K..thanks a lot for that info

Hi everyone,
I v' e completed my M.B.B.S. from India and have got accepts from a few UK places for a masters. I'm leaning towards an MRes in Molecular Medicine at Glasgow because I'm aiming for a PhD in translational cancer research eventually...I'm a bit concerned about PhD prospects in the UK..I have been looking at positions in general and the way i see it a lot of places do not offer full funding for international students..This is unlike some places like say Germany, where as far as I know, funding becomes an intrinsic part once you are accepted onto the program.
Also most places in the UK seem to start accepting applications from almost a year before your PhD starts if you want funding..Does this mean that I need to start work on my applications in something like October 2010 for a place in 2011??My MRes would be starting in Sept 10.
This is my first post here..I dont want to seem to be getting too ahead of myself wrt the PhD..but at this point I 'm going to be shelling out a lot of money just to get this Masters..Dont want to end up in a self or partly funded PhD situation a year from now..I wont be able to manage that.
Another thing is..I think an MRes is widely regarded as a pre-PhD..so my prospects for a PhD at Glasgow itself would improve right??
Any advice would be much appreciated..Thanks :-)