The MPhil is a full-time course offered by the Faculty of Education. It introduces students to research skills and specialist knowledge that explores how education is shaped by power, politics, and contested forms of knowledge. Recognising that education takes a wide variety of forms and is subject to different, often competing agendas across the globe, this MPhil in Knowledge, Power and Politics explores fundamental questions relating to: the roles of education in societies; transnational debates about the nature of knowledge formation and its circulation; and the consequences for social justice.

The main educational aims are:

• to examine the theoretical frameworks used in the study of education and its constituent disciplines;
• provide training in research methods appropriate to education;
• advance students’ capacity for professional reflection and judgment;
• cater for a range of specialists interested within the field of education or one of its constituent disciplines.

The MPhil is offered by the Faculty of Education as a full-time period of research and introduces students to research skills and specialist knowledge. The course will introduce students to a range of contemporary issues of globalisation and international development in the field of education, in order to interrogate the latest theoretically grounded, and empirical research; Explore the relationship between education and wider socio-economic processes, with a particular focus on countries in the Global South; The programme offers an opportunity to engage with issues of equity and social justice in education and international development from different theoretical lenses and diverse empirical approaches in Southern contexts.

The main educational aims of the course are :

• to examine the theoretical frameworks used in the study of education and its constituent disciplines;
• provide training in research methods appropriate to education;
• advance students’ capacity for professional reflection and judgment;
• cater for a range of specialists interested within the field of education or one of its constituent disciplines.

This route provides a comprehensive overview of critical issues in education policy, leadership and improvement, through the in-depth study of theoretical perspectives and their applications to educational contexts and settings. The course combines UK and international perspectives and engages with evidence from a range of national and educational contexts. The teaching team draw on their research expertise and encourage course participants to share their experiences and reflect on the course content, relating new knowledge and insights to their own contexts.

This route focuses on critical issues in education in the context of institutional and system improvement and with reference to practice, policy and theory. The course engages students in theoretical debates around each of the key concepts of policy, leadership, and improvement, problematising these and considering a range of perspectives. The course encourages students to engage with empirical evidence from a range of national contexts around these key topics and related issues, including accountability in education, professional learning, leading for change, evidence-based practices, amongst others.

The educational aims of the route are to:

• examine the theoretical frameworks used in the study of education, specifically around concepts of policy, leadership, and improvement;
• provide training in research methods appropriate to education and the study of educational change;
• advance the capacity of students for research-informed professional reflection and judgment;

The route content is structured in interrelated modules. These may include:

1. Educational policy and policy-making
2. Approaches to educational improvement
3. Educational effectiveness and evidence-based practice
4. Education Evaluation
5. Professional learning and development
6. Teachers/Educators as agents of change
7. Critical approaches to educational leadership
8. Leading professional and organisational change

This route provides a comprehensive overview of critical issues in education policy, leadership and improvement, through the in-depth study of theoretical perspectives and their applications to educational contexts and settings. The course combines UK and international perspectives and engages with evidence from a range of national and educational contexts. The teaching team draw on their research expertise and encourage course participants to share their experiences and reflect on the course content, relating new knowledge and insights to their own contexts.

This route focuses on critical issues in education in the context of institutional and system improvement and with reference to practice, policy and theory. The course engages students in theoretical debates around each of the key concepts of policy, leadership, and improvement, problematising these and considering a range of perspectives. The course encourages students to engage with empirical evidence from a range of national contexts around these key topics and related issues, including accountability in education, professional learning, leading for change, evidence-based practices, amongst others.

The educational aims of the route are to:

• examine the theoretical frameworks used in the study of education, specifically around concepts of policy, leadership, and improvement;
• provide training in research methods appropriate to education and the study of educational change;
• advance the capacity of students for research-informed professional reflection and judgment;

The route content is structured in interrelated modules. These may include:

1. Educational policy and policy-making
2. Approaches to educational improvement
3. Educational effectiveness and evidence-based practice
4. Education Evaluation
5. Professional learning and development
6. Teachers/Educators as agents of change
7. Critical approaches to educational leadership
8. Leading professional and organisational change

This PGCE-MEd course is aimed at applicants who already have knowledge of and interest in children's literature, and who want to develop expertise in the subject at master's level. In this route, students will meet old favourites in fiction, film, poetry and picturebooks and make exciting new acquaintances. They will be introduced to topical debates on the nature and social function of this controversial and multifaceted body of literature. They will also be provided with the tools for a critical assessment of texts written and marketed for a young audience.

This thematic course concentrates on a wide range of writing for children, including the "classics", texts for very young readers, international literature and literature for young adults. Close textual study and the history of children's literature are embedded within the course, on which students will also be expected to engage with some of the key debates in the field and to consider a range of theoretical perspectives – from Romanticism to reader-response theory; gender issues to posthumanism; historical studies to new historicism; sociocultural viewpoints to semiotics – as well as examining critically views of young readers and their reading choices.

The PGCE-MEd route will include two modules from the following possible list: Texts, Contexts and Childhood; Perspectives on Children's Literature; Visual Texts; and Texts and Readers. It is assessed through a dissertation on a topic of the student's own choosing, which may be either a purely literary study or a small empirical research project.

The PGCE-MEd introduces students to research skills and specialist knowledge. Its main aims are to:

• examine the theoretical frameworks used in the study of education and its constituent disciplines;
• provide training in research methods appropriate to education;
• advance students’ capacity for professional reflection and judgement;
• cater to a range of specialists interested within the field of education or one of its constituent disciplines.

This thematic route concentrates on a wide range of writing for children, including the "classics", texts for very young readers, international literature and literature for young adults. Close textual study and the history of children's literature are embedded within the route, on which students will also be expected to engage with some of the key debates in the field and to consider a range of theoretical perspectives – from Romanticism to reader-response theory; gender issues to posthumanism; historical studies to new historicism; sociocultural viewpoints to semiotics – as well as examining critically views of young readers and their reading choices.

The course is organised to include four modules: Texts, Contexts and Childhood; Perspectives on Children's Literature; Visual Texts; and Texts and Readers. It is assessed through a range of assessment formats and a dissertation, each designed to be personally rewarding as well as professionally enlightening and intellectually challenging.

The main educational aims are:

• to examine the theoretical frameworks used in the study of education and its constituent disciplines;

• provide training in research methods appropriate to education;

• advance students’ capacity for professional reflection and judgement;

• cater to a range of specialists interested within the field of education or one of its constituent disciplines.

The Arts, Creativity and Education (ACE) thematic route offers students the opportunity to explore urgent themes in arts and education research taking place globally today. By ‘urgent’, we mean contemporary debates, practices, policy agendas and epistemic dialogues currently shaping the way art and education are practiced across a variety of contexts, that we might want to further explore or that we are committed to changing. It includes contributions from specialists in a range of disciplines, including performing arts, visual art, literature and design and technology. This course recognises that artistic practices can serve as an essential research tool in our respective fields and therefore makes available studio and performance facilities.

The main educational aims are:

• to examine the theoretical frameworks used in the study of education and its constituent disciplines;

• provide training in research methods appropriate to education;

• advance students’ capacity for professional reflection and judgment;

• cater for a range of specialists interested within the field of education or one of its constituent disciplines.

The EdD in Education is a part-time research degree aimed at professionals who are committed to adopting a research approach to changing practice. As with other doctoral programmes, the main purpose of this degree is to prepare a substantial piece of original research, but in the EdD students will also use their professional expertise to consider how this research will influence systemic or institutional change. Our doctoral students, from all over the world, make an important contribution to their respective fields, and graduates of the EdD have a track record of making significant changes to policy, practice and institutions. Applicants for the EdD usually include practitioners in a variety of fields who understand that education is key to innovation and change, and who have an idea of how they can influence and improve practice and/or policy. The EdD programme offers the highest quality support and guidance, leading to research that has real-world social and educational impact.

The EdD offers an innovative research environment, taught through a series of weekend-seminars hosted in one of the University’s Colleges. EdD students have the opportunity be fully immersed in the College environment and through participation in the weekend events will become part of a strong, vibrant and supportive EdD research community. Expert sessions taught by Faculty academics cover methodological areas related to practice-based, systemic and institutional change, whilst guest sessions from researching professionals offer real-world examples of how to create, innovate and sustain change. Along with the guidance of your dedicated Supervisor and Advisor, students become part of the vibrant EdD community.

The UK's Research Excellence Framework exercise assesses the quality of research produced by UK Higher Education Institutions. The Faculty of Education at the University of Cambridge, based on Power Ranking scores, placed 4th overall in the UK in the most recent results. The research environment score for the Faculty (UoA23) as part of REF 2021 attained the maximum score of 100%, with the profile of 'world leading' outputs and impact case studies among the strongest in the UK.

Full UoA23 Results

The PhD in Education is a research degree. The main purpose of this degree is to prepare a substantial piece of original research.

Our doctoral students, from all over the world, make an important contribution to their respective fields and to the vitality of the Faculty's research culture.

One of the great strengths of studying at Cambridge is the level of individual support you will receive from an expert in your field. All doctoral students in the Faculty conduct their research with the guidance of a supervisor.

All doctoral students are invited to participate in a guided programme that introduces them to the key questions and concerns of contemporary, world-leading educational research. Students are also encouraged to play an active role in research seminars and engage in opportunities to acquire transferable skills.

The UK's Research Excellence Framework exercise assesses the quality of research produced by UK Higher Education Institutions. The Faculty of Education at the University of Cambridge, based on Power Ranking scores, placed 4th overall in the UK in the most recent results. The research environment score for the Faculty (UoA23) as part of REF 2021 attained the maximum score of 100%, with the profile of 'world leading' outputs and impact case studies among the strongest in the UK.

Full UoA23 Results

The course aims to expand the knowledge of a diverse set of students who already have good undergraduate degrees in economics or related fields with the tools of data science to handle and interpret large quantities of data.