General entry requirements

Minimum requirements

2:1 honours degree at BSc/BEng or an integrated Master’s degree (e.g. MPhys, MChem, MSci, MEng etc.) in a physical sciences, mathematics or engineering discipline.

English language requirements

You can find out more about our English language requirementsLink opens in a new window. This course requires the following:

• Band A
• Overall IELTS (Academic) score of 6.5 and minimum component scores not below 6.0.

International qualifications

We welcome applications from students with other internationally recognised qualifications.

For more information, please visit the international entry requirements pageLink opens in a new window.

Additional requirements

There are no additional entry requirements for this course.

Our research

Overarching research themes

Our organisational structure connects our research with our study programmes to ensure quality research-led teaching.

We have four disciplines shaping our framework, they are:

• Civil and Environmental
• Electrical and Electronic
• Mechanical, Materials and Process
• Systems and Information

Discipline streams

Civil and Environmental

Our Civil and Environmental researchers work on a broad range of global research challenges underpinning civil engineering.

Combining modelling with practical experimentation, they tackle issues such as:

• Low carbon structures and structures using high-performance materials.
• Structural dynamics and structural health monitoring
• Vibration serviceability
• Human interaction with structures
• Resilient infrastructure to Climate Change
• Environmental Pollution
• Sustainable ground improvement material and techniques
• Geohazards prediction and mitigation
• Offshore geotechnics
• Tunnelling and underground space

Key specialisms within the Civil and Environmental Engineering stream include Water and Environmental Engineering, Structural Engineering, and Geotechnical Engineering.

Electrical and Electronic

The Electrical and Electronic Engineering research group covers a range of Power, sustainability, and improved communications at the heart of our Electrical and Electronic stream.

Key areas of research include:

• Artificial olfaction (or 'electronic nose')
• Electrical energy conversion
• Grid-scale energy storage
• Nanoscale communications
• Quantum devices

Key specialisms include Communications, Electrical Power and Sensors and Devices.

Mechanical, Materials and Process

Our Mechanical, Materials and Process Engineering discipline is our largest and most diverse stream. The stream has research groups in the fields of:

• Chemical engineering
• Fluid mechanics
• Materials
• Measurement
• Sustainable thermal energy technologies

Current research interests include: efficient production of green chemicals and low carbon fuels; investigating flow dynamics from the nanoscale to global environmental systems; atomic scale modelling of materials to improve their functional properties; experimental materials science for applications including silicon photovoltaic solar cells, terahertz imaging, optoelectronic devices based on 2D materials, sensing, and photoelectrochemical water splitting; developing methods of precision measurement for automotive, aerospace, bioengineering, healthcare applications; developing new technology for sustainable energy systems such as solar collectors, heat pumps and thermal storage.

Systems and Information

The Systems and Information research group bring together expertise in:

• Nonlinear and stochastic systems
• Modelling of human activity
• Biomedical Systems Modelling and Data Analytics
• Neural engineering
• Telemedicine
• Imaging
• Synthetic biology

Much of the research undertaken is around health and security and the nature of the work means that many labs are cross-group. Key specialisms include Biomedical and Biological Systems, Data Analytics and Systems Modelling and Control.

Explore our research areas on our Engineering web pages.Link opens in a new window

Find a supervisor

HetSys offers a range of research projects. A research proposal is not required. Instead, you should nominate one to three projects that you are interested in, in order of preference.

Learn more about our groups and projects.Link opens in a new window

Tuition fees

Tuition fees are payable for each year of your course at the start of the academic year, or at the start of your course, if later. Academic fees cover the cost of tuition, examinations and registration and some student amenities.

Find your research course fees

Fee Status Guidance

We carry out an initial fee status assessment based on the information you provide in your application. Students will be classified as Home or Overseas fee status. Your fee status determines tuition fees, and what financial support and scholarships may be available. If you receive an offer, your fee status will be clearly stated alongside the tuition fee information.

Do you need your fee classification to be reviewed?

If you believe that your fee status has been classified incorrectly, you can complete a fee status assessment questionnaire. Please follow the instructions in your offer information and provide the documents needed to reassess your status.

Find out more about how universities assess fee status

Additional course costs

As well as tuition fees and living expenses, some courses may require you to cover the cost of field trips or costs associated with travel abroad.

For departmental specific costs, please see the Modules tab on the course web page for the list of core and optional core modules with hyperlinks to our Module Catalogue (please visit the Department’s website if the Module Catalogue hyperlinks are not provided).

Associated costs can be found on the Study tab for each module listed in the Module Catalogue (please note most of the module content applies to 2022/23 year of study). Information about module department specific costs should be considered in conjunction with the more general costs below:

• Core text books
• Printer credits
• Dissertation binding
• Robe hire for your degree ceremony

Scholarships and bursaries

HetSys Centre for Doctoral Training at Warwick

Our well-integrated cohort approach benefits from our close integration of researchers from 7 departments: Physics, Engineering, Chemistry, Life Sciences, Mathematics, Statistics and Warwick Manufacturing Group, on a single-site campus. Students receive training from leading computational scientists to develop and implement new modelling methods in close collaboration with other scientists. Innovative training approaches include group software development projects and Industry Study Groups.

The cohesive, interdepartmental cohorts lower the barriers to interdisciplinary work and demonstrate our vision for the future of scientific endeavour, where teams of researchers work together to combine their skills and expertise. Only a critical mass of students and a large and highly collaborative team of supervisors makes this targeted and fully inclusive training approach feasible.

HetSys supports the delivery of EPSRC's Physical and Mathematical Sciences Powerhouse strategic priority, helping to provide the platform on which research and innovation is built.

The HetSys programme is embedded in Warwick’s School of Engineering which is one of the leading engineering schools in the UK. You can read more about our research staff, students, and projects on the School’s website.

How to apply

The application process for courses that start in September and October 2025 will open on 2 October 2024.

For research courses that start in September and October 2025 the application deadline for students who require a visa to study in the UK is 2 August 2025. This should allow sufficient time to complete the admissions process and to obtain a visa to study in the UK.

How to apply for a postgraduate research course