In the UK

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 and Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

, the Master of Research degree is an advanced postgraduate

Advanced postgraduate

Advanced Postgraduate is a term used to describe students enrolled in the first year or first two years of a PhD in the United Kingdom. During this period students usually research their particular research area for unanswered or unclear research questions or topics...

 degree available in a range of academic disciplines. Although a relatively new degree, the MRes is becoming increasingly popular with a number of the Russell Group

Russell Group

The Russell Group is a collaboration of twenty UK universities that together receive two-thirds of research grant and contract funding in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1994 to represent their interests to the government, parliament and other similar bodies...

 Universities such as Imperial College London

Imperial College London

Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...

, Manchester University, Liverpool University and the University of London

University of London

-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...

 who are offering this degree programme. The MRes is designed to prepare students for doctoral research. MRes can also stand for Master's by Research, or Master's in Research.

Many MRes courses are advanced postgraduate degrees which differ from taught Masters degrees by placing particular emphasis on a large dissertation (typically between 35-40,000 words) in addition to fewer taught modules. MRes courses in the UK must guarantee that at least 70% of the content is project based as it is "geared to those wishing to pursue a research career afterwards."

In addition to specified MRes courses, at some universities an MRes may be awarded to a student who begins an Engineering Doctorate

Engineering Doctorate

The Engineering Doctorate scheme is a British postgraduate education programme promoted by the UK's Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council . The programme is undertaken over four years. Students conduct PhD-equivalent research and undertake taught business and technical courses whilst...

 but chooses not to complete the full period of study for the Engineering Doctorate

Engineering Doctorate

The Engineering Doctorate scheme is a British postgraduate education programme promoted by the UK's Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council . The programme is undertaken over four years. Students conduct PhD-equivalent research and undertake taught business and technical courses whilst...

, typically four years or more, but has completed a sufficient dissertation and taught content to be acceptable for the MRes, typically after completion of a "mini-thesis" after 2 years or more of study. In this usage, the MRes is similar to an MPhil, obtained when a student chooses not to complete the full period of study for a PhD

PHD

PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...

.

This type of course is also useful if one is considering a career in the commercial world where research is a key focus but a PhD is not specifically required. Additionally, if one is unsure whether a PhD is right or not, a Masters by Research can give the useful experience of what studying for a doctorate might be like, whilst at the same time allowing the student to earn a valuable masters level qualification.

In the field of Medicine, the Masters of Research degree programme is especially useful to those clinicians who wish to develop academic research skills, progress to PhD study or to enter competitive specialties such as Surgery

Surgery

Surgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...

 or Public Health

Public health

Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals" . It is concerned with threats to health based on population health...

.

In France, master recherche is the usual name, though unofficial, for master's degree aimed at research. It includes a mandatory taught element.

Differences Between MRes and MPhil

The main difference between an MRes and an MPhil is that an MRes has taught components although the main focus is still on research. An MPhil can simply be regarded as the first year of a PhD and consists purely of research. The MRes degree is a standalone masters degree and the award of a PhD requires an additional 3 years study - the so called 1+3 format. The MPhil degree however is not standalone and there is the expectation that a student will progress satisfactorily for the additional two years to obtain a PhD - the 1+2 format. Consequently an MPhil is awarded to those who have not met the requirements to progress to the second PhD year or to intercalating medical students who have taken a year out of medical training to conduct research in a particular field of interest. The University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford are exceptions to this case, where the MPhil is offered either as a taught masters degree with a significant research component (considered similar to an MRes), or simply with the stand alone research project traditionally associated with the award.