The M.Phil. (Master of Philosophy) degree is a research degree in which you write a dissertation (about 30-40,000 words / max. 60,000) about any topic you like, so long as one of our members of staff can supervise it (see "research interests" above). Once assigned a supervisor, you will work together with him or her, meeting up whenever you want to. When your dissertation is finished, you will have a viva examination, in which an external and internal examiner will read your work and discuss it with you. The MPhil. is often thought of as a mini-PhD.; it is a very prestigious degree which takes two years at many universities.