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2023/24
2024/25

MA Education

  • Year of entry
    2024/25 See 2023/24 entry
  • Course duration
    Full Time:  12 months Other: Part-time: currently up to 63 months
  • Year of entry
    2024/25 See 2023/24 entry
  • Course duration
    Full Time:  12 months Other: Part-time: currently up to 63 months

Develop your knowledge and understanding of education and educational research with our MA Education degree.

Offered by the University of Reading’s Institute of Education, this programme examines the broader philosophical, sociological, and psychological aspects and issues related to leadership, teaching, mentoring and research in education.

Take the steps to achieve your career aspirations and have a direct, positive impact on the lives of students in your care. The course is designed to enhance the analytical and research skills that you will need to pursue your desired career, whether you choose to specialise in teaching and working with children and young people in schools and other education settings, develop your profile in education leadership and policy to bring about change, or investigate the research and scholarship that influences professional practice and decision-making in education.

After you enrol, you can then choose to follow the general programme or specialise by module choice.

Flexible study options

Designed to meet the needs of busy professionals, the course is offered both on a full-time and a part-time basis. Several modules are taught outside regular working hours to accommodate the needs of full-time working students.

Your learning environment

At the Institute of Education, you will join a thriving community of education practitioners and scholars. Our staff specialise in a wide range of topics relating to education, including:

  • education and social justice
  • inclusive education
  • education policy
  • language education
  • arts and music
  • education teaching and mentoring
  • leadership and schooling of all ages, from early years to adult education.

Over 80% of our research publications were rated as world leading or internationally excellent and the impact of our research on educational policy and practice in first and second language education was judged to be world leading (Research Excellence Framework 2014).

Our students come from all around the world, and our work is rooted in our local community of partnership schools and educational settings.

How you’ll learn

Our experts are passionate about giving you opportunities to learn through a variety of contexts and developing your skills in education research and critical enquiry into education practice.

During your course you’ll benefit from:

  • professionally relevant academic content – Our tutor team are active researchers and scholars in education, many of whom also have experience working as teachers, education consultants and policy advisors. Their research and practice directly informs the focus and content of your course.
  • small class sizes – We offer an excellent staff-student ratio across our taught modules, and you will receive individual dissertation supervision. Our teaching is interactive, practical and discursive, giving you plenty of opportunities to develop your academic skills.
  • student enrichment – All students take a non-credit-bearing student enrichment module which includes both an Academic English programme and focused study support. This programme helps you to develop strong academic literacy skills throughout your studies, allowing you to develop effective academic reading, writing, analysis and discussion skills. Students are also encouraged to volunteer with Students in Schools to gain experience of different primary and secondary settings.
  • on-campus facilities – Teaching takes place on the University’s historic London Road campus, a dedicated world-class education centre. You will study in custom-built teaching spaces for more specialist subjects, including: modern laboratories; musical studios; well-equipped art studios; and the Learning Hub, which offers treasure trove of teaching aids for loan or reference for teachers and students.

Choosing a specialism

Alongside your core modules, you can choose from a range of optional modules which span various topics. You may also select modules to follow a specific pathway, tailoring your degree to your chosen specialism. The available specialisms are:

  • MA Education (Early Years) – Explore research in child development and the wider context of families, communities and educational settings in which young children learn.
  • MA Education (Inclusive Education) – Explore what diversity means for education, and how to make teaching more inclusive by investigating inclusive teaching and learning for all pupils.
  • MA Education (Leadership and Management) – Develop your leadership skills by critically examining research-based models of leadership for change in education.
  • MA Education (Research Methods) – Study the qualitative and quantitative research methods used in education research in depth. This specialism is only available for students on the SENSS Social Sciences Studentships funded Doctoral Training Partnership.
  • MA Education (Creativity in Education) – Explore the many ways that educators can be innovative by encouraging learning through playful exploration and fostering creativity in all learners and teachers in all subjects and age phases.

New UK/Republic of Ireland students: £10,800

New international students: £22,350

Tuition fee information

The fees listed are for full-time study, unless otherwise stated. Fees are calculated pro rata for flexible modular study.

Fee information will be confirmed in offer letters sent out to successful applicants. You can find further information, including information for part-time study, through our dedicated fees and funding page.

EU student fees

With effect from 1 August 2021, new EU students will pay international tuition fees. For exceptions, please read the UK government’s guidance for EU students.

Additional costs

Some courses will require additional payments for field trips and extra resources. You will also need to budget for your accommodation and living costs. See our information on living costs for more details.

Financial support for your studies

You may be eligible for a scholarship or bursary to help pay for your study. Students from the UK may also be eligible for a student loan to help cover these costs. See our fees and funding information for more information on what's available.

Our master’s programme is the ideal qualification for educators at all points in their careers. Where students choose to pursue a specialism, they may wish to use this to further develop their professional expertise in education and teaching.

Additionally, some master’s students combine study for the MA Education with PGCert programmes, such as the PGCert SENCO, in order to gain promotion to leadership positions in schools and educational settings.

Our graduates use their master's degrees to progress to higher levels in a variety of educational and education-related settings, such as:

  • management in schools and colleges, including headship qualifications
  • leadership positions in government and charitable trusts
  • policy and curriculum design at national and international levels.

Other graduates have gone on to work in educational consultancy, using their education research skills to develop careers as specialist advisors in their chosen area of expertise in education.

The MA Education provides you with the knowledge and skills to carry out quantitative and qualitative education research and projects in education and related areas of educational philosophy and sociology, policy and government, leadership and management, and educational psychology. It is also the ideal foundation for doctoral study on the EdD and PhD programmes at the University of Reading.