Reviewed on Nov 17, 2025(Enrolled 2023)
What Students Say
Likes
- Incredible guest faculty from institutions beyong Imperial, and a wide range of mentors and systematic tutor-system with an assigned mentor and peer support groups in class. I was Class Representative, and truly enjoyed having the opportunity to interact beyond my cohort and also deeply with them.
- Course specific, but the networking opportunity- I attended an international conference in Berlin, all organized by the course coordinators and also defended my thesis in front of externals from the University of Oxford. We also had a careers fair where we met with Imperial alumni. Meeting a diverse group of people from different cultures and ages, but with similar interests helps expand your mind beyond what is possible in your own country.
- World-class labs, never having to worry about supplies as systems are very organized. Even if there are any issues, it is easy to manage with the support of neighbouring equally established labs. Good research infrastructure, safe, easy to access any online resources needed with help of admin/IT team and great well-resourced libraries across all campuses.
Dislikes
- Lack of university accommodation for postgraduate students (we had to seek private housing/find places on our own). The college has a hall for undergraduates; this is very challenging to navigate as an international student, as we do not view the properties ourselves in person before committing.
- Career support for international students/visa seekers, especially for life sciences, is not very proactive; one has to rely on a lot of networking and cold e-mailing and visa issues need a lot more support.
- Healthcare/GP registration support needs to be sought out but should be taken care of automatically for internationals new to the system. Residential mentors should be given to new senior students too, like Big Sibs at some US colleges.
Course Curriculum
10
- 50% taught, 50% research, very challenging and of a high level with a very tight schedule and requiring consistent studying – this course and college are not for people looking for a lighter load.
- Positive: Learnt an incredible amount and made amazing friends; Negative: Placement support was limited.
- Multiple (3-4) lectures in a day or long lab days; the thesis portion differs from student to student based on which lab they are working in and what their attendance requirements are. I went every day from 10-6.
- 24 students in my class, 3 Indian students.
Admission Experience
- 5 colleges, admitted to 4: University of Leeds, University of Nottingham, University of Glasgow and Imperial College London, all for genetics/biotech.
- I was rejected from the MSc Biotechnology at the University of Edinburgh – this was because I did not have a strong maths component in undergrad which they required, and I was asked for proof of this post-application, but my modules did not support their strong math requirement for the course.
- Ranking and specific course in human genetics, which was an important specialization after a broader B.Sc. in Zoology
- Admission criteria – SOP, 2 LORs, CGPA and transcripts, and personal interview with 2 faculty.
- An IELTs score was needed: 7.0 overall with a minimum of 6.5 in each. For Delhi University grads, the minimum CGPA cutoff for an unconditional offer was 7.5, which I crossed. This may change with years and with the undergrad university of the student.
- Very smooth experience; college was very proactive in getting back during admissions time period
- 2023 intake, as I was graduating in 2023 and I went straight to MSc from B.Sc. Honours and wanted to directly start without a gap year
- I started in October 2022, gave my IELTS and applied by the December deadline, got an interview and conditional offer in March, and was made unconditional after my results from my B.Sc. in June. This can be skipped for those who have completed degrees.
Faculty
10
- 1:24/2:24- close knit class with a lot of room for discussion
- Good academic and research exposure but in bioscience generally PhDs dominate jobs; cracking into industry is tough as a fresh grad with no experience and no PhD.
- Sometimes, for a couple of students. I did not get that support.
- My thesis supervisor, Professor Magdalena, as she taught me every lab skill personally and also helped shape my thesis for a Distinction and was always available to guide me and allotted PhD students to help me whenever she was not.
Campus Life
10
- Many: https://www.imperial.ac.uk/visit/campuses/
- All of the above are available; I'm not sure about medical facilities, as I never availed them but there should be
- All festivals are celebrated grandly as there are multiple societies
- Was not into co-curriculars as a research postgrad but I was a part of things like Garba Nights, Cricket match screenings and Bollywood Treasure Hunt and Ganesh Chathurthi with the Indian Society.
Part Time Jobs
- Like 20% of the batch – that too after the degree – only two (one local, one Indian) were offered a TAship during the degree. TA opportunities do exist but are usually taken up by PhD students so tough odds for MSc students.
- Part-time so depends on the funding the specific supervisor/team has
- 20 hours per week on student visa
- Not easy due to scattered campus and no own accommodation
- Unsure, as no one I know did work part-time. Not easy, especially in academically intensive courses like ours: Searching for job openings themselves online/on college websites and some society events or career services fairs or course-organized fairs but yes,, the opportunity is still limited due to the job market in the UK. Local students often tutor, as they are familiar with the school system/work as Amazon drivers/baristas at coffee shops or restaurants. Indian students can find work at Indian stores and food places sometimes like Manyavar etc.
Placement
6
- Around only 20-30%, even locals – tougher for internationals seeking visa
- 25-30k/year
- Self-hunting unless directly joining for a PhD, which is not possible for internationals due to funding
- Most have gone into college research assistantships/PhDs around the UK
- Imperial has a Careers service which does have companies like GSK come but UK job market is poor lately
Accommodation
Off Campus
6
- Facebook groups and agents like AmberStudent. I lived in Chapter Ealing, a student accom whose pictures and reviews are available online and accurate. It was good, as many facilities were given, plus a close location to stores like Tesco, Sainsbury's and metro/bus stations, but yes, it was far off from more central London but connected via the Central Line so it was okay. Also 25 minutes away from the nearest hospital in Hammersmith.
- 1k/month in pounds, gym laundry maintenance and bills included
- Checking the legitimacy of the place from India, had to request a classmate to go view it before making a large payment
- Book earlier – my friends saved a lot of money since they had finished the degree earlier to me; I did it last minute
- 35 minutes walking, 15 minutes if tube + walk combo; most Indian students stayed in this or the other private accommodation, like Wood Lane studios which is also pricey
Exams
- IELTS/TOEFL
- SOP, CV, Transcripts and 2 LORs
- Interview – by two teaching faculty who asked about motivation for the course/college, background, some genetics-specific conceptual questions, interests, undergraduate curriculum like what I studied and what co-curriculars I did, long-term aspirations and any questions I had for them, and I got the conditional offer letter the next day.
Fees
- 40,800 pounds + 1k/month rent in private accommodation with a gym free with it, no university accommodation for postgrads. College also has a free gym on the campuses.
- I paid it in one go, yearly, but instalments are available
- Since I cooked and shared a flat with 8 other people, I saved a lot on food. Healthcare is a long process but free. It is possible to manage on 300-400 pounds per month on these things, as my building took care of bills and maintenance with rent. Out of this, around 100-120 pounds was solely on travel (tube/bus expense)
Scholarship
- Not my batchmates, but my juniors from India did – Dean J Alero Thomas and India Futures scholarship (around 10k pounds each)
- Very few. I was invited to apply for two – the Faculty of Medicine scholarship and Dean J Alero one – but did not get awarded
- It should be noted that for PhD funding, overseas scholarships are very, very limited as compared to home students, as international fees are higher.
