MA Education (Mentoring) (fully online)

To apply for this course, you must:

• Have a UK degree (2.2 or above).  For equivalent qualifications, contact education@buckingham.ac.uk to confirm that your qualification meets the University entry requirements.
• Be working as a mentor in an educational context.

The course includes:

• Establishing your research focus
• Discovering relevant literature and how to write a literature review
• What is expected of Level 7 academic writing?
• How to navigate the topic of research methodology
• Planning your dissertation
• Ethical considerations when researching

Every student is allocated a supervisor. You will regularly communicate for example, via Teams, Zoom, Email or another online meeting platform with your supervisor at times that are suitable for you both, to support each module. You will also have access to regular online study sessions throughout the course.

There are induction sessions to introduce you to how the course will run – on application you will receive a choice of dates where you will indicate when you will attend.

When the course starts you will have access to MOODLE, the University’s online learning platform and from there you will access the course handbook and all resources needed for successful completion of the course. In the handbook there is a week-by-week guide which will indicate what work is expected that week. This will either be:

• A recorded film to watch
• A reading
• Independent study towards a module
• A Twilight session which will be live, but recorded and shared on Moodle after the date. These Twilights are optional in terms of attendance as we know that many people struggle to be available at certain times. However, all these sessions are recorded and should then be watched after the live event. This means that as you progress through the course you end up having access to library of videos that you can re-visit, to support you to a successful outcome.

It is important to understand that you, as a Master’s Level student, will be expected to work independently and you are expected to fully engage with the guidance provided to complete the required modules.

Assessment is carried out through written assignments and evidence-based practice in mentoring recorded through the completion of course documentation tracking application to practice. Assistance is given throughout the course regarding the expectations of writing at Master’s level.

Who should take this course?

• Teachers in the UK and internationally
• Current mentors on ITT programmes
• Mentors in SCITTs
• Anyone mentoring in an education setting

1. You will acquire a new set of skills. You are required to engage with a wide range of arguments and be prepared to be critical of them, to synthesise arguments and perhaps most importantly to develop your own critical voice.
2. A fresh challenge can stop you becoming stale. Once you have been teaching for a while you can easily build up a lot of experience and expertise with the delivery of your work. Whilst it is great to be able to build upon that confidence it can also mean that you can become comfortable. This can mean, although not always, that you can become stale and possibly even out of date with your thinking. Ideas are always changing in Education; new research is always coming into effect and sometimes it is easy to fall behind and not be aware of new ideas. By undertaking a Master’s level course it will keep you fresh and up to date.
3. Research gives you an authoritative voice. As you develop your critical voice it becomes even more possible for you to speak confidently on a range of issues. This can give you a real boost, opening up new career opportunities to you.
4. You will connect with people outside of your comfort zone. Engaging with a Master’s level programme enables you to connect to a whole new group of people. These can be people we can then network with not only across the country, but across the globe.
5. You can study something you are genuinely interested in. Lots of people have different areas of interest, or problems they want to solve, or challenges they want to face, and these are often a product of the work and experience that you bring to the course. It is a great idea to work to discover more about these particular areas of interest and even to become an expert on that topic. This too might seem indulgent, but the great thing about carrying out research in Education is that there is a good chance that your discoveries can have a positive impact in the workplace.
6. It is an investment in yourself. Not necessarily in the monetary sense, it is more about thinking about yourself, the kind of person you are and what you want out of life. Are there things that you want to investigate further? It is about recognising the complexity of our identities in that we are more than our jobs and that we have a lot to offer the world. Spending the time (and money) on taking part in a Master’s level programme is worth it if you want to develop yourself and the way that you think.

This work-based online course comprises of four x 30 credit modules at Level 7 that will include covering all aspects of the Mentoring. Looking at Mentoring Standards will be combined with rigorous academic study at Master’s level, evaluating and critiquing a range of academic research relating to mentoring and relating to leadership skills and behaviours, integrating research with practice throughout. Students will be able to critically analyse, engage in and reflect on mentoring and evaluate the implications for their own educational setting. They will be expected to develop their ability to explore what it means to be a critically reflective practitioner in their work as a mentor.

Module 1: Introduction to Mentoring Theory (30 credits)

The first of the four modules in the Diploma introduces students to a range of theories relating to mentoring in education. Another aim is to combine the practical needs of mentoring in education with a wide range of scholarship on this topic.

Module 2: A Research Based Approach to Mentoring (30 credits)

This module builds upon the first module and focuses on existing research to understand how theory is implemented in practice. Building upon the theory and models explored in the previous module these topics aim to synthesise theory with their own experience. This module focused on developing further the skills required for effective mentoring.

Module 3 Critical reflections on Mentoring (30 credits)

This module enables students to critically reflect on their own practice and critically engage with research in the light of their own experience and context. This brings together the review of mentoring standards with the intellectual rigour of Master’s level writing. This module focuses on an extended assignment with guidance to develop appropriate evaluative skills.

Module 4: The Wider Context of Mentoring (30 credits)

The final module brings together the preceding modules, develops the implications of topics already raised, for example, dealing with difficult situations by examining complexity. There is also an opportunity to evaluate different research models of effective mentoring and places this in a wider context. The arguments surrounding mentoring and coaching are considered. The role of mentoring in an educational context are evaluated and the implications for leadership. Comparisons are also made between mentoring in education with different examples of mentoring. What can education learn from different contexts, e.g. business, psychology?

Module 5: Research Methodology and a Dissertation (60 credits)

This module is for all Masters students to be able to develop in-depth knowledge and understanding of a particular area of interest in the context of educational research. Through completing this module students gain knowledge of the research process itself and the ability to evaluate other research projects in a specific field. Once this has been undertaken students devise and carry out their own small-scale research project with guidance from the University and specifically their supervisor. Students engage with the topic of research methodology and through this process develop their own critical skills as reflective practitioners. This module introduces students to some of the complexities and challenges of engaging in educational research. The written assignment for this module is 12,000 – 15,000 words.

“The PG Dip in Mentoring is a fascinating course and extremely beneficial for developing practical skills with mentoring as well as engaging with relevant, cutting-edge academic research. The Buckingham course is one of the only courses of its kind, focussing exclusively on developing mentoring. The course leader and the lecturers are experts in their field and each online seminar has been a pleasure to attend. I have enjoyed the course so much that I intend to go on to complete the MA in mentoring when I have completed the PGDip. I cannot recommend this course highly enough for middle managers and senior leaders who want to enhance their skills in this important area of education.” – Mr P Bray, Director of Studies at New Hall School

“The course has been a real eye opener. At first, I was worried. I hadn’t written essays for about seven years and had quite a bit of help that time round. However, throughout the course, there has never been a question to silly and all the lecturers have been more than happy to provide their time, above and beyond their allocation. The essay clinics were a great help and strangely enjoyable.” – Mr Craig Nevard. Head of D and T, Wycombe High School

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Master’s degrees are awarded to students who have demonstrated:

• A systematic understanding of knowledge, and a critical awareness of current problems and/or new insights, much of which is at, or informed by, the forefront of their academic discipline, field of study or area of professional practice.
• A comprehensive understanding of techniques applicable to their own research or advanced scholarship.
• Originality in the application of knowledge, together with a practical understanding of how established techniques of research and enquiry are used to create and interpret knowledge in the discipline.
• Conceptual understanding that enables the student:
  – To evaluate critically current research and advanced scholarship in the discipline.
  – To evaluate methodologies and develop critiques of them and, where appropriate, to propose new hypotheses.

Typically, holders of the qualification will be able to:

• Deal with complex issues – both systematically and creatively, make sound judgements in the absence of complete data, and communicate their conclusions clearly to specialist and non-specialist audiences.
• Demonstrate self-direction and originality in tackling and solving problems, and act autonomously in planning and implementing tasks at a professional or equivalent level.
• Continue to advance their knowledge and understanding, and to develop new skills to a high level.

QAA, The Frameworks for Higher Education Qualifications of UK Degree-Awarding Bodies, February 2024

The University reserves the right to increase course fees annually in line with inflation linked to the Retail Price Index (RPI). If the University intends to increase your course fees it will notify you via email of this as soon as reasonably practicable.

Course fees do not include additional costs such as books, equipment, writing up fees and other ancillary charges. Where applicable, these additional costs will be made clear.

Fees will have a 50% reduction if you are a mentor on one of our ITT courses.

Applicants must also pay a £275 non-refundable Registration Fee.

This is a full Master’s course and so is eligible for a Postgraduate Master’s loan if you live in the UK (www.gov.uk/masters-loan).

Please use the ‘Apply now’ button on this page to make a direct application to this course.

If you have any enquiries, you can contact The Faculty of Education on +44 (0)1280 820222 or email: education@buckingham.ac.uk