Master of Arts in Education

at Keele University United Kingdom

The MA/MRes in Politics and International Relations is distinctive as it is one of the most diverse collections of Masters pathways in the UK. The programme offers the possibility of developing an individual specialism as well as learning about broader issues in the pathway, and in wider fields of Politics and International Relations. You will gain a thorough grounding in the philosophical and practical issues underpinning study and research in Politics and International Relations. You will study 3 compulsory core taught modules, 4 optional modules and a dissertation over 12 months. 

Key benefits of studying for the MA/MRes in Politics and International Relations include; small class sizes, expert dissertation supervision on cutting-edge issues and debates, a dynamic academic community, strong student-staff relations and stimulating extra-curricular seminars and workshops. Staff and students regularly organise research events, which provide important opportunities for learning, networking and collegial debate on contemporary political and philosophical issues. For example, we host an annual Royal Institute of Philosophy lecture series, a bi-annual European Consortium on Political Research environmental politics PhD summer school, and in recent years have organised several ESRC-funded (Economic and Social Research Council) seminar series. 

Astrophysics is active wherever the laws of physics are being tested to the limit – and beyond. Keele will help you to use astronomical observations, mathematical models and computer simulation to develop theories explaining some of the most complex phenomena. You’ll develop your mathematics and computing skills, and apply them to solving a range of problems in the laboratory and beyond (you’ll have access to Keele’s own on-site observatory). We are committed to supporting you throughout your studies, providing you flexible access to our staff to seek advice or feedback.

You will study educational topics such as the nature of learning, the history of education, and educational policies and practices that aim to promote inclusion and social cohesion. Studying Education at Keele, either on its own or with another subject, will help you explore the many ways that education can change and effect modern society.
The course further examines topics such as changing ideas around childhood and learning, digital technologies, citizenship, race, play, work, the political nature of schools, and the impact of poverty on both the results and experience of education.
You may also have opportunities to explore these issues abroad by doing an International Year, which can lead to an enhanced degree title in BA (Hons) in Education with International Year.

The course involves three main aspects:

• the study of theories and ideas about media and cultural production in a global context
• the critical analysis of cultural texts and practices from around the world
• engagement in practical creative production.

The MA in Global Media and Culture seeks to explore the relationship between these three areas and to show how knowledge of each informs and influences the others. In addition, it will provide you with the skills necessary for academic study at an advanced level, either for those wishing to go on to further academic research, or as advanced preparation for those interested in pursuing careers in a range of media and culture industries.

The emphasis of the programme is the critical and analytical study of the contemporary global framework of media and cultural studies, the production and continuation of localised cultural identities within a global context, and a theoretically-informed approach to the creative production of media texts.

The Global Media and Culture programme at Keele University represents the multidisciplinary coming together of academics and practitioners from a range of fields. The distinctive nature of Keele as a pioneer for interdisciplinary academic study provides the Global Media and Culture Programme with an ideal basis for the development of cross-subject study.

The current uncertainty about the social and political future has led to the emergence of new forms of post-truth and conspiratorial politics, which make it extremely difficult for people to make reasonable decisions about their lives. In this context, one of the key purposes of the Social and Political Sciences programme is to equip students with the rigorous methodological, theoretical, and analytic skills that underpin the social and political sciences in order to identify real world problems, collect information about them, and produce analyses designed to suggest workable solutions moving forward into an uncertain future.

Given the situation of the contemporary world in the middle of a period of enormous transformation, these skills will be essential for students concerned with equipping themselves for employment in a rapidly changing world, but also vital for people who want to contribute to social and political transformation for the better.

With almost 2.5 million untrained ‘accidental managers’ in the UK alone, the need to upskill future business leaders is widely accepted as one of the top organisational priorities. Poor management costs this country around £84bn in lost productivity each year, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Grounded in theory and practice, our MSc will equip you with the necessary knowledge, skills and techniques to overcome some of the problems associated with substandard management – low staff morale, loss of talent, inadequate budgeting, reduced productivity and missed commercial opportunities.

Instead, we’ll prepare you to perform executive duties in ways which motivate others and achieve business objectives successfully, with the flexibility to adapt and thrive in rapidly changing and uncertain external environments.

Referring to real-life business examples and hearing direct from businesses, you’ll gain a comprehensive understanding of the strategic and operational challenges that can arise, in areas such as leadership, ethics or sustainability, for example. The Business School’s Grand Challenges lecture series invites key speakers to provide fresh perspectives on the political, ethical and intellectual problems we face as a world today, while our Lunchtime Lectures centre on leadership in the context of complexity and inclusion.

Your final project will give you the opportunity to directly transfer your learning to the workplace by researching a current management topic, responding to a specific business issue or undertaking a ‘live’ work-based project.

The MSc in Smart Energy Management is aimed at developing an advanced knowledge of the underlying principles and concepts of smart grids, enabling technologies of smart energy such as the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence (AI), as well as cross-disciplinary issues such as sustainability.

The course will also develop and extend the practical skills that are necessary for the designing, building, and evaluation of smart energy systems such as strategy management and consultancy skills.

Graduates from this programme should be able to undertake both development and management roles. The course recognises the wide variety of potential destinations for students after completion of their course and as such uses compulsory modules to deliver key skills and enable students to obtain the required knowledge.

The course also teaches you the skills needed to become a consultant through dedicated modules where you are taught and assessed through applying your learning to real-world problems. The programme will be delivered in conjunction with the £15M SEND (Smart Energy Network Demonstrator) at Keele University. SEND centres on strong collaborations between Keele, Siemens and local SMEs with the aim to create Europe’s first ‘at scale’ Smart Energy Network Demonstrator on Keele campus – a living laboratory where new smart energy, data analytics, and IoT technologies can be researched, developed and tested.

The goal of medicinal chemistry is to support the search for new drugs to treat conditions such as heart disease and cancer. You’ll work in well-equipped laboratories, and learn to conduct effective independent research, and explore complex chemical and biological processes involved in the design and manufacture of drugs and other therapies for treating disease. You’ll develop essential skills for employment, such as problem solving, presentation and communication.

Taking Physics as part of a Combined Honours degree, will allow you to explore the subject fundamentals, including quantum mechanics, relativity and electromagnetism, and apply this knowledge to solve problems, plan investigations, analyse results and to report and present your work.

You’ll use mathematics to describe the physical world, and learn to plan and conduct investigations before reporting your results. Your course will be informed by the research interests of your teaching staff and laboratory sessions will enable you to investigate unfamiliar phenomena and acquire specialist techniques.

In Astrophysics, you will learn to formulate and tackle problems – from below the level of the atomic nucleus to astronomical scales. Astrophysics is active wherever the laws of physics are being tested to the limit – and beyond. Keele will help you to use astronomical observations, mathematical models and computer simulation to develop theories explaining some of the most complex phenomena.

You’ll develop your mathematics and computing skills, and apply them to solving a range of problems in the laboratory and beyond (you’ll have access to Keele’s own on-site observatory). We are committed to supporting you throughout your studies, providing you flexible access to our staff to seek advice or feedback.

Alongside this you will be studying Environmental Science. This course crosses the traditional divide between the natural and social sciences, providing the necessary holistic perspective to understand environment and sustainability issues, and to develop strategies to work towards a more sustainable future. For society to tackle the environmental and sustainability problems we now face, we need people who can grapple with both the scientific and human aspects of those issues. That’s why this innovative course is taught across three different faculties, integrating a range of disciplines that might include, geo and environemental sciences, life sciences, chemical sciences, politics and international relations, management, and health.

Studying History at Keele will enable you to develop your appreciation of various global histories, whilst enjoying the rich history of our local area. In your spare time, you might find yourself exploring the largest collection of Anglo-Saxon metalwork most likely deposited in the 7th century in the then Kingdom of Mercia. The Staffordshire Hoard provides a window to England in the 6th and 7th centuries and also to the warrior elite that existed during these times and now rests less than 5 miles away from Keele.

Our History programme will carry you chronologically from the medieval period to the present, and span the globe. You will be introduced to a wide range of history – from political, social, economic and cultural history to the history of gender, health, sexuality and religion. Throughout your first year, you may engage in modules that encourage you to explore topics such as how European rulers tried to strengthen their authority with the increase of military power between the late fifteenth and late seventeenth centuries, or some of the key defining moments in History which may include the 1720 South Sea Bubble in Britain, the 1791 Haitian Revolution or the 1933 Bauhaus movement.