Course summary

The information provided on this page was correct at the time of publication (October/November 2022). For complete and up-to-date information about this course, please visit the relevant University of Oxford course page via www.graduate.ox.ac.uk/ucas The MSc Education (Higher Education) at the University of Oxford is aimed at future academic, policy, and practitioner leaders in higher education (HE). It provides a critical introduction to research, theory, and policy in this complex field, taking into account a range of national, international and global lenses. During this full-time course, students will have the opportunity to consider a wide range of issues that higher education systems around the world are facing today, including the social and economic contributions of HE, internationalisation, graduate employment and employability, access, equity and social justice, student fees, and rankings. Teaching sessions will combine tutor input, class discussion, and working in small groups in order to examine these key issues and the discourses that shape them. Course members study three core papers which consider policy issues across higher education systems and the role higher education plays in the economy and society from theoretical, historical and empirical perspectives. Lecturers will also present their own recent research findings, ensuring that the course content reflects live debates and emerging understandings within the field of higher education studies. In addition to these three pathway-specific core papers, two core papers in research methods develop students’ understanding of key concepts and principles of educational research design and methodology, using quantitative and qualitative methods and data. Students benefit from the expertise available through the Qualitative Methods Hub and the Quantitative Methods Hub at the Department of Education. MSc Education students also choose one assessed option paper from a selection offered by academic staff across the department. Supervision The allocation of graduate supervision for this course is the responsibility of the Department of Education. This will be done on the basis of the topic of research and the availability of individual supervisors. It is not always possible to accommodate the preferences of incoming graduate students to work with a particular member of staff. However, the HE teaching team have experience of supervising an extensive range of topics in higher education studies.Under exceptional circumstances a supervisor may be found outside the Department of Education. You should expect 10 hours of supervision throughout the year.