MSc vs MSci

MSci is quickly becoming *the* route for physicists from all walks, whether you be aiming for industrial or academic research. Despite the fact that almost all those in my cohort who were aiming to become theorists went with the MSci programme, I choose to leave after three years with a BSc and do a separate MSc. In the interests of fairness I'd like to first argue (quite generally) why I (or you) should follow an MSci programme. After that I'll explain my reasoning for doing an MSc and why I think for some people its a better option.

General Outlook

There's no doubting a serious advantage of the MSci is that you are fully funded for tuition fees and provided a maintenance grant for your fourth year. You don't have to make a new funding application or apply for a new course either! Whilst these might just seem like simple practicalities I can't deny that the process of applying for a masters course was stressful and that the fact that my funding only covers my tuition fees is difficult!

There's also the continuity of your study, you maintain friends and links with academics for longer. If you're on the University of London intercollegiate programme this won't be the case so much but for all other MSci programmes you'd certainly benefit from this. 

Many programmes also have research skill modules structured throughout the third and fourth years for MSci students, this is something you would likely miss out on if you do a BSc followed by an MSc. In general universities recommend MSci programmes rather than MSc programmes. The good reason for this recommendation is that the MSci is being developed as *the* route into PhD.

Now here's my caveat. I think the MSci is probably the best route for most physicists, except in the following cases:

• You don't like your current university for genuinely good reasons and want to study somewhere else.
• You feel you need to study at a more reputable university to improve your chances of achieving your career goals.
• Your university doesn't offer modules on the masters level subjects you want to study or/and doesn't go to a high enough level of study for the career you are pursuing (topics like particle theory and mathematical physics come to mind).
• You need a clean slate for your grades. This is very specific. If you finish second year in a difficult position and are aware that you might be limited in third year and corresponding fourth year, you can do an MSc which is independent of your previous BSc and hope to better on the MSc. This is route that can (and I stress only 'can') provide you a second chance at getting into PhD.

I'd like to address each of these cases specifically.

If you don't like your current uni, have serious think about whether your course is actually bad or whether you're the problem. I know this seems harsh but over the course of my degree I heard plenty of complaints that made me think the following:

• You signed up to do a physics degree. This and all other uni's courses are not easy, that is not going to change wherever you go.
• If you don't have many friends (I was in this position so I know its hard) going somewhere else does not guarantee that you'll make friends or enjoy the environment any better.
• Lecture quality is not guaranteed, surveys are in my opinion usually pretty useless because everyone wants different things from lecturers. I've had lecturers that I thought were objectively bad who others loved and vice versa. Do not move for 'lecture quality'. If you know people at other uni's who you trust and have relevant experience you may be able to make a more informed decision regarding this.
• Add-ons like gyms, societies etc. are not reasons to ditch your course. If you are thinking like that you might find cutting your studies at BSc and going into employment might make you happier.

They are good reasons to want to not like your current uni:

• Your uni is not offering you support that you need, this could be regarding mental health, physical disabilities, accounting for childcare difficulties and more. If you uni is not supporting you through such difficulties I would strongly suggest you move onto a uni that will.
• You've been affected by a serious incident at your university. This could include being the victim of a criminal offence, assaults and sexual assaults are sadly very common at universities, it is understandable that your studies could be irreversibly affected by such an incident and that moving on could give you the clean slate you need.
• You are experiencing family difficulties that mean you may need to be closer to home. This could include a member of your family being ill or your commute affecting the amount of time you can spend with your partner and/or children.

Reputation is difficult to quantify but there is no doubt that grads from high reputation universities like Oxbridge enjoy heightened career prospects. But doing an MSc is not a decision to make unmeasured. Here are some reasons not to transfer to an MSc for an academic reputation boost:

• Because you don't feel like you went to a 'good enough' uni. If you just want a reputation boost for the sake of it, trust me, nothing is going to fill that hole. I've been there and it requires an attitude change not a new uni.
• You are looking for an unspecific career boost. If you just think that you need to try and up your career prospects without a specific goal or career based reason in mind going to a new uni to do an MSc is not a good idea. An MSci will offer you this and I'd argue that an MSci is better for industry than an MSc, somewhere you are more likely to end up if you don't have a specific academic career goal.
• You are going into a career that values high repute degrees but one where a masters doesn't really count. I'm looking at you prospective investment bankers (some roles) and non-scientific consultants. Take a serious look at whether having a masters is actually going to improve your prospects or whether the employer is likely to only care about your BSc. 

Here are some good reasons to go for a MSc at a higher reputation university:

• Employers you are looking at like Masters level students and care about degree reputation. An typical employment field like this would be defence, they love uni's like Southampton that have a reputation for producing graduates suited to defence work.
• You want to go into a very competitive area of academia like particle theory or maths and you need every edge you can get. If you can up your academic reputation it could be what you need to get a PhD offer.

If your uni doesn't offer the right modules for you or they aren't to a high enough level that's a serious motivation to move elsewhere. But sometimes our feelings are a bit mixed up in this observation. If you feel that you aren't 'personally' studying at a high enough level, its the wrong reason. If there's no concrete reason other than your own academic thirst then simply read outside the course. The course content is about what you are qualified in, your ego shouldn't influence what that needs to be for you. 

If however the course doesn't provide you with the skills and material you need to be qualified in for your career goal, that's a good reason to move. This I feel is particularly relevant for particle theorists and those wanting to change over to the mathematics side of things, many people go to the Cambridge Part III in this case. If you have a very specific industry career in mind this is also relevant, you might even want to cross-over into a different subject and do a mechanical engineering MSc for example.

I don't think the grades reasoning needs explaining anymore, so I'll move onto my own experience/reasoning.

Why I choose MSc

My initial motivation for switching to a BSc and carrying onto an MSc was a personal matter that affected me adversely at university. This also had a pretty serious impact on my second year grades. I felt I needed a clean slate both environmentally and grade wise.

Further to this my career aspirations lie in particle theory/mathematics. To maximise my chances of a highly theoretical and non-computational PhD I felt I needed to attend a course with higher level content, more specific instruction with regards to pure mathematics and a university with a reputation for getting its postgraduates into particle theory PhDs. Particle theory and related mathematics are however particularly competitive so this is a more niche situation than usual. Successful PhD candidates in this field usually come from courses like the Cambridge Part III. MSc's also give you more tuition, you get to study more modules and do your project over the summer rather than alongside your taught modules. I personally preferred the idea of getting to study more topics, the idea of having only five taught modules really didn't sit well with me, certainly not for my career path.

You can probably identify that some of the reasons I just listed align with those above. I think I made a very good call and hopefully it will get me to where I want to go. Whilst its not right for everyone, you should be aware its an option and that it could offer you some serious advantages depending on your intentions.