Education MA
Subject and course type
- Education and teaching
- Postgraduate
Are you looking to advance your practice in education, health, social work or social care?
This flexible MA develops ethical, research-minded practice, responsive to contemporary challenges, research and policy-shaping interprofessional work, including equity, social justice and sustainability.
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Advance your practice and take on new challenges
Through a mix of campus days and online teaching sessions, you’ll develop skills as a facilitator, mediator and leader of research-engaged practice.
The MA Education is aimed for those working in education, health, social work and social care. It provides flexible learning opportunities to develop research minded and ethical practice aligned to your current role and emerging ambitions.
The course has been designed in close consultation with employers, practitioners and education experts across the relevant sectors. This ensures the curriculum is conceptually robust, professionally relevant and responsive to contemporary challenges, research developments and policy shifts shaping interprofessional practice locally, nationally and globally, including those relating to equity, social justice and sustainability.
This course recognises the complexity of educational work in diverse and changing contexts. Our expertise in supporting research‑engaged professionals at master’s level ensures a rigorous, supportive and intellectually challenging learning experience.
Studying for the MA Education will advance your professional practice, research literacy and critical thinking across a range of educational, professional and organisational contexts. The learning from this masters allows graduates to progress their career across a range of roles within interprofessional settings.
You will engage with experts and specialists across disciplines to critically examine contemporary research, theory and policy. Studying alongside professionals from varied sectors creates a rich learning environment, fostering dialogue, reflexivity and the development of a supportive professional community, while extending your networks across education, health and social care.
Throughout the course, you will deepen your understanding of research methods, enabling you to interrogate evidence, question assumptions and respond ethically to complex challenges in your practice. You will critically explore your professional role, identity and agency within wider organisational, social and political contexts, including interprofessional working and system‑level change. You will explore positionality, identity and power in professional practice.
You will engage in debates that consider how race, class, gender, disability and language shape professional perspectives. The course will adopt a critical focus on equity, justice and sustainability, including the politics of “objectivity” and privilege, environmental responsibility and global inequality within professional practice.
The MA Education supports you to become a research‑informed, ethically grounded and socially responsible practitioner, examining the relationships between professional knowledge, lived experience, organisational priorities and evidence‑based practice. You will be encouraged to challenge deficit narratives and to engage critically with issues of power, access, inclusion and justice in professional practice.
As part of the Professional Practice Study, you will design and undertake an independent research enquiry focused on an issue at the forefront of your practice. This enables you to investigate questions that matter to you, and the people you work with and support, while developing a research-minded approach to creative problem solving.
Why choose this course
While you study, you’ll benefit from top quality teaching at Kingston University. Not only are we ranked Gold in the Teaching Excellence Framework, we also have 100 years’ experience of educating educators.
Throughout the course, you’ll be taught by experienced professionals at our Kingston Hill campus. Facilities include the Nightingale Centre, a modern library with long opening hours, a cafe and zoned study areas.
You’ll also have access to specialist education books, journals and online resources, plenty of computers and our innovative virtual learning environment, Canvas.
Alongside your campus study days, you’ll gain a new perspective from keynote events and lectures throughout your studies through Kingston’s Department of Education. You’ll receive regular information about seminars, workshops and lectures by staff and postgraduate students. Activities include BERA, Erasmus project events, the European Conference for Educational Research and London-based educator seminar programmes.
Many of our staff in the Department of Education are research-active. This ensures they are in touch with the latest thinking and bring best practice to your studies. Education research at Kingston includes work on subject pedagogy, curriculum design, planning, assessment, safeguarding, SEND and inclusive practice, Early Years, educational technologies, supporting more able learners, educational inequalities, policy and the history of education.
Course content
Please note that this is an indicative list of modules and is not intended as a definitive list. Those listed here may also be a mixture of core and optional modules.
Year 1
Core modules
30 credits
This module introduces you to the concepts of theoretical and professional perspectives in aspects of contemporary education. The main features of the module include the critical examination of social, political and cultural factors affecting or inhabiting different professional practice contexts, and the conceptualisation of how these might manifest in professional experience. The module provides you with the opportunity to examine contemporary issues that are relevant to education, and to explore factors relevant to and impacting upon professional practice and context.
30 credits
This module introduces you to the concepts of critical reflection and reflexivity in professional practice. You will explore a range of ethical perspectives relevant to working with children, young people and/or adults in relation to policy formulation, practice-orientated knowledge and professional skills and attitudes. There are opportunities to critically examine theories and approaches to reflection and reflexivity and to explore their value and purpose within contemporary professional practice. Assumptions, perspectives, and decision-making will be critically explored and contextualised within unique practice settings.
30 credits
This module introduces you to the complexities involved in working as a professional in the education sector and its many forms of partnership. There is critical examination of theory and research around what it means to be a professional educator, and an exploration of contemporary aspects of professionalism and the notion of professional trust. You will study recent and current events and contexts that may impact upon the dynamics and processes through which professional relationships and partnerships are developed. You will explore the benefits and challenges of working in partnership, how tensions might arise and how solutions to those tensions might be found and enabled.
Year 2
Core modules
30 credits
This module further enhances your knowledge and understanding developed in Contemporary Practice 1.
You will examine concepts of theoretical and professional perspectives in aspects of contemporary education, relevant to specific roles within the education sector.
During the module, you will select a contemporary issue affecting or inhabiting your individual professional practice and then conceptualise and disseminate to others how it impacts your professional experience.
60 credits
This module provides the opportunity to develop advanced and in-depth knowledge and understanding of an aspect of professional practice unique to your professional context.
It draws together learning from your prior modules to inform a focussed study on a well-defined issue relevant to an individual’s professional role, interest, ambition and/or environment.
A key feature of this module includes the development of a contextualised proposal for a professional practice study.
To do this successfully, there is critical engagement with theoretical and methodological frameworks and critical exploration of ethical issues and moral choices which inhabit practice-oriented study.
Career opportunities
When you complete this course, you’ll have the advanced learning, research and practice skills you need to progress in a range of educational settings. You’ll possess the knowledge, confidence and attributes to succeed as a facilitator, co-ordinator, mediator or leader of research-engaged professional practice. The course could even lead to collaborative learning networks or doctoral studies in Education.
Education research is becoming more and more important. The skills you’ll learn on this course could help you as a deputy head teacher, a children’s centre manager, a research development manager or even a member of a special interest group. You’ll graduate with the ability to drive research-based improvements in a wide range of areas.
Research is also a big part of our work in the Department of Education, which means your tutors bring best practice and cutting-edge thinking to their teaching. Kingston University’s education research includes work on:
- Subject pedagogy
- Curriculum design
- Planning
- Assessment
- Safeguarding
- SEND and inclusive practice
- Early Years
- Educational technologies
- Supporting more able learners
- Educational inequalities
- Policy
- The history of education
Teaching and assessment
The MA Education programme structure consists of five modules with a total of 180 credits at level 7 that are typically completed over a period of two years part-time. This course uses a range of teaching and assessment methods which have been designed to support your learning and achievement of the learning outcomes.
Learning experiences include campus study days, lectures, seminars, workshops and tutorials, which are supported by online resources for preparatory and consolidating guidance and tasks.
When not attending timetabled sessions, you will be expected to continue learning independently through self-study. This typically will involve reading journal articles and books, working on individual and group tasks and preparing coursework assignments and presentations. Your independent learning is supported by a range of excellent facilities including online resources, the library and CANVAS – the online virtual learning platform.
As a student at Kingston University, we will make sure you have access to appropriate advice regarding your academic development. You will also be able to use the University's support services.
A course is made up of modules, and each module is worth a number of credits. You must pass a given number of credits in order to achieve the award you registered on, for example 360 credits for a typical undergraduate course or 180 credits for a typical postgraduate course. The number of credits you need for your award is detailed in the programme specification which you can access from the link at the bottom of this page.
One credit equates to 10 hours of study. Therefore 180 credits across a year (typical for a postgraduate course) would equate to 1,800 notional hours. These hours are split into scheduled and guided. On this course, the percentage of that time that will be scheduled learning and teaching activities is shown below. The remainder is made up of guided independent study.
- 10% scheduled learning and teaching
The exact balance between scheduled learning and teaching and guided independent study will be informed by the modules you take.
Your course will primarily be delivered in person. It may include delivery of some activities online, either in real time or recorded.
Assessment typically comprises coursework assignments, including essays, poster and presentation, research proposal and research dissertation. The approximate percentage for how you will be assessed on this course is as follows:
- 100% coursework
We aim to provide feedback on assessments within 20 working days.
Fees and funding
| Fee Category | Annual Fee |
|---|---|
| Home (UK students) | Part Time £4,625 |
| International | Part Time £10,200 |
| Fee Category | Annual Fee |
|---|---|
| Home (UK students) | Part Time £4,150 |
| International | Part Time £9,845 |
Additional course costs
Some courses may require additional costs beyond tuition fees. When planning your studies, you’ll want to consider tuition fees, living costs, and any extra costs that might relate to your area of study.
Your tuition fees include costs for teaching, assessment and university facilities. So your access to libraries, shared IT resources and various student support services are all covered. Accommodation and general living expenses are not covered by these fees.
Where applicable, additional expenses for your course may include:
Our libraries have an extensive collection of books and journals, as well as open-access computers and laptops available to rent. However, you may want to buy your own computer or personal copies of key textbooks. Textbooks may range from £50 to £250 per year. And a personal computer can range from £100 to £3,000 depending on your course requirements.
While most coursework is submitted online, some modules may require printed copies. You may want to allocate up to £100 per year for hard-copies of your coursework. It’s worth noting that 3D printing is never compulsory. So if you choose to use our 3D printers, you’ll need to pay for the material. This ranges from 3p per gram to 40p per gram.
Kingston University will pay for all compulsory field trips. Fees for optional trips can range from £30 to £350 per trip.
Your tuition fees don’t cover travel costs. To save on travel costs, you can use our intersite bus service. This route links the campuses and halls of residence with local train stations: Surbiton, Kingston upon Thames and Norbiton.
Fees for future course years
Part time
If you start your second year straight after Year 1, you will pay the same fee for both years.
If you take a break before starting your second year, or if you repeat modules from Year 1 in Year 2, the fee for your second year may increase.
Funding support for postgraduate students
If you are a UK student living in England and under 60, you can apply for a loan to study for a postgraduate degree. Find out more through the government's website.
Scholarships and bursaries
Interested in studying Education MA at Kingston? The following funding support is available:
The Inspire the Future Scholarship offers a 40% reduction in fees for taught masters or postgraduate diploma courses with September start dates. 20 scholarships are available for progressing Kingston University graduates.
For more information on how to apply for this scholarship, visit the Inspire the Future Scholarship page.
International postgraduate students could receive up to £5,000 towards tuition in their first year of study.
For more information on how to apply for these scholarships, visit the International Scholarship page.
If you are a Kingston University undergraduate student progressing to a postgraduate degree (taught or research), you could get a 15% reduction in tuition fees.
For more information on how to apply for this scholarship, visit the Postgraduate Progression Scholarship page.
Kingston University offers a 10% discount on full and part-time postgraduate degree course tuition fees to our alumni.
For more information on how to apply for this discount, visit our postgraduate finance page.
How to apply
Before you apply
Please read the entry criteria carefully to make sure you meet all requirements before applying.
How to apply online
Use the course selector drop-down at the top of this page to choose your preferred course, start date and mode, then click 'Apply now'. You will be taken to our Online Student Information System (OSIS) where you will complete your application.
If you’re starting a new application, you’ll need to select ‘new user’ and set up a username and password. This will allow you to save and return to your application.
Please note: If you’re from a country outside the EU or EEA that’s classified as overseas fee-paying, you won’t be eligible to apply for a part-time course because of visa regulations in the UK. For information about exceptions, please visit the UKCISA website or email our CAS and Visa Compliance team.
Application deadlines
We encourage you to apply as soon as possible. Applications will close when the course is full.
After you apply
If the admissions tutor needs more information or wants to invite you for an interview, we will be in touch directly.
Course changes and regulations
The information on this page reflects the currently intended course structure and module details. To improve your student experience and the quality of your degree, we may review and change the material information of this course. Find out more about course changes
Programme Specifications for the course are published ahead of each academic year.
Regulations governing this course can be found on our website.
