individual dissertation, which will have been  produced independently and contain original work.

Graduate destinations

This MSc will equip current and future decision-makers with the knowledge, skills and networks to lead change towards sustainability across the public and private sectors and, on a global stage. The course will enable students to either start or continue on and rapidly progress within a career trajectory, or to pivot and change sector and/or function. The department anticipate that the majority of graduating students will pursue non-academic careers. However, some exceptional students are likely to pursue DPhil studies, and they will receive mentorship to support these ambitions. Destinations of past graduates include top-tier consulting firms, niche sustainability consulting, intergovernmental organisations (eg UN agencies, World Bank), and sustainability managerial roles in various sectors (FMCG; finance).

Employability is embedded throughout the course in multiple ways:

• By connecting science and enterprise for academic excellence: The MSc in Sustainability, Enterprise and the Environment is at the intersection of research on economics, finance and governance, leveraging interdisciplinary science. The course will be anchored in theoretical and methodological innovations to understand and respond to challenges at an applied level.
• Through direct practitioner knowledge within core teaching staff.
• Focus on outcomes through the enterprise forum and business case seminar series

Changes to this course and your supervision

The University will seek to deliver this course in accordance with the description set out in this course page. However, there may be situations in which it is desirable or necessary for the University to make changes in course provision, either before or after registration. The safety of students, staff and visitors is paramount and major changes to delivery or services may have to be made in circumstances of a pandemic, epidemic or local health emergency. In addition, in certain circumstances, for example due to visa difficulties or because the health needs of students cannot be met, it may be necessary to make adjustments to course requirements for international study.

Where possible your academic supervisor will not change for the duration of your course. However, it may be necessary to assign a new academic supervisor during the course of study or before registration for reasons which might include illness, sabbatical leave, parental leave or change in employment.

For further information please see our page on changes to courses and the provisions of the student contract regarding changes to courses.

Entry requirements for entry in 2024-25

Proven and potential academic excellence.

The requirements described below are specific to this course and apply only in the year of entry that is shown. You can use our interactive tool to help you  evaluate whether your application is likely to be competitive .

Please be aware that any studentships that are linked to this course may have different or additional requirements and you should read any studentship information carefully before applying. 

Degree-level qualifications

As a minimum, applicants should hold or be predicted to achieve the following UK qualifications or their equivalent:

• a first-class or strong upper second-class undergraduate degree with honours in any discipline.

For applicants with a degree from the USA, the minimum GPA sought is 3.7 out of 4.0.

If your degree is not from the UK or another country specified above, visit our International Qualifications page for guidance on the qualifications and grades that would usually be considered to meet the University’s minimum entry requirements.

GRE General Test scores

No Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or GMAT scores are sought.

Other qualifications, evidence of excellence and relevant experience

Applicants should demonstrate a genuine and informed interest in sustainable development and net zero, and intersections with enterprise.  Evidence of relevant practice experience should be outlined, but is not required. It is desirable that applicants have leadership potential, and/or an interest in the concept of leadership as it pertains to sustainable development and net zero.

English language proficiency

This course requires proficiency in English at the University's  higher level . If your first language is not English, you may need to provide evidence that you meet this requirement. The minimum scores required to meet the University's higher level are detailed in the table below.

*Previously known as the Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English or Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE) † Previously known as the Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English or Cambridge English: Proficiency (CPE)

Your test must have been taken no more than two years before the start date of your course. Our Application Guide provides  further information about the English language test requirement .

Declaring extenuating circumstances

If your ability to meet the entry requirements has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic (eg you were awarded an unclassified/ungraded degree) or any other exceptional personal circumstance (eg other illness or bereavement), please refer to the guidance on extenuating circumstances in the Application Guide for information about how to declare this so that your application can be considered appropriately.

You will need to register three referees who can give an informed view of your academic ability and suitability for the course. The  How to apply  section of this page provides details of the types of reference that are required in support of your application for this course and how these will be assessed.

Supporting documents

You will be required to supply supporting documents with your application. The  How to apply  section of this page provides details of the supporting documents that are required as part of your application for this course and how these will be assessed.

Performance at interview

Interviews are not normally held as part of the admissions process.  

How your application is assessed

Your application will be assessed purely on your proven and potential academic excellence and other entry requirements described under that heading.

References  and  supporting documents  submitted as part of your application, and your performance at interview (if interviews are held) will be considered as part of the assessment process. Whether or not you have secured funding will not be taken into consideration when your application is assessed.

An overview of the shortlisting and selection process is provided below. Our ' After you apply ' pages provide  more information about how applications are assessed . 

Shortlisting and selection

Students are considered for shortlisting and selected for admission without regard to age, disability, gender reassignment, marital or civil partnership status, pregnancy and maternity, race (including colour, nationality and ethnic or national origins), religion or belief (including lack of belief), sex, sexual orientation, as well as other relevant circumstances including parental or caring responsibilities or social background. However, please note the following:

• socio-economic information may be taken into account in the selection of applicants and award of scholarships for courses that are part of  the University’s pilot selection procedure  and for  scholarships aimed at under-represented groups ;
• country of ordinary residence may be taken into account in the awarding of certain scholarships; and
• protected characteristics may be taken into account during shortlisting for interview or the award of scholarships where the University has approved a positive action case under the Equality Act 2010.

Processing your data for shortlisting and selection

Information about  processing special category data for the purposes of positive action  and  using your data to assess your eligibility for funding , can be found in our Postgraduate Applicant Privacy Policy.

Admissions panels and assessors

All recommendations to admit a student involve the judgement of at least two members of the academic staff with relevant experience and expertise, and must also be approved by the Director of Graduate Studies or Admissions Committee (or equivalent within the department).

Admissions panels or committees will always include at least one member of academic staff who has undertaken appropriate training.

Other factors governing whether places can be offered

The following factors will also govern whether candidates can be offered places:

• the ability of the University to provide the appropriate supervision for your studies, as outlined under the 'Supervision' heading in the  About  section of this page;
• the ability of the University to provide appropriate support for your studies (eg through the provision of facilities, resources, teaching and/or research opportunities); and
• minimum and maximum limits to the numbers of students who may be admitted to the University's taught and research programmes.

Offer conditions for successful applications

If you receive an offer of a place at Oxford, your offer will outline any conditions that you need to satisfy and any actions you need to take, together with any associated deadlines. These may include academic conditions, such as achieving a specific final grade in your current degree course. These conditions will usually depend on your individual academic circumstances and may vary between applicants. Our ' After you apply ' pages provide more information about offers and conditions . 

In addition to any academic conditions which are set, you will also be required to meet the following requirements:

Financial Declaration

If you are offered a place, you will be required to complete a  Financial Declaration  in order to meet your financial condition of admission.

Disclosure of criminal convictions

In accordance with the University’s obligations towards students and staff, we will ask you to declare any  relevant, unspent criminal convictions  before you can take up a place at Oxford.

The School of Geography and the Environment (SoGE) undertakes world-class interdisciplinary research, addresses societal and environmental problems, and advances knowledge within an intellectually vibrant, interdisciplinary research environment that combines natural and social sciences and has geography at its core. The Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment (SSEE) sits within the SoGE. Founded in 2008, SSEE conducts teaching and research and engages with enterprise on climate change and long term environmental sustainability. It works with social enterprises, corporations and governments to encourage innovative solutions to the urgent challenges facing humanity. SSEE is an interdisciplinary research hub with expertise in economics, finance and business. It takes a solutions-based approach to these challenges, and this will be reflected in the approach to teaching the course.

The University of Oxford has an extensive library system and the Radcliffe Science Library is the main lending service within the University for the material required for the course. The Social Sciences Library also holds collections which are valuable for you if you are pursuing a geography programme.

The department has a computer room available for all graduate students. There are dedicated IT times each day when you can seek help from IT staff. There is a dedicated social space for MSc students where you can meet and discuss your studies. Where appropriate, you will be able to use the departmental laboratories for your dissertation research.

Research skills’ training is provided in preparation for your dissertation. As well as developing an understanding of the research process, these sessions will cover such things as social surveys, data analysis and statistical techniques.

Throughout the course, field trips and visits to external organisations support the lectures and seminars and deliver valuable skills training.

Geography and the Environment

With over 200 graduate students from a range of nationalities, professional and disciplinary backgrounds, the School of Geography and the Environment at Oxford is one of the largest, most diverse and vibrant in the world. 

The school offers a number of graduate courses, ensuring that a suitable opportunity exists at Oxford regardless of whether you are planning a career in research, teaching or an environment-related profession, preparing for a career change or to take a career break.

There are several one-year MSc courses combining taught course modules with a dissertation. These courses offer a framework of core lectures, field courses, electives, and workshops and symposia for learning. Individual classes reflect the research interests of individual faculty and often mix seminar style teaching with discussions or practical exercises.

The two-year MPhil courses combine a substantial research component with master’s-level study, and the DPhil is an advanced research degree which involves three to four years of full-time original, independent research or a part-time pathway which involves six to eight years of research.

Research is supported in key areas of environmental, human and physical geography, from studies on migration, geopolitics, biogeography, climate change, flood risk, desertification, biological and cultural diversity, and many other areas.

View all courses   View taught courses View research courses

The University expects to be able to offer over 1,000 full or partial graduate scholarships across the collegiate University in 2024-25. You will be automatically considered for the majority of Oxford scholarships , if you fulfil the eligibility criteria and submit your graduate application by the relevant December or January deadline. Most scholarships are awarded on the basis of academic merit and/or potential. 

For further details about searching for funding as a graduate student visit our dedicated Funding pages, which contain information about how to apply for Oxford scholarships requiring an additional application, details of external funding, loan schemes and other funding sources.

Please ensure that you visit individual college websites for details of any college-specific funding opportunities using the links provided on our college pages or below:

Please note that not all the colleges listed above may accept students on this course. For details of those which do, please refer to the College preference section of this page.

Further information about funding opportunities for this course can be found on the department's website.

Annual fees for entry in 2024-25

Further details about fee status eligibility can be found on the fee status webpage.

Information about course fees

Course fees are payable each year, for the duration of your fee liability (your fee liability is the length of time for which you are required to pay course fees). For courses lasting longer than one year, please be aware that fees will usually increase annually. For details, please see our guidance on changes to fees and charges .

Course fees cover your teaching as well as other academic services and facilities provided to support your studies. Unless specified in the additional information section below, course fees do not cover your accommodation, residential costs or other living costs. They also don’t cover any additional costs and charges that are outlined in the additional information below.

Where can I find further information about fees?

The Fees and Funding  section of this website provides further information about course fees , including information about fee status and eligibility  and your length of fee liability .

Additional information

There are no compulsory elements of this course that entail additional costs beyond fees and living costs. However, as part of your course requirements, you may need to choose a dissertation, a project or a thesis topic. Please note that, depending on your choice of topic and the research required to complete it, you may incur additional expenses, such as travel expenses, research expenses, and field trips. You will need to meet these additional costs, although you may be able to apply for small grants from your department and/or college to help you cover some of these expenses.

Most costs associated with compulsory fieldwork are paid for by the department. This excludes the costs associated with obtaining the appropriate visa required to attend the non-UK based field trips. Non-EEA nationals might require a visa in order to travel to the country where the field trip is being held and any costs associated with obtaining the appropriate travel visa is the responsibility of the student. Students will also have to pay for some meals during the field course. Furthermore, as part of your course requirements you need to develop and research a dissertation topic. Depending on your choice of topic and the field work research required to complete it, you may incur additional costs (eg relating to travel, accommodation, field assistants, lab fees and/or research visas). You will need to meet these additional costs, although you may be able to apply for small grants/bursaries from your department and/or college to help you cover some of these expenses.

Living costs

In addition to your course fees, you will need to ensure that you have adequate funds to support your living costs for the duration of your course.

For the 2024-25 academic year, the range of likely living costs for full-time study is between c. £1,345 and £1,955 for each month spent in Oxford. Full information, including a breakdown of likely living costs in Oxford for items such as food, accommodation and study costs, is available on our living costs page. The current economic climate and high national rate of inflation make it very hard to estimate potential changes to the cost of living over the next few years. When planning your finances for any future years of study in Oxford beyond 2024-25, it is suggested that you allow for potential increases in living expenses of around 5% each year – although this rate may vary depending on the national economic situation. UK inflationary increases will be kept under review and this page updated.

Students enrolled on this course will belong to both a department/faculty and a college. Please note that ‘college’ and ‘colleges’ refers to all 43 of the University’s colleges, including those designated as societies and permanent private halls (PPHs). 

If you apply for a place on this course you will have the option to express a preference for one of the colleges listed below, or you can ask us to find a college for you. Before deciding, we suggest that you read our brief  introduction to the college system at Oxford  and our  advice about expressing a college preference . For some courses, the department may have provided some additional advice below to help you decide.

The following colleges accept students on the MSc in Sustainability, Enterprise and the Environment:

• Blackfriars
• Brasenose College
• Campion Hall
• Green Templeton College
• Keble College
• Linacre College
• Mansfield College
• Regent's Park College
• Reuben College
• St Anne's College
• St Antony's College
• St Catherine's College
• St Cross College
• St Edmund Hall
• St Hilda's College
• Somerville College
• Wolfson College
• Worcester College
• Wycliffe Hall

Before you apply

Our  guide to getting started  provides general advice on how to prepare for and start your application. You can use our interactive tool to help you  evaluate whether your application is likely to be competitive .

If it's important for you to have your application considered under a particular deadline – eg under a December or January deadline in order to be considered for Oxford scholarships – we recommend that you aim to complete and submit your application at least two weeks in advance . Check the deadlines on this page and the  information about deadlines and when to apply  in our Application Guide.

Application fee waivers

An application fee of £75 is payable per course application. Application fee waivers are available for the following applicants who meet the eligibility criteria:

• applicants from low-income countries;
• refugees and displaced persons; 
• UK applicants from low-income backgrounds; and 
• applicants who applied for our Graduate Access Programmes in the past two years and met the eligibility criteria.

You are encouraged to  check whether you're eligible for an application fee waiver  before you apply.

Do I need to contact anyone before I apply?

You do not need to make contact with the department before you apply, but you are encouraged to visit the relevant departmental webpages to read any further information about your chosen course.

Completing your application

You should refer to the information below when completing the application form, paying attention to the specific requirements for the supporting documents .

For this course, the application form will include questions that collect information that would usually be included in a CV/résumé. You should not upload a separate document. If a separate CV/résumé is uploaded, it will be removed from your application .

If any document does not meet the specification, including the stipulated word count, your application may be considered incomplete and not assessed by the academic department. Expand each section to show further details.

Referees: Three overall, of which at least two should be academic

Whilst you must register three referees, the department may start the assessment of your application if two of the three references are submitted by the course deadline and your application is otherwise complete. Please note that you may still be required to ensure your third referee supplies a reference for consideration.

Your references will be assessed for:

• your intellectual ability
• your academic achievement
• your motivation and interest in the course and subject area
• your ability to work effectively both in a group and independently.

References are an important part of your application. They will support your application to the course by speaking to your intellectual ability, academic achievement, motivation and suitability to the course, and ability to work effectively both independently and with others. Therefore, academic references are preferred - for at least two of your three references.

However, the department understands that in a few select cases it may difficult, and very occasionally, impossible, to get 1-2 letters from your former higher education institution, particularly if you have been out of university for ten or more years. In these instances, the department can accept a minimum of one academic reference, with the other two being either academic or professional, so long as they can speak closely and accurately to the above-mentioned points (ie intellectual ability; academic achievement; motivation and suitability to the course; ability to work effectively both independently and with others).

Official transcript(s)

Your transcripts should give detailed information of the individual grades received in your university-level qualifications to date. You should only upload official documents issued by your institution and any transcript not in English should be accompanied by a certified translation.

More information about the transcript requirement is available in the Application Guide.

Personal statement: A maximum of 1,000 words

Your statement should be written in English and explain your motivation for applying to the course, your relevant experience and education, and a brief description of where your interest in sustainable development and net zero comes from. 

If possible, please ensure that the word count is clearly displayed on the document.

This will be assessed for:

• your reasons for applying to this particular course
• your ability to present a coherent case in proficient English
• your interest in sustainable development and net zero and intersections with enterprise
• your preliminary knowledge of the subject area and research techniques
• your capacity for sustained and intense work
• your capacity and motivation for service to others and service to sustainability challenges 
• your ability to think critically and creatively
• your ability to absorb new ideas, often presented abstractly, at a rapid pace
• your leadership potential and/or interest in leadership as it pertains to sustainable development and net zero
• intellectual curiosity and inquisitiveness.

Written work: One sample of written work of a maximum of 2,000 words

An academic essay or other writing sample, written in English, is required. An extract of the requisite length from a longer work is also permissible.  

This work should demonstrate your ability to write a good academic document though it does not need to be related to the proposed area of study.

The word count should not include any bibliography or brief footnotes.

Your written work will be assessed for:

• a comprehensive understanding of the subject area, including problems and developments in the subject
• your ability to construct and defend an argument
• your aptitude for analysis and expression
• your ability to present a reasoned case in proficient academic English
• your ability to write in a manner that demonstrates critical thinking and curiosity.

Start or continue your application

You can start or return to an application using the relevant link below. As you complete the form, please  refer to the requirements above  and  consult our Application Guide for advice . You'll find the answers to most common queries in our FAQs.

Application Guide   Apply

ADMISSION STATUS

Closed to applications for entry in 2024-25

Register to be notified via email when the next application cycle opens (for entry in 2025-26)

12:00 midday UK time on:

Friday 10 November 2023 Applications more likely to receive earlier decisions

Friday 19 January 2024 Latest deadline for most Oxford scholarships Final application deadline for entry in 2024-25

*Three-year average (applications for entry in 2021-22 to 2023-24)

Further information and enquiries

This course is offered by the School of Geography and Environment

• Course page  on the school's website
• Funding information from the school
• Academic and research staff
• Research in the school
• Social Sciences Division
• Residence requirements for full-time courses
• Postgraduate applicant privacy policy

Course-related enquiries

Advice about contacting the department can be found in the How to apply section of this page

✉  [email protected] ☎  +44 (0)1865 614963

Application-process enquiries

See the application guide

Other courses to consider

You may also wish to consider applying to other courses that are similar or related to this course:

Oxford 1+1 MBA

You can study this course in combination with our MBA, as part of our  1+1 MBA programme .

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IOSR Journals

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Mariana Ulfah Hoesny

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