Applying for niche Cambridge masters (repost from AIBU!)

[Falalala3]

I’m seriously considering studying for a Masters at Cambridge.

My reasons for wanting to apply are:

• There is a topic I really want to explore for it that I’ve had in mind for a long time and which I find really interesting (although I never thought about studying for a Masters in it until a few days ago). Quite a niche area that’s potentially under-researched, and links with my degree subjects (languages)
• I also have a particular supervisor in mind who might be able to supervise my Masters (if I successfully applied, of course!) This supervisor supervised me for my final year dissertation during my languages degree at Cambridge, and throughout the dissertation, I felt very supported and got lots of confidence.

There are some things though that make me think I’d be silly to apply for a Masters:

• I don’t think my degree grade is high enough (I did a French and Spanish degree at Cambridge and graduated 10 years ago, with an average grade of 65 - but the admissions criteria for the Cambridge course I’m interested in is a high 2.1. They will see a copy of my transcript, and the closest comparable module I did to this Masters was a final year dissertation in a vaguely similar topic (which I mentioned above), in which I got 67.
• I’m in my mid-thirties, work full-time and want to progress with that and also want to have a family soon; I feel like I’d be crazy to spend a year just doing a Masters
• I don’t live in Cambridge - and wonder if I’d have to move there for the Masters? Or if I could live in London (where I live currently) whilst doing the Masters?
• I would most likely have to fund myself for the Masters if successful, as I don’t think my grades are good enough to get funding
• i know it’ll be a pressured environment (although perhaps less pressured in some ways than undergrad?)
• Unsure if it makes more sense to apply for a part-time or full time Masters? I’m thinking I could support myself on a PT Masters by tutoring (which I already do) and perhaps by getting funding and a loan. My work may allow me to take 9 months’ sabbatical but unsure - it’s the Civil Service and they allow people to take sabbaticals of a few months but unsure if they’d grant this.

My current tentative plan is to spend the next couple of months working out my research proposal and what I would need to do in order to apply and perhaps emailing the supervisor I had in mind to see if they would consider supervising my thesis (but not sure if it’s too early to do that?)

And perhaps to canvas a few opinions from people who’ve done a Masters in that area at Cambridge to ask if it’s worth me applying (although I don’t know anyone in that position yet haha).

If all goes well, I’m considering applying this time next year (autumn 2026).

The whole thing of doing a Masters for no reason other than enjoyment feels quite self-indulgent to me, but it also really enthuses me. I could technically wait until I’m much older/retired, but a big draw is seeing if my dissertation supervisor could supervise me (potentially), and I doubt they’ll still be working in a few years’ time.

Is it worth a punt??

I looked at it years ago but didn’t. We would have had to move to Cambridge even though my husband worked for the university and so was there every day from 9-5. (We lived about 15 miles away but needed to be within 3 I think although there were some post grads that you could be within 10 miles.)

Can it be done part time over a longer period? You could then see if you could keep your job either by going part time or asking if they would support it in some way. Sounds like you’ve thought about it and want to do it so I’d go for it.

Thanks both.

Yes, it could be done full time or part time. From memory from when I checked yesterday, part time masters take 2 years. If I did do it part time, I’m worried that it would be too stressful to work and study though.

I want to give myself a plan/framework to help know what I’m getting into. This is both to give myself the best chance of application success and then, if I’m successful, the best chance of success on the course itself (because it’s an expensive course and I’m not entirely sure atm how much of it I’d need to fund myself, and because I’m genuinely interested in it).

Would anyone here be able to help with plotting out some ideas/next steps I should consider to give myself a decent chance? The Cambridge website has helpful info, but I’m aware I’m going into it fairly blind, as I’ve never previously considered doing a Masters.

I’m also worried that my research subject (an in-depth analysis of themes in the songs of Jacques Brel, a 20th-century Belgian singer - who sang in French) isn’t academically rigorous enough, as it’s not related to literature but music.

Having said that though, his songs are very literary and quite complex, so there is a lot to unpick in them. Also, it seems to be quite an under-researched area, so there is potential for academic originality. I would also of course read the research of lots of different theorists to give my research depth and weight (for want of a better word…)

Thanks so much all.

Just checked re Cambridge residency requirements for Masters students and it says this:

Full-time Master's degree students at Cambridge must be in residence for at least three terms, which involves living in or near Cambridge for a specific number of nights per term.
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To meet the residency requirement, you must reside in Cambridge for at least 59 nights during the Michaelmas and Lent terms, and 52 nights during the Easter term.
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Full-time students can get permission to work away for academic reasons, but part-time students are not required to meet the same residency rules, though they must attend regularly.

It sounds like PT students don’t have a residency requirement. Although I like the idea of being full-time though, just to essentially get the Masters over and done with.

If I were you, I would want to know that the masters would progress my career to be able to invest that amount of time and money.

Absolutely.

In terms of my intentions with the MPhil, I’ve been considering doing it as a way of showing evidence of academic rigour in a clear specialism. I’m hoping to apply next autumn for 2027 entry (if accepted, of course!)

My overall aspiration is to build on the research experience I gain from my MPhil to eventually write books on French cultural history and perhaps also, more specifically, on the work I aim to examine in the MPhil.

I prefer the idea of doing a research MPhil (MPhil by thesis), as it’s assessed by a 30,000-word thesis, followed by an oral exam. However, I don’t yet have a substantial background in my research area (one of the suggestions of suitability on the Cambridge website for this course) - although I think my research idea is fairly clear (for now) and I enjoy independent, self-directed work.

I also have a C1 qualification in French (the language of most of the primary sources for my research), and I’m going to do a C2 French qualification (which is the highest level of language proficiency qualification available for non-native French speakers) in the coming year.

I’m hoping to email my final year dissertation supervisor to gauge his initial thoughts on this. If he’s unable to support my thesis, I’m planning to email a couple of other supervisors I was taught by.