MA in Education

The MA Education is designed for those interested in Education across a broad range of contexts to utilise cutting-edge research, theory and practice to build a fairer education system for a globalised world.

This degree will be of interest to those working in, or interested in pursuing a career in, education and education research.

The MA Education (non-pathway) route will draw upon the School of Education’s principal research areas: Education for Social Justice, International and Comparative Education, Disability, Inclusion and Special Needs, and Education Leadership enabling you more choice in designing your own programme according to your particular areas of interest. Our range of compulsory and optional modules will allow you to build a programme to suit your own interests and career aspirations.

If you are looking for greater disciplinary specialism, we also offer four specialists ‘pathways’, leading to an MA Education (named pathway):

• MA Education (Comparative and International Perspectives)
• MA Education (Inclusion and Disability)
• MA Education (Leadership)
• MA Education (Social Justice)

Please note that like most Master's programmes, this programme does not confer qualified teacher status (QTS).

International students

The MA Education programme attracts students from a wide range of backgrounds and nationalities and welcomes applications from international students.

The University of Birmingham, which has over 10,000 international students from approximately 150 countries, provides support throughout the course for those that are new to, or less experienced in, studying in a UK context.

If you would like further information about studying in Birmingham, then you can visit our international students webpage.

The MA Education programme consists of compulsory modules, optional modules from the list below and a dissertation.

Unless indicated otherwise the modules listed for this programme are for students starting in 2024. Find out more about each of the modules.

The following compulsory modules must be taken:

Compulsory modules

• Education, Policy and Society
• Research Methods in Education
• Dissertation

Optional modules

Each module below is worth 20 credits.

Semester one

Choose 20 credits

• Education as an International Issue
• Cross Cultural Issues in SEND
• Education for Social Justice
• Understanding School Improvement

Semester Two

Choose 20 credits from the following

• Citizenship, Human Rights and the Environment
• Leadership for School Improvement
• Inclusion: Individual and Group Differences (ID)
• Education, Curriculum Design, Planning and Social Justice

You will also choose 40 credits from the following:

• Special Educational Needs of Pupils with Autism
• Citizenship, Human Rights and the Environment
• Language, Discourse and Society
• Disability and Inclusive Development
• Education, Policy and Improving Schools
• Education Futures

The modules listed on our website may occasionally be subject to change. For example, as you will appreciate, key members of staff may leave the University and this might necessitate a review of the modules that are offered. Where a module is no longer available, we will let you know as soon as we can and help you make other choices.

This programme has been specially developed to appeal to graduates of social science disciplines and professionals seeking job opportunities in sectors requiring a broad range of education-focused knowledge and analytic skill. Graduates of the MA Education would have the flexibility to use modules to progress to postgraduate research programmes, or may wish to consider job opportunities in sectors requiring knowledge of domestic and international policy, education leadership and practice, inclusion and social justice, and school improvement.