University College London (UCL)
Comparative Education MA
London, United Kingdom
MA
DURATION
5 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time, Part time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2026
TUITION FEES
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
The Comparative Education MA program offers students a comprehensive overview of education systems around the world. It focuses on understanding differences in how education is structured, delivered, and experienced across countries. The program encourages critical thinking about policies and practices, helping students explore issues like equity, globalization, and cultural contexts. Courses typically cover topics like educational theory, policy analysis, and research methods, giving students the tools to analyze various educational environments and develop a deeper understanding of global education challenges.
Students in this program are also encouraged to examine the historical, social, and political factors that shape education worldwide. The curriculum supports independent research and provides opportunities to compare different educational systems through case studies and empirical analysis. The program aims to prepare graduates for careers in research, policy-making, consultancy, or international organizations, where understanding diverse educational contexts is vital. Overall, it provides a solid foundation for anyone interested in pushing forward educational reform or working in international education sectors.
UCL Scholarships
There are a number of scholarships available to postgraduate students, including our UCL Masters Bursary for UK students and our UCL Global Masters Scholarship for international students. You can click the link below to search via the scholarships finder for awards that you might be eligible for. Your academic department will also be able to provide you with more information about funding.
External Scholarships
Online aggregators like Postgraduate Studentships, Scholarship Search, Postgraduate Funding and International Financial Aid and College Scholarship Search contain information on a variety of external schemes.
If you have specific circumstances or ethnic or religious background it is worth searching for scholarships/bursaries/grants that relate to those things. Some schemes are very specific.
Funding for disabled students
Master's students who have a disability may be able to get extra funding for additional costs they incur to study.
Teaching and learning
The programme adopts an inclusive approach that emphasises collective learning. All students are encouraged to participate in discussions and activities, and to collaborate in supporting one another's learning throughout the programme.
This programme is delivered via face-to-face evening sessions, from 5 pm to 8 pm. There are no online classes on this programme. Attendance may vary depending on your choice of optional modules. A range of forms of assessment will be used across the programme. Depending on the module, these may include essays, presentations, and other coursework assignments. All students are also required to complete a dissertation or a report. If the report is opted for, an additional optional module is required.
You can expect around 10 to 15 contact hours per week, which involve attending lectures, seminars, workshops, and discussions led by faculty members and guest experts. These interactive sessions foster intellectual exchange and provide a platform for clarifying concepts and addressing questions. In addition to contact hours, students are encouraged to dedicate approximately 20 to 25 hours per week to self-directed study. This entails reading recommended literature, conduction research, completing assignments, and preparing for assessments. Self-directed study empowers you to delve deeper into topics of interests, cultivate critical thinking skills, and develop a comprehensive understanding of comparative education.
Modules
Full-time
The programme consists of two core modules (60 credits), two optional modules (60 credits), and a dissertation (60 credits) OR two core modules (60 credits) and three optional modules (90 credits) and a report (30 credits).
Part-time
Over the two years, you will take two compulsory taught modules (60 credits), two optional modules (60 credits), and a dissertation (60 credits) OR three optional modules (90 credits) and a report (30 credits).
The first year of the programme introduces you to the foundation of doing comparative education research through the term 1 module, Comparative Education: Theories and Methods. In addition, you select a further one or two taught modules (compulsory and/or optional modules). In the second year, you will take the remaining modules (bringing the total number to four). You also begin work on your final research project, the dissertation or the report, with a submission date in early September.
Flexible
It is expected that you will begin your studies with the compulsory module Comparative Education: Theories and Methods and that you will sit the Dissertation or Report module in your final year of study. The remaining compulsory and optional modules can be taken in Years 1-5 depending on your own study plan that you will discuss with your personal tutor.
Compulsory modules
- Comparative Education: Theories and Methods
- Education Traditions and Systems in Europe
- Education and Development in Asia
- Dissertation on Comparative Education
- Report on Comparative Education
Optional modules
- Higher Education: Comparative and International Perspectives
- Understanding Education Research
- Debates in the History of Education
- Education and Muslim Communities
- Learners, Learning and Teaching in the Context of Education for All
- Education and International Development: Concepts, Theories and Issues
- Sociology of Education
- Minorities, Migrants and Refugees in National Education Systems
- Understanding Education Policy
- Education, Values and Identities
- Introduction to Quantitative Methods for Social Sciences
- International Perspectives on Adult Learning
- Innovation and Change in Higher Education
Please note that the list of modules given here is indicative. This information is published a long time in advance of enrolment and module content and availability are subject to change.
Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits Upon successful completion of 180 credits, you will be awarded an MA in Comparative Education.
Placement
We provide assistance for applying internship at the OECD and UNESCO.
What this course will give you
Students benefit from joining the Department of Education, Practice and Society, a dynamic, interdisciplinary department at IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society. The department brings together a diverse community of researchers with expertise in the social sciences who have a common interest in exploring education in all its guises: formal, non-formal and informal.
Students will also benefit from the department's extensive expertise and experience in research, knowledge transfer and consultancy in the UK, Europe and Asia. Staff in the department work closely with transnational bodies, such as, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, government departments, as well as with regional organisations, employer organisations, national institutes, and international organisations.
The foundation of your career
The Comparative Education MA will help you to develop key employability skills, which will make you attractive in both the public and private sector, e.g., international organisations, government departments, think tanks and consultancies, education businesses, and in research and teaching. We also offer MPhil/PhD programmes in the Department of Education, Practice, and Society, which provide opportunities to explore the field of Comparative Education in greater depth. We supervise across a broad range of areas within the comparative social sciences, comparative politics of education, and education development.
Employability
Recent career destinations for this degree:
- Internships in the OECD, UNESCO, and the EU
- Policy analysts, the OECD and the European Commission
- Researchers at think tanks, education businesses, and consultancies in Europe, Asia, and the USA.
- Government bodies and agencies
- PhD scholarships
Networking
There are opportunities to connect with the global community of researchers and policy analysts in the field of comparative education and education politics.