[tfgg]

3.5-4 years funding is the norm these days in the UK, and departments start to get fined if you go over 4 years. Masters are usually an entry requirement, normally done as an integrated undergrad masters, so I was 4 years undergrad and 4 years PhD. Undergrad programs here are also usually more focused on the subject that you're studying and don't have additional requirements. Go back a few decades and it was the norm to do 3 year undergrads and 3 year PhDs.

The only people I know who finished their PhD in 3 years were exceptionally good (not to mention lucky in their research) and wanted to move on for other reasons, such as leaving the country with a partner for a postdoc job.

[danieltillett]

I am glad to hear that the UK they are giving students a little more time to finish now as I thought the strict timelines that the UK students was on were far too strict. It is fine if you have a project that runs like clockwork (where you are just cog in a big machine), but if you are trying to do something important (and hence difficult) it leaves very little room for anything to go wrong.