Programme Transfer

Visa holders are not permitted to transfer onto a programme that lengthens their current submission deadline/CAS end date.

If you currently have Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) clearance for your research and your transfer request is approved, you will need to apply for new clearance within 28 days of the decision being taken. Please speak to the Student Advice and Engagement Team for further information.

 You must contact the Student Advice and Engagement Team to understand the visa implications before you apply for any programme transfer.

The terms and conditions for most sources of postgraduate research funding set out rules for programme transfer. As studentships/scholarships are administered by the Financial Support Office, you will need to contact the Financial Support Office before you submit your application to establish whether the terms and conditions attached to your funding will permit you to transfer to a new programme.

Departments can only consider a transfer request onto their programme if they can be satisfied that the request meets the criteria below.  In order to establish this, they will access information held on your LSE student file, including your original application to the School.

If your research proposal has changed substantively since that time, you should provide the Department with a revised version of it attached to your application. 

The Department will assess whether:

• your academic qualifications meet the published admissions criteria for the programme;
• there is sufficient supervisory expertise and availability within the Department in line with the School’s Regulations for Research Degrees;
• the taught courses/examinations you have already taken during your registration on your original MPhil/PhD programme are considered equivalent to those required on the new programme;
• the time remaining on your registration is sufficient to complete the programme in light of the transfer (in transferring programme, no additional time will be granted and you will be expected to complete your thesis within your remaining registration period);
• whether there are any additional (to the normal programme requirements) academic progress requirements that would be necessary in light of the programme transfer; and
• if you are in receipt of funding, there are any additional conditions that might impact on a possible transfer.

If agreed, any conditions for the transfer will be put in writing to all parties when the final decision is confirmed with you.  Until a decision is made on your request, you continue to be registered on your existing programme and should continue to meet the requirements of it.

The School’s online application portal will not allow you to submit a draft application. Accordingly, we recommend that you save drafts of your application elsewhere before submitting. We recommend specifically discussing your draft application before uploading itto the School’s change of circumstances application management system.

Those with a Student visa/Tier 4 cannot apply to transfer into a programme where the transfer will lead to an extension to the current submission deadline and therefore you submission deadline will remain the same.

Students that are in receipt of funding should contact the PhD Academy to discuss this element. The PhD Academy will liaise with the Financial Support Office on how the terms of your funding may impact the programme length. 

The form will ask you to provide/confirm the following:

1.    Your funding status.

2.    Your visa status and whether you have contacted the Student Advice and Engagement Team for advice about this.

3.    Whether you have discussed your application with your supervisor or department contact, and if so, who you’ve discussed your application with.

4.    The main reason for your request (from a drop-down list).

5.    A narrative section describing the main reason for your request, which should describe the factors that have led to a programme transfer being require

6.    A work completion plan setting out how you will progress to completion if the programme transfer is applied.

7.   Evidence to support your application

Your plan should indicate how you will use the time between the point at which you transfer programmes to your submission deadline.

Your work completion plan must specifically include the following components.

1.    A description of the progress you have made to date in the production of your thesis.

2.    The remaining work which you will need to complete in order for you to be able to submit an examinable thesis.

You should use clear and direct language when producing your completion plan. We also recommend including references to target chapter/paper lengths. Some examples of effective uses of language for work completion plans are included below.

“For the chapter entitled [INSERT}, I have completed [INSERT] in terms of fieldwork and data collection. I still have to complete [INSERT]. This will be completed between [INSERT] and [INSERT]. I will submit interim drafts to my supervisory team for feedback by [INSERT] and [INSERT].

“For the paper entitled [INSERT], I have written/drafted [INSERT]% of the paper, which will be approximately [INSERT] words, to an examinable standard. I still need to draft [INSERT]%. This will be completed between [INSERT] and [INSERT]. I will submit an interim draft to my supervisory team for feedback by [INSERT].

3.    A timetable setting out when you will complete each aspect of the remaining work described in your plan. Your work completion plan should be structured on a chapter-by-chapter/paper-by-paper basis and include both (i) deadlines agreed with your supervisors for submission of interim drafts and (ii) deadlines for agreement that each chapter/paper is complete for the purposes of submission. This is the most straightforward way to ensure that your supervisors, programme director and the Research Degrees Sub-Committee Chair are able to assess the viability of your work completion plan.

4.   A description of the supervisory arrangements which will be implemented to support you during the rest of your registration period, and any other School or non-School support you will access. This section will ideally set out a schedule of supervisory and other support meetings which will occur during the remainder of your study period. This does not necessarily need to provide specific dates but should provide sufficient detail to assure the Research Degrees Sub-Committee Chair that you will be appropriately supported for the remainer of your study period.

 The following can be used to frame the “Support and Supervision” section. Please adjust as necessary.

Support and Supervision

Supervisory Arrangements

I will have regular supervisory meetings every scheduled every x month/ I will meet my supervisors x times per term

Support

I am accessing supporting services from LSE Wellbeing Service/outside the LSE

I have access to /research workshops/PhD Seminars/external conferences/writing support services.

The programme transfer application form is an online portal that can be accessed here.