A crowd of PGCE students during their welcome talk

Exploring different postgraduate levels of study

Are you interested in postgraduate study but confused by the different study level names? Find out what PGCE, PGCert, MRes, MPhil and PhD mean and explore our courses.

PGCE - Postgraduate Certificate in Education

PGCert - Postgraduate Certificate

PG Dip - Postgraduate Diploma

MA - Master of Arts

MSc - Master of Science

LLM - Master of Law

MBA - Master of Business Administration

MRes - Master of Research

MPhil - Master of Philosophy

PhD - Doctor of Philosophy

Prof Doc - Professional Doctorate

Read more about and what they mean in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Why join St Mary's?

At St Mary’s, education is personal and purposeful. You’ll learn from experts in their subject, be supported by staff who know you by name, and join a community that helps you achieve your goals – and make them count.

You’ll be part of something meaningful, at a Top 10 university for teaching quality and rated Gold for student experience. (Sunday Times Good University Guide 2025, 2023 Teaching Excellence Framework).