Global Education and International Development MA

Find out more about our Global Education and International Development taught Master's degree.

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P-X3AN

MA

1 year full-time; 2 years part-time

29 September 2025

Education Studies

University of Warwick

Do you aspire to critically engage with some of the most important questions of the current moment? Would you like to improve both your knowledge and your practical skills in the area of Global Education and International Development? Do you work in the education sector and hope to increase the global reach of your work? Perhaps you have an international development background and want to specialise in education issues? Whatever your goals are, enhance your knowledge and practical skills with this course.

Education plays a variety of often contradictory roles in public debates, policy discourses, and academic research related to globalisation and international development. Education may be seen as the silver bullet, the solution to global inequalities and the vehicle for economic and social development. Alternatively, education is blamed for not delivering its promise, or even for reproducing or exacerbating the very problems it was supposed to solve. Education systems and institutions are themselves sites which are affected by patterns of globalisation and policy changes regarding development and aid.

Increasingly we are moving into a ‘post-development’ era, where it is no longer possible to separate the globe into clear-cut regions that are designated as ‘developed’ and ‘developing’: local, regional and international connections and transitions demand that we re-focus attempts to understand and theorise the role of education in contemporary society. Education policy and practice faces the imperative of adapting to enhanced mobility and immobility, changing political regimes, and the ever-shifting relationship between education and social change.

MA Global Education and International Development addresses a complex array of interconnected challenges and issues in relation to education, understood in its broadest sense. The programme brings together theoretical and conceptual challenges with applied considerations for education practitioners and development interventions. The MA includes an option to take a placement module which enhances your professional skills and employability.

Skills from this degree

• Critically appraise ideas and engage with academic debate on issues related to globalisation, international development and education
• Develop your capacity for advancing evidence-based arguments and drawing conclusions that are supported by in-depth data analysis
• Expand your intellectual worldview with regard to the role of education in, and the connections between, globalisation and international development
• Develop the critical skills and intellectual rigour required to review diverse bodies of research and analyse/ synthesise their findings. Learn to choose appropriate methodologies and engage in academic writing at a dissertation level
• Understand past, current and future academic and policy discourses around ‘what works’ in education and development, with particular reference to the Sustainable Development Goals
• Enhance your breadth of knowledge of education systems and contexts

For full-time students, all of our modules are delivered in-person at our well-equipped university campus. Please note that if you wish to study on a part-time basis you should be aware that most modules are taught during the normal working day and there is no out-of-hours provision. If this is a consideration for you please contact us prior to applying so that we can advise you further. Part-time students are able to complete some of their modules as asynchronous distance-learning modules.

Most modules include weekly teaching sessions, giving you the opportunity to join with your colleagues to discuss and debate the topics being explored. These sessions are delivered in a range of formats that suit the module (these may include lectures, seminars, group work and practical workshops, for example). In addition, you will be given various pre- and post- session tasks and readings to support your learning.

Class Size

You will attend one or two 3-hour taught sessions for your module/s each week during the Autumn and Spring Terms, plus research methods training lectures and seminars throughout all three terms.

Assessment types vary depending on modules selected but may be a mixture of written assignments taking a variety of forms and oral presentations. You will also complete a dissertation based on an individual research project, with support from a member of research supervisor.

Reading lists

If you would like to view reading lists for current or previous cohorts of students, most departments have reading lists available through Warwick Library on the Talis Aspire platform.  

You can search for reading lists by module title, code or convenor. Please see the modules tab of this page or the module catalogue.   

Please note that some reading lists may have restricted access or be unavailable at certain times of year due to not yet being published. If you cannot access the reading list for a particular module, please check again later or contact the module’s host department.  

Additional course costs

You may wish to undertake some research with children or young people that may require a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check or a Certificate of Good Conduct for students from outside of the UK. A Certificate of Good Conduct can vary in price.

Please contact your academic department for information about department specific costs, which should be considered in conjunction with the more general costs below, such as:

• Core text books
• Printer credits
• Dissertation binding
• Robe hire for your degree ceremony

Find out more about our additional course costs.

Your timetable

Your personalised timetable will be complete when you are registered for all modules, compulsory and optional, and you have been allocated to your lectures, seminars and other small group classes. Your compulsory modules will be registered for you and you will be able to choose your optional modules when you join us.

2:2 undergraduate degree (or equivalent) in a related subject.

• Band B
• IELTS score to 7 overall, no more than two components at 6.0/6.5 & rest 7.0+

There are no additional entry requirements for this course.

Optional modules

Enacting Global Education and International Development (Professional Placement) is a strongly recommended optional module for this degree.

In addition to this, there are a number of other optional modules to choose from. Our optional module lists are subject to change each year to keep the student learning experience current and up-to-date.

Find the most up-to-date optional module list on the Education Studies website.

Enacting Global Education and International Development (Professional Placement) is strongly recommended. 

This programme has a number of optional modules to choose from. Our optional module lists are subject to change each year to keep the student learning experience current and up-to-date. 

Find the most up-to-date optional module list on the Education Studies website.

We have revised the information on this page since publication. See the edits we have made and content history.

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