Applying for a Research Degree

We are delighted to receive applications for postgraduate research degrees, and we can supervise a wide range of topics. Research degrees are assessed based on a dissertation and, in the case of a PhD, a viva voce examination.

Dissertations are of the following maximum lengths:

MA by Research: 40,000 words (1 year full-time study, 2 years part-time)
MPhil: 60,000 words (2-3 years full-time study, 4-6 years part-time)
PhD: 80,000 words (3-4 years full-time study, 5-7 years part-time)

You can find details of entry requirements here:

You can find details of how to apply here:

There is no deadline for applications for research degrees. However, there are deadlines for funding schemes. You can find details about the funding schemes here:

If you have any questions about our research degrees or our postgraduate culture and opportunities, please contact our Director of Graduate Studies, Dr Bryony White (bryony.white@warwick.ac.uk)

PGR Research Culture

As a research student, your closest contact will be with your research supervisor or supervisors, who will meet with you regularly (at least once a month during term time) and agree on a programme of research, reading and writing with you.

All research students participate in the department's Doctoral Research Seminar, where students can engage with key texts and theories in theatre and performance studies. These seminars also explore various methodologies in the field and offer skills in developing your writing practice and editing skills. At the end of the year, PGR students can participate in the Annual Postgraduate Symposium, which allows them to share their research with staff and colleagues in the department. We also encourage PGR students to attend departmental research seminars given by visiting scholars, work-in-progress seminars, reading groups, and various workshops and symposia, formal and informal.

A training and development programme run by the Doctoral College supports both your research and the skills you will need in your future career, whatever that may be. Topics include internationalising your research profile, planning your career, organising and chairing research events, public engagement and disseminating your research, and how to publish your research.

You will also be given support for professional development; many of our students have written and performed plays, organised and spoken at conferences. In the past, students have also worked on projects with prominent cultural institutions such as the Warwick Arts Centre and Fierce Festival and collaborated with organisations such as the Médaille Trust. In the past, PGR students have also participated in PGR Summer School in London and Venice.

Current PGR Research

We currently have students working on a wide range of topics, from Bengali amateur theatres, the visual and cultural materialities of contraception in the UK to the aesthetics and politics of right-wing nationalism in India to Jewish and queer diasporic theatre and live art from London and New York.

You can find out more about our current research students here.