Program Overview

Educational Leadership (MSc)

Overview

The MSc Educational Leadership recognises that a high-quality educational system depends on leaders from all walks of life and all types of positions, regardless of title. It is intended to provide leadership development for people who work in all manner of roles in education systems: classroom teachers, formal school leaders, local authority personnel, policymakers, and any individual with a direct interest in the primary and post-primary school sectors.

Programme Aims

The programme aspires to offer students a transformative experience that will equip them with the necessary knowledge, skills, and creative capacity to respond to a variety of leadership challenges faced in contemporary educational institutions. It challenges traditional notions of ‘leaders’ and ‘leadership’ pointing to new, more collaborative and more organic, models of leading and takes the view that leadership is a process. It is expected that graduates will be able to inform their professional practice with the latest research evidence in the field to nurture meaningful relationships in educational communities, address issues of equity and diversity, support teaching and learning, and ultimately, ensure quality outcomes which are tailored to contextual needs.

Entry Requirements

• Normally a strong 2.2 Honours degree (with minimum of 55%) or above or equivalent qualification acceptable to the University in any subject discipline.
• Closing date for applications: Friday 27th June 2025 at 4pm.
• Late applications may be considered.
• Applicants are advised to apply as early as possible. In the event that any programme receives a high number of applications, the University reserves the right to close the application portal prior to the deadline stated on course finder. Notifications to this effect will appear on the application portal against the programme application page.

International Students

• Our country/region pages include information on entry requirements, tuition fees, scholarships, student profiles, upcoming events and contacts for your country/region.
• Use the dropdown list below for specific information for your country/region.

English Language Requirements

• Evidence of an IELTS* score of 6.5, with not less than 5.5 in any component, or an equivalent qualification acceptable to the University is required.
• *Taken within the last 2 years.

Tuition Fees

• Northern Ireland (NI) £7,300
• Republic of Ireland (ROI) £7,300
• England, Scotland or Wales (GB) £9,250
• EU Other £21,500
• International £21,500

Additional Course Costs

• There are no specific additional course costs associated with this programme.

Career Prospects

• Some graduates have found this degree beneficial for improving leadership practice in their workplace.
• Others have found it beneficial in expanding the roles they undertake at work, and in gaining employment or promotion.
• Some progress to doctoral-level studies and research.
• Queen's postgraduates reap exceptional benefits. Unique initiatives, such as Degree Plus and Researcher Plus bolster our commitment to employability, while innovative leadership and executive programmes help our students gain key leadership positions both nationally and internationally.

Prizes and Awards

• Teachers working on classroom-based dissertation projects may apply for the Northern Ireland Centre for Educational Research (NICER) award.

Graduate Plus/Future Ready Award for extra-curricular skills

• In addition to your degree programme, at Queen's you can have the opportunity to gain wider life, academic and employability skills.
• For example, placements, voluntary work, clubs, societies, sports and lots more.
• So not only do you graduate with a degree recognised from a world leading university, you'll have practical national and international experience plus a wider exposure to life overall.
• We call this Graduate Plus/Future Ready Award. It's what makes studying at Queen's University Belfast special.

Modules

An Introduction to Research Methods: Children, Young People and Education

• This introductory research methods module is compulsory for all Masters students in the School of Education and assumes no previous experience or knowledge of research methods.
• The aim of the module is to provide a general research overview and to contextualize the broad range of approaches and debates that are evident within contemporary educational research.
• The module aims to provide students with an understanding of the theory and an appreciation of the differing perspectives that underpin quantitative and qualitative methodologies.

Leadership in Practice

• This module will examine leadership in practice with a particular focus on educational contexts.
• The module is designed to explore relevant and practical issues that leaders are likely to face in the workplace.
• There is connectivity and continuity between the foundational module EDU7185 (Leadership Theory) where students will have the opportunity to apply leadership theory to workplace settings.

Leadership for School Improvement and Change

• This module is designed to explore the role that leaders play in managing change processes in educational contexts and beyond.
• There is a constant pressure on schools and other educational settings to demonstrate improvement and effectiveness and as such schools are frequently involved in various and often overlapping change or improvement initiatives.

Dissertation

• The module is concerned with the production of a 15-20k word dissertation.
• Supervision takes place on a one-to-one basis.
• The dissertation may be composed of a literature review, systematic review, meta-analysis, secondary data analysis or an empirical study in an area of educational research.

Leadership: Theoretical Perspectives

• This module is foundational and designed to provide students with an overview of key leadership theories that will be applied and developed across the programme.
• The module takes the perspective that leadership is a process of influence that involves individuals and or groups seeking to achieve common goals.

Deconstructing Special Needs Education and Inclusion

• This module will focus on deconstructing special needs education (SEN) and inclusion by exploring how some popular approaches and theoretical models have influenced our understanding of SEN.

Social Justice in Special Needs Education and Inclusion: A Capability Approach

• In this core module, we will explore some of the complexities of understanding social justice in education and what it means to flourish, a much vaunted aim in education at present.

Digital Literacy and Communication

• The aim of this module is to examine theories of understanding and researching digital literacy.

E-learning: Concepts and Pract

• This module will enable you to explore the policies, issues, facts and the hype surrounding eLearning.

Bilingualism, Literacy and Disciplinary Literacy Development

• This module is designed to provide participants with a foundational understanding of bilingualism/multilingualism and models of bilingual/multilingual education.

Education Policy & Society: analysing reform and ideology

• This module provides students with theoretical frameworks and analytical skills for understanding and critically examining contemporary education policies and reforms.

Behaviour Change in Education and Supervising Others

• This module introduces students to the application of behaviour analysis for effective teaching.

Curriculum: Theory, Policy and Practice

• This module will provide students with an opportunity to explore the nature and design of the curriculum including the formal and informal curriculum and the hidden curriculum.

Reflective Practice and Action Research

• There is a growing body of literature highlighting the importance of practitioner-led enquiry and reflection, its centrality in the learning process and the key role it plays in continuing professional development.

Fundamental elements of behaviour change

• This module introduces students to the study of fundamentals of and specific procedures for behaviour change.

Epistemic Injustice: The Ethics of Knowing in Special Educational Needs/Inclusion

• What is a stereotype and how does a stereotype conduce to prejudice?

Understanding Children with ASD

• This module is designed to assist participants to develop and extend their skills in understanding the needs of children (aged 0-18) with ASD and their families.

Understanding Adults with ASD

• This module is designed to assist participants to develop and extend their skills in understanding the needs of adults with Autistic Spectrum Disorder and their families.