King's College London - Faculty of Social Science & Public Policy
MA in STEM Education
London, United Kingdom
MA
DURATION
2 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time, Part time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2025
TUITION FEES
GBP 30,000 / per year **
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* first application deadline
** International students | UK students: £13,500 per year
Key Summary
National and international interest in encouraging STEM subject uptake and career pathways has increased over the last decade, driven by concerns about the shortfalls in filling technical and professional roles across various engineering, science and technology-related sectors.
These concerns are further amplified when we consider the skills likely to be needed by future generations in an increasingly technological society to address environmental sustainability challenges.
Whilst urgent, the response required is complex, necessitating an understanding of international education systems, the separate STEM subjects, including their shared elements and processes as well as their distinctive features, policy directives, new pedagogical approaches such as project-based learning, computational thinking and the variety of STEM-related contexts.
The MA in STEM Education welcomes students seeking the knowledge and skills to drive educational change in response to our increasingly technological and science-rich world. The MA in STEM will provide a national, international and practically-oriented understanding of how core debates across formal and informal STEM education can shape responses to pressing social and environmental questions.
Key benefits
- Engage in contemporary empirical and practical debates concerning STEM-related education leading to the development of skills to analyse and develop educational policy and practice critically
- Gain academic skills and practical knowledge of research methodologies, and learn to apply historical, social, political and philosophical perspectives to social questions
- Work with academics who are world-leading in their fields and committed to high-quality research-led education. As well as having an extensive history of STEM-related education research, the experience of the course team extends beyond academia to include work with professional societies, subject associations and a variety of informal learning institutions
- Gain unique insights into STEM education organisations through optional placements. Our links with organisations and institutions across London will provide you with an array of opportunities for learning and forging new relationships
- Study in a friendly, vibrant and supportive School, located by the Thames in the heart of central London
Course essentials
Our programme is designed to provide students with an advanced and comprehensive understanding of key contemporary debates concerning STEM-related education, including policy, curriculum, pedagogy and assessment issues alongside global concerns about equity, social justice, economic growth, climate change and sustainability. It provides both an international and national focus, looking at both formal educational systems and the wider context of education.
There is a strong emphasis on critiquing research literature and policy documents and developing first-hand knowledge of research methodologies. The programme encourages collaborative working, building professional networks and asking research questions pertinent to your contexts and challenges.
Duration: One year full-time, September to September, two years part-time
Structure
Courses are divided into modules. The MA in STEM Education comprises modules that total 180 credits. Part-time students can take modules over two years. Please note: students who are transferring in Master’s level credits (e.g. from a PGCE, if taken within 10 years of your completion date of this MA course) will be exempt from the corresponding number of optional module credits, but must take the 60 credit required dissertation research module, as well as the compulsory taught module.
Required modules
Courses are divided into modules. The MA in STEM Education comprises modules that total 180 credits. Part-time students can take modules over two years.
You are required to take the following modules:
- Principles & Policy of STEM Education (30 credits)
- Research Methods and Dissertation (60 credits)
Optional modules
In addition, you are required to take up to 90 credits worth of optional modules which may typically include:
- Environment, sustainability and the role of education (30 credits)
- Leading Practice in STEM (Computing, Maths & Science) (30 credits)
- STEM Education Placement (30 credits) [Full-time students only]
- STEM: Making & Creating (30 credits)
- Quantitative Methods in the Context of Education Research (30 credits)
- Recent Development in Digital Technologies in Education (30 credits)
If you are not transferring in credits, you can choose one option from a range of optional modules that may typically include:
- International & Comparative Education (30 credits)
- Educational Leadership and Change in Context (30 credits)
- Theories of Change in Schooling: Truth, Power, Evidence (30 credits)
- Social Justice & Education Policy (30 credits)
- Gender, Power and Inequality in Education Leadership (30 credits)
- Language & Power (30 credits)
- Psychology & Learning (30 credits)
- Teacher Development (30 credits)
- The Political Economy of Education in a Globalised World (30 credits)
- The Social Context of Education (30 credits)
Please note: students who are transferring in Master’s level credits (e.g. from a PGCE, if the PGCE was started within 10 years of your expected completion date of this MA course) will be exempt from the corresponding number of optional module credits, but must take the 60 credit required dissertation research module, as well as the compulsory taught module. If your credit transfer is approved, you will also be eligible for a proportional fee reduction, which will be processed following your enrolment into the programme.
King’s College London reviews the modules offered regularly to provide up-to-date, innovative and relevant programmes of study. Therefore, the modules offered may change. We suggest you keep an eye on the course finder on our website for updates.
Please note that modules with a practical component will be capped due to educational requirements, which may mean that we cannot guarantee a place for all students who elect to study this module.
The MA in STEM Education provides a rigorous intellectual and practical grounding for aspiring and current STEM faculty heads and senior leaders working in local authority, academy trusts and private chains, locally, nationally and internationally; aspiring and current education staff working in STEM-related organisations including private firms, government departments, Societies, professional institutions and informal learning contexts (e.g. museums, science centres, maker-spaces).
The programme will also provide a good basis for STEM graduates with aspirations to work in organisations that shape the STEM education policy and communication agenda. The programme does not lead to qualified teacher status.