8 Things You Might Not Know About Postgraduate Fairs

Postgraduate study fairs. You've probably heard of them, but why should you bother travelling to a physical event and meeting universities in person, when you have the wonders of the internet, here, at your fingertips?

I’ve been involved in many of our postgraduate fairs over the years and I think they can be a great resource. In fact, I think you might be surprised at how useful these events can be - particularly if you're just starting to make sense of Masters study.

So here, quickly, are a few things you might not know about postgraduate fairs:

There's no need to waste time scribbling your details on a piece of crumpled paper and hoping your email address is legible when it's time for the great university you met to get back to you about that great programme you had that great chat about.

Instead we'll simply scan you on the way in, give you a unique barcode and let you use that to magically* leave your details with exhibitors.

*It's not really magic. It's technology.

I'll be honest with you: we may have dozens of specialised exhibitors at our events, but we can't fit dozens of actual universities in one exhibition hall. That would be impossible.

Instead, universities send representatives to present at their stands. These will be people who know a lot about postgraduate study at that university, but they probably won't be the specific supervisor who deals with the specific subject, project or programme you're specifically interested in.

And that's OK. By leaving your details at the stand you'll make sure that specific supervisor can get back to you later. You can do that by quickly scanning your code.

This runs in parallel to the main fair, with a separate room set aside for presentations, panel discussions and Q&A sessions.

The talks cover the things we think you'll want to know about postgraduate study: how funding options like the UK's postgraduate loans work, what to actually expect from a Masters degree and specialist advice on postgraduate opportunities in teaching.

Universities know funding is important to you. If you're genuinely interested in their postgraduate opportunities, they'll try and help you with it. That probably won't mean pulling a full scholarship out from under their tablecloth, but they may still be able to set you on the right path to explore your options.

We know funding is important to you, too. And that's why we cover it, in detail, in the talks programme I mentioned before.

My colleagues and I are at all Postgrad LIVE events, covering the main sources of funding for PhD and Masters students, including student loans, Research Council studentships and more.

You are what matters at a postgraduate study fair.

The universities are there to meet you, talk to you and answer your questions. They are interested in what you're interested in. They want to see if what you're interested in can match what they're interested in and end up producing some great postgraduate work.

So ask about anything you're interested in.

Fun game: see if you can name every UK university, without googling. I can't, and I work in higher education.

Chances are that even a specialised fair like Postgrad LIVE is going to feature two or three exhibitors you've never heard of. And that's part of the point.

The best university for your postgraduate degree could be one you didn't know existed before you met them at a fair.

Don't be put off by the thought that study fairs are for people who know exactly what they want to research, and where. If anything, the opposite is true.

You don't need to have a specific university in mind to get something from a study fair - or be thinking about a specific course. In fact, you don't even need to be sure whether you want to do a Masters at all.

That's why we run events at the beginning of the year, when there's still plenty of time to think about your next step – so. . . see you soon?

Editor's note: This blog was first published on 16/01/20. We've checked and updated it for current readers.

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