MPhil, PhD Education

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Research opportunities

The nine main research groups within The Strathclyde Institute of Education are discrete entities that are complementary. There are several topics within each theme, and it may be that colleagues align themselves with more than one research theme and that research cuts across all the research areas we're looking at.

A key focus in considering these themes is the policy context in which The Strathclyde Institute of Education is situated. A major driver in current Scottish education is around closing the attainment gap and reducing inequality. The research themes address this issue in a range of ways.

You can study an MPhil over the course of one year or a PhD over the course of three or four years.

You can also study for a Doctorate of Education (EdD), a taught professional doctorate with a range of specialist pathways which allow you to tie your doctorate studies explicitly to your professional experience.

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Fees & funding

All fees quoted are per academic year unless otherwise stated.

Entrants may be subject to a small fee during the writing up period.

Fees may be subject to updates to maintain accuracy. Tuition fees will be notified in your offer letter.

All fees are in £ sterling, unless otherwise stated, and may be subject to revision.

Annual revision of fees

Students on programmes of study of more than one year (or studying standalone modules) should be aware that the majority of fees will increase annually. The University will take a range of factors into account, including, but not limited to, UK inflation, changes in delivery costs and changes in Scottish and/or UK Government funding. Changes in fees will be published on the University website in October each year for the following year of study and any annual increase will be capped at a maximum of 10% per year.

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Scotland

£4,786

England, Wales & Northern Ireland

£4,786

Republic of Ireland

If you are an Irish citizen and have been ordinary resident in the Republic of Ireland for the three years prior to the relevant date, and will be coming to Scotland for Educational purposes only, you will meet the criteria of England, Wales & Northern Ireland fee status. For more information and advice on tuition fee status, you can visit the UKCISA - International student advice and guidance - Scotland: fee status webpage. Find out more about the University of Strathclyde's fee assessments process.

International

£18,050

Additional costs

Course materials

Printing is provided free in the Graduate School.

Most books can be borrowed from the library or by inter-library loan. Students may decide to buy a limited number of key text which they may be able to purchase second hand. Students in years one and two may spend £150 to £200. Years three and four are writing years, so less so.

Placements & field trips

When required, from £50 to £300 per year, though some assistance is provided from the Faculty's Research Support Fund.

International students

International students may have associated visa and immigration costs. Please see student visa guidance for more information.

Other costs

  • thesis binding - approximately £30
  • pen drives - approximately £20
Postgraduate research opportunities

Search for all funded and non-funded postgraduate research opportunities.

Funding

Take a look at our funding your postgraduate research web page for funding information.

You can also view our scholarships search for further funding opportunities.

Please note: the fees shown are annual and may be subject to an increase each year.

Huaping Li PhD Education graduate
As a lecturer, I feel that I am now better prepared to help young people, particularly future teachers, to move out of their own little bubble, to appreciate differences or diversity in the world as well as in their own countries, communities and classrooms and promote international understanding among their students.
Dr Huaping Li

Our research

Research in education places a strong emphasis on collaboration and cross-disciplinary working. Education at Strathclyde produces leading research focused on nine overlapping themes with national and international relevance:

  • additional support needs and autism
  • educational and social practices in curricular subjects
  • equity and achievement
  • health and wellbeing
  • languages education
  • methodologies for change
  • professional learning, identity and enquiry
  • rights, citizenship and dialogue
  • education, philosophy and culture
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Supervisors

Name Areas of expertise
Dr Paul Adams
  • education policy
  • pedagogy
  • PSHE and citizenship
  • educational theorising
  • positioning theory

Dr Laela Adamson

  • language-in-education policy and practice in sub-Saharan Africa and other postcolonial contexts
  • the Capability Approach
  • education and international development policy and practice
  • education and social justice
  • diversity, recognition and belonging in UK schools, including decolonisation of the curriculum

Dr Celia Antoniou

  • second/foreign language pedagogy; multilingualism; applied linguistics
  • TESOL student/teacher agency and motivation
  • TESOL teacher training/development
  • L2 curriculum and materials development
  • L2 learning technologies, GEN AI
Dr Lorna Arnott
  • early childhood education and early experiences
  • early childhood digital play
  • innovative methodologies and voice with children under 6 years old.
  • early childhood creative play
  • early childhood peer cultures and social play
Dr Farid Bardid
  • motor development and learning
  • health-related factors of children’s motor skills and physical activity (esp. psychosocial and cognitive factors)
  • developmental trajectories of health (esp. motor skills and physical activity)
  • pedagogy in physical activity, physical education and sports 
  • development and evaluation of movement programmes
Dr Ingeborg Birnie
  • Gaelic (medium) education
  • language revitalisation including in digital domains
  • minority Languages in education
  • minority language rights 
  • languages and language use in education and society
Prof Claire Cassidy
  • philosophy with children/practical philosophy
  • children and childhood studies 
  • human rights education/children's rights
  • children's voice, participation, and citizenship
  • inquiry and critical thinking 
Dr Osman Coban
  • children’s reading practices and children’s literature 
  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) in education (in particular, its current and emerging impact on educational theory, classroom practice, and pedagogical approaches)
  • inclusive education 
  • TESOL and multilingualism in early years and primary education 
  • collaborative reading practices and its role in education 
Dr Angela de Britos
  • bilingualism and bilingual education
  • biculturalism and cultural studies
  • English as an additional language/ ESOL
  • immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers
  • teaching and learning of modern (foreign) languages
Prof Jonathan Delafield-Butt
  • autism, infant and child development
  • intersubjectivity, embodiment, social and emotional development
  • serious games in learning and assessment
  • machine learning and data science analytics
  • interdisciplinary research between engineering, psychology, psychiatry, and education
Dr Jane Essex
  • STEM education including outreach and public engagement
  • inclusive science
  • inclusion/ disability studies
  • teacher education for inclusive practice
  • co-creation and socially just research methodologies
Dr Jonathan Firth
  • memory, metacognition and teacher professional learning
  • evidence-informed approaches to learning, study skills, and assessment
  • use of field experiments, metacognition research, meta-analysis and systematic review
  • teaching of school (pre-tertiary) psychology, including online teaching
  • the psychology of learning, including learning theories
Dr Katja Frimberger
  • phenomenological-hermeneutic; conceptual research.
  • philosophy of film/cinema as education; cinematic representations of pedagogical relationships.
  • philosophy of theatre as education, e.g. in acting/directing theory and practice.
  • concept of Bildung/(self)formation/through the arts/ in the Catholic intellectual tradition (e.g. Meister Eckhart; Jacques Maritain).
Dr Navan Govender
  • critical literacies for engaging (a)gender and (a)sexual diversity (i.e., queer critical literacies) and/or race and ethnicity (i.e., critical race literacies) in English language, literature, and literacy education
  • multimodality and (re)design 
  • (multimodal) critical discourse analysis (including social semiotic and discursive-material approaches)
  • critical and queer (auto)ethnography
  • critical, queer, and decolonial praxis in teacher/higher education
Dr Stephanie Hardley
  • socioecological models and whole school approaches to health and wellbeing promotion
  • socioeconomic disadvantage, stigma, and education effects
  • curriculum and policy discourse analysis
  • interdisciplinary work - using psychology, sociology, public health, and education theories to conceptualise school health promotion
  • qualitative research methods
Dr Alan Huang
  • second/foreign language learning and teaching
  • metacognition and learning
  • teacher professional learning
  • educational technology
  • TESOL and applied linguistics
Dr Katie Hunter
  • educational Inequality
  • adult and Community Learning
  • mentoring Interventions
  • reading and literacy interventions
  • qualitative Research
Dr Sharon Hunter
  • human rights
  • inclusion
  • philosophy of childhood
  • academic literacy
Dr Mariya Ivancheva
  • higher education: political economy, labour, and management
  • comparative, historical and geopolitical topics in university education, including socialist/alternative experiments
  • academic and teaching identities and social movements for change
  • political economy of digital education, AI, outsourcing and automation
  • gender/race/class/intersectional inequalities and social justice in education

Dr Tomasz John

  • TESOL, language education, and curriculum development
  • multilingualism and intercultural communication
  • Global Englishes and English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI)
  • internationalisation of higher education
  • social justice in English language teaching

Dr Ambika Kapoor

  • Social and Environmental justice and children's geographies
  • Children's voice and agency
  • Global Childhoods (with a focus on the Global South)
  • Rights based policies related to children
  • Ethnography and research methods with a focus on children's voice

Dr Eleni Karagiannidou

  • digital literacies, inclusion and pedagogy
  • gen-AI technologies, learning and teaching (across all levels)
  • transitions
  • early childhood education and early experiences
  • mixed and quantitative methods
Dr Karsten Kenklies
  • LGBT issues in educational theory (conceptual or historical non-empirical research)
  • intercultural comparison in educational theory (conceptual or historical non-empirical research)
  • hermeneutic pedagogy (conceptual or historical non-empirical research)
  • aesthetics & educational theory (conceptual or historical non-empirical research
  • Japanese education (conceptual or historical non-empirical research)
Prof David Kirk
  • curriculum development and change
  • curriculum history
  • models-based practice in physical education
  • Bernstein and the social production of pedagogic discourse 
Prof Markus Klein
  • social inequalities in education
  • child development
  • social mobility
  • comparative research
  • secondary data analysis  
Dr Cara Lamb
  • gender and physical education
  • models-based practice in physical education
  • activist research
  • social justice issues in education
  • qualitative research.
Dr David Lewin
  • philosophy of education
  • technology and education (conceptual and philosophical approaches particularly)
  • religion, spirituality and education
  • mindfulness and contemplative practices
  • ethics, values, virtues and moral education 
Joanna McPake
  • bilingualism and bilingual education
  • language learning and teaching
  • Gaelic-medium education
  • minority language revitalisation
  • ethnographic and ethnomethodological approaches to analysis
Dr Joan Mowat
  • inclusion, policy and practice, with a specific (but not exclusive) focus on children with social, emotional and behavioural needs
  • the mental health and well-being of children and young people
  • issues around marginalisation, poverty, stigmatisation and labelling
  • educational leadership and issues around school climate, ethos and relational approaches to promoting positive relationships and behaviour
  • mixed-methods research
Dr Zinnia Mevawalla
  • education for critical consciousness
  • disability studies and inclusive education in the early years 
  • children's rights and social justice education in the early years 
  • listening to children's voices in the early years 
  • critical, qualitative and play-based methodologies
Dr Iain Moore
  • practical physics education
  • teaching and learning in STEM Education
  • equity in STEM
  • educational management and leadership
  • mixed methods pragmatic investigation of pedagogy
Prof Peter Mtika
  • student teaching, mentoring and practicum,
  • teacher preparation, professional learning, inclusion, equity, and social justice
  • teacher education institutions and school partnerships
  • international education and sustainable development
  • teacher education policy and practice
Dr Stavros Nikou
  • educational technologies
  • immersive technologies (AR/VR) and artificial intelligence 
  • instructional design with technology 
  • teacher digital competencies
  • STEM pedagogies
Prof João M Paraskeva
  • educational theory, policy and reform
  • critical theory
  • anti-colonial and decolonial theories
  • identity, inclusion, difference and equity
  • advanced/itinerant curriculum theory
  • higher education
Professor Ian Rivers
  • equalities/diversity
  • mixed methods
  • bullying and harassment
  • health and education
  • children's understanding of politics

Dr Nicola Robertson

  • education in, and through, objects of popular culture
  • expressions of fandom and identity formation/self-reflection
  • philosophy of education (particular interest in francophone philosophy)
  • education and philosophies of technology 
  • robotics and artificial intelligence (current and speculative uses in education)
Dr Anna Robinson
  • emotional psychology, development and wellbeing
  • Autism, mental health and neuro-inclusion
  • trauma research: trauma-informed pedagogy, therapeutic interventions and healing-centered engagement
  • counselling, psychotherapy, group psychotherapy and Emotion AI 
  • Creative-Relational Inquiry, Participatory Methodologies and Co-production

Prof Carol Robinson

  • children and young people's voices, experiences and participation
  • children and young people's rights and human rights education 
  • the translation of the UNCRC into policy and practice
  • children as researchers
  • student engagement in higher education

Prof Debs Robinson

  • inclusive education for ASN, SEND, disability
  • action research
  • participatory research and co-production
  • teacher education and development
  • education and employment
Dr David Roxburgh
  • L3 language learning models in primary schools
  • the teaching of Chinese language and culture in primary schools
  • the promotion of STEM learning in primary school contexts
  • comparative education experiences
  • mixed methods research
Dr Rebekah Sims
  • intercultural competence in higher education
  • writing in teacher education programmes
  • writing pedagogy including TESOL
  • initial teacher education
  • writing across the disciplines (e.g., teaching writing to STEM students)
Prof Yvette Taylor
  • sexuality & gender 
  • social class  
  • higher education 
  • feminism & queer theory 
  • qualitative methods (incl. mixed methods, ethnographic & PAR)
Prof Kate Wall
  • professional learning through practitioner enquiry and teachers as researchers
  • exploration of voice in regard children, adolescents, teachers, and practitioners
  • visual and creative methodologies
  • mixed method research approaches
  • children and young people as co-researchers
Dr Yuchen Wang
  • inclusion and diversity in education
  • student/pupil voice
  • international development
  • technology
  • research engagement and impact
Dr Alastair Wilson
  • educational inequality
  • school & community based development
  • school and community mentoring
  • learning disabilities
  • qualitative research design
Dr Siqi Zhang
  • sociology of education
  • gender and social class
  • international student mobility in higher education
  • social inequality in education (including gender, class, race)
  • identity formation and global citizenship
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Support & development

The Graduate School

The Graduate School is a friendly and supportive study environment for research students studying subjects within Humanities & Social Sciences.

Our staff will support you through your studies and you'll become part of a community of students who get involved with our workshops, seminars and competitions.

Postgraduate Certificate in Researcher Professional Development (PgCert RPD)

Our PgCert RPD programme aims to ensure you get the most out of your current research activities at Strathclyde and helps you prepare for your future career as a researcher.

We'll help you recognise and develop your transferrable skills that'll have a positive impact on your research, now and in the future.

Careers

The University Careers Service can help you with everything from writing your CV to interview preparation. Take a look at our careers service pages to get more information.

Student support

From financial advice to our IT facilities, we have a wide range of support for all students here at Strathclyde. Get all the information you need at Strathlife.

International students

We've a thriving international community with students coming here to study from over 140 countries across the world. Find out all you need to know about studying in Glasgow at Strathclyde and hear from students about their experiences.

Visit our international students' section

Postgraduate research at the Strathclyde Doctoral School

The Strathclyde Doctoral School offers a vibrant, student-centred research and training environment, dedicated to supporting both current and future research talent.

Bringing together all four of our faculties, it is committed to enhancing the student experience, increasing research outputs and opportunities, and ensuring that training is delivered at the highest standard.

As a postgraduate researcher, you will automatically become a member of the Strathclyde Doctoral School.

Find out more about the Doctoral School

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Apply

You can apply for a postgraduate research degree at any point in the year. We strongly advise that you contact one or more potential supervisors or the Postgraduate Research Director, Professor Kate Wall, before completing the online application. Go to the supervisors tab above and see below for further information.

Entry requirements

Normally, a Masters degree in education or related subject from a recognised academic institution. It is also desirable for candidates to have professional experience in a field with an educational dimension.

The application

During the application you'll be asked for the following:

  • your full contact details
  • transcripts & certificates of all degrees
  • proof of English language proficiency (IELTS 6.5 in writing & reading required) if you're applying as an international student
  • two references, one of which must be academic
  • funding or scholarship information
  • research proposals of 1,500 to 2,000 words in length, detailing the subject area & topic to be investigated

By filling these details out as fully as possible, you'll avoid any delay to your application being processed by the University.

Supervisors

You'll need to identify your research supervisor before you finalise your application, preferably as soon as possible.

When you've identified a potential supervisor, based on how well your research interests match theirs, drop them an email to introduce yourself. In the email, make sure you attach a draft of your research proposal along with a copy of your CV. Don't worry about how rough your research proposal may be at this stage – you'll have help from The Strathclyde Institute of Education to refine it. If your chosen supervisor is available to work with you, they'll confirm this and nominate a potential second supervisor. As soon as a second supervisor is confirmed, an offer of study will be sent to you through Pegasus, our online application system.

When you accept our offer, you'll receive a full offer in writing via the email address you provide. 

Accepting an offer

Once you've accepted our offer, we'll need you to fulfil any academic, administrative or financial conditions that we ask.

UK or EU students

If you're applying as a UK or EU student, you'll then be issued with your registration documentation.

Start date: Oct 2024 - Sep 2025

Education

PhD
part-time
Start date: Oct 2024 - Sep 2025

Start date: Oct 2024 - Sep 2025

Education

MPhil
part-time
Start date: Oct 2024 - Sep 2025

Start date: Oct 2024 - Sep 2025

Education

PhD
full-time
Start date: Oct 2024 - Sep 2025

Start date: Oct 2024 - Sep 2025

Education

MPhil
full-time
Start date: Oct 2024 - Sep 2025

Start date: Oct 2025 - Sep 2026

Education

PhD
part-time
Start date: Oct 2025 - Sep 2026

Start date: Oct 2025 - Sep 2026

Education

MPhil
part-time
Start date: Oct 2025 - Sep 2026

Start date: Oct 2025 - Sep 2026

Education

PhD
full-time
Start date: Oct 2025 - Sep 2026

Start date: Oct 2025 - Sep 2026

Education

MPhil
full-time
Start date: Oct 2025 - Sep 2026

Start date: Oct 2026 - Sep 2027

Education

PhD
part-time
Start date: Oct 2026 - Sep 2027

Start date: Oct 2026 - Sep 2027

Education

MPhil
part-time
Start date: Oct 2026 - Sep 2027

Start date: Oct 2026 - Sep 2027

Education

PhD
full-time
Start date: Oct 2026 - Sep 2027

Start date: Oct 2026 - Sep 2027

Education

MPhil
full-time
Start date: Oct 2026 - Sep 2027

Start date: Sep 2026

Education

EdD
full-time
Start date: Sep 2026

Start date: Sep 2026

Education

EdD
part-time
Start date: Sep 2026

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Contact us

The Strathclyde Institute of Education

Graduate School

Telephone: +44 (0)141 444 8400

Email: hass-edu-pgr@strath.ac.uk

Back to course

Fees & funding

All fees quoted are per academic year unless otherwise stated.

Entrants may be subject to a small fee during the writing up period.

Fees may be subject to updates to maintain accuracy. Tuition fees will be notified in your offer letter.

All fees are in £ sterling, unless otherwise stated, and may be subject to revision.

Annual revision of fees

Students on programmes of study of more than one year (or studying standalone modules) should be aware that the majority of fees will increase annually. The University will take a range of factors into account, including, but not limited to, UK inflation, changes in delivery costs and changes in Scottish and/or UK Government funding. Changes in fees will be published on the University website in October each year for the following year of study and any annual increase will be capped at a maximum of 10% per year.

Go back
Scotland

£5,006

England, Wales & Northern Ireland

£5,006

Republic of Ireland

If you are an Irish citizen and have been ordinary resident in the Republic of Ireland for the three years prior to the relevant date, and will be coming to Scotland for Educational purposes only, you will meet the criteria of England, Wales & Northern Ireland fee status. For more information and advice on tuition fee status, you can visit the UKCISA - International student advice and guidance - Scotland: fee status webpage. Find out more about the University of Strathclyde's fee assessments process.

International

£19,850

Additional costs

Course materials

Printing is provided free in the Graduate School.

Most books can be borrowed from the library or by inter-library loan. Students may decide to buy a limited number of key text which they may be able to purchase second hand. Students in years one and two may spend £150 to £200. Years three and four are writing years, so less so.

Placements & field trips

When required, from £50 to £300 per year, though some assistance is provided from the Faculty's Research Support Fund.

International students

International students may have associated visa and immigration costs. Please see student visa guidance for more information.

Other costs

  • thesis binding - approximately £30
  • pen drives - approximately £20
Postgraduate research opportunities

Search for all funded and non-funded postgraduate research opportunities.

Funding

Take a look at our funding your postgraduate research web page for funding information.

You can also view our scholarships search for further funding opportunities.

Please note: the fees shown are annual and may be subject to an increase each year.