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Learning and Leadership EdD

London, Bloomsbury

The EdD is a research degree for experienced professionals from education and related fields who would like to extend their professional understanding and develop skills in research, evaluation and high-level reflection on practice. Development of the student cohort provides an important element of the EdD so that a learning community is established from the start of the course.

UK students International students
Study mode
Part-time
UK tuition fees (2026/27)
£3,790
Overseas tuition fees (2026/27)
£15,650
Duration
Up to 7 Years
Programme starts
September 2026
Applications accepted
All applicants: 20 Oct 2025 – 21 Jul 2026
Applications close at 5pm UK time

Applications open

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Entry requirements

Applicants should have at least four years' full-time experience in a relevant professional area related to Education and should normally hold a postgraduate Master’s degree. We require a transcript of the Master's degree.

Applicants should submit a 2,000-word statement summarising their potential area/s of research interest and explaining how the EdD programme would enhance their professional development. To be invited for interview, applicants must have a principal supervisor confirmed before the application closing date.

The English language level for this course is: Level 4

UCL Pre-Master's and Pre-sessional English courses are for international students who are aiming to study for a postgraduate degree at UCL. The courses will develop your academic English and academic skills required to succeed at postgraduate level.

Further information can be found on our English language requirements page.

Equivalent qualifications

Country-specific information, including details of when UCL representatives are visiting your part of the world, can be obtained from the International Students website.

International applicants can find out the equivalent qualification for their country by selecting from the list below. Please note that the equivalency will correspond to the broad UK degree classification stated on this page (e.g. upper second-class). Where a specific overall percentage is required in the UK qualification, the international equivalency will be higher than that stated below. Please contact Graduate Admissions should you require further advice.

About this degree

Research undertaken on the EdD course can be based in any area of education, subject to the applicant being able to identify suitable principal and subsidiary supervisors within UCL Institute of Education (IOE). Potential candidates should explore staff profiles and the IOE department and centre list to identify an appropriate supervisor before submitting an application. Applications submitted without agreement from a principal supervisor from within the Department of Learning and Leadership cannot be considered.

Who this course is for

The EdD course is designed for individuals who have a passion for exploring educational and social research related to their professional employment context. An EdD research exploration may span the entirety of your professional experience and can encompass various subject domains, as well as broader socio-economic, political, and cultural transformations. Typically, applicants are expected to have attained a Master's degree and most importantly, to have a genuine commitment to cultivate expertise in a particular research domain. Whether you come from an educational background or a related field of study within an educational context, the EdD is well-suited to individuals who wish to reflect on and advance their career in an educational landscape.

Read about what it takes to become a UCL graduate research student

What this course will give you

The IOE EdD course has been running since 1996. It is one of the longest-running EdD courses within the UK and recruits a large cohort, granting our students access to a valuable selection of fellow education practitioners to work with during the course. You will study at the IOE, rated number one for Education in the QS world rankings by subject (2025) for twelve consecutive years. 

Based within an education institute with an exceptional reputation for high-quality research we offer access to an experienced and well-regarded EdD course team. In addition, each EdD student will, from year two onwards, work closely with both a principal and subsidiary research supervisor. 

Find out how your research could have an impact

The foundation of your career

Research undertaken at IOE will help students build connections between education and other related areas, such as economic and social status, employment, medicine, health and welfare, child development and families. In searching out answers to major questions and looking for solutions to fundamental social issues, our students will develop careers which have a direct bearing on all members of society. Through their research, students will make a contribution to both professional and academic knowledge.

Employability

EdD graduates are currently working as teachers, university and college lecturers and researchers, college principals and directors, policy analysts and education consultants in a variety of fields e.g., teacher education, medical education, early years, compulsory and post compulsory schooling including Further Education and Higher Education.

Networking

In addition to the compulsory induction for the EdD course you are also welcome to attend the induction and UCL Doctoral School welcome events. These provide a foundation for networking opportunities with the research community. These events support the development of the EdD cohort identity irrespective of which department you applied to.

Each year, students are able to attend events organised by the IOE's Centre for Doctoral Education. Typically, these include the Graduate Seminar in term 1, a poster conference in term 2, and a doctoral student conference in term 3. The Doctoral School Virtual Learning Environment noticeboard outlines current events and opportunities. Our website provides information about IOE facilities, training courses, conferences and other events, and advice on applying to study at IOE.

During your time as a registered doctoral student with us, you can also share information about your research interests via your own research page.

Teaching and learning

The course embraces a wide range of contemporary models of andragogy and professional learning, including:

  • lectures and seminars
  • workshops and group activities
  • reflective practice
  • writing and reading skills for doctoral learning

Students work with academic staff and fellow EdD students in developing professional understanding, insight and research skills.

Over the first year, students complete three taught modules:

  • Foundations of Professionalism in Education
  • Methods of Enquiry 1
  • Methods of Enquiry 2.

In the Autumn term of Year 2, students will attend a workshop to prepare the Portfolio Reflective Statement assessment (the last of the four assessments that make up the first 180 credits for the EdD course).

In addition, students should complete at least two research courses (non-assessed), drawn from the Centre for Doctoral Education's Advanced Research Training Programme and the UCL Doctoral Training Programme.

The Institution Focused Study (IFS) is unique to the EdD course and takes place during years two and three. It enables students to study an institution or organisation concerned with educational provision, organisation and support and with which they are professionally connected. The development of the IFS is with the guidance of the student's research supervisory team. Supplementary support is provided through the eight compulsory IFS workshops in years 2-3. The IFS is the transition phase between taught modules and thesis phase. The IFS is submitted as a 20,000-word research report.

After successful completion of the IFS, students will prepare a proposal to start their thesis research. The thesis will make a distinct contribution to the knowledge in the field of study and afford evidence of originality and a capacity for autonomous research. This research usually relates to the IFS and the work carried out in the taught part of the course. We provide support through meetings with your specialist supervisors and regular thesis workshops. The thesis is submitted between years 4-7.

  • The first module, Foundations of Professionalism in Education (Term 1), must be attended face-to-face either through an intense week at the start of the course or through three weekends in Term 1 (the first runs Friday, Saturday and Monday and the remaining two on Friday and Saturday).
  • Methods of Enquiry 1 (Term 2) and Methods of Enquiry 2 (Term 3) are taught through three Friday and Saturday weekends. 
  • Year 2 comprises mandatory Workshops 1-6 and in Year 3, Workshop 7 is optional, but strongly recommended. Workshop 8 is again mandatory. 
  • There are also Thesis Workshops (Years 3-4 onwards).

The timetable for the next academic year is available on request.

Assessment criteria specific to each element of the EdD course are set out in the assessment guidance issued annually.

Assessment for the first year of taught modules involves the submission of written assignments. For each assessment, students are able to submit a draft and receive formative feedback to work on before a final assignment is submitted, marked and a grade awarded.

Of the 4 assignments submitted, two must be awarded a Grade of 60% or more to allow progression to Year 2. In the second year, students complete a 20,000-word Institutional Focused Study (IFS) and this is graded by two markers – students must again achieve a Grade 60% or above to progress to preparation for a thesis proposal prior to the formal review (similar but different to an upgrade).

The formal review proposal is read by a panel of two academics and the student attends an interview to discuss the proposal. The student brings a summary of their previous assignments and a thesis proposal that is building on this former writing and research experience. If, after this, it is judged as being of a suitable academic calibre and methodological rigour, the candidate can the move to the final thesis stage which is assessed with the presentation of a thesis to two external examiners and a viva (oral) examination.

In year one, teaching and tutorial time for a typical part-time EdD student is on average of approximately 8-10 hours per week during term times. This is usually scheduled as three blocks of two-day teaching sessions each term. In addition, students are expected to undertake a similar number of hours of self-study each week.

In subsequent years, cohort-based classes are gradually replaced by individual meetings scheduled with supervisors. The time allocated to this will vary, with some periods of more intensive research.

Research areas and structure

Each EdD student is based within one of the six IOE departments depending on where the principal research supervisor (nominated and approached by the candidate and approved by the supervisor before application) is located:

You will apply for this Learning and Leadership EdD if your confirmed principal supervisor is located in the Department of Learning and Leadership.

Research environment

IOE is a world-leading centre for research in education and related social sciences. We host the UK's largest doctoral cohort in these areas. In the QS World University Rankings by Subject (2025), the IOE was ranked first for education for the twelfth year running, ahead of Harvard, Stanford, Oxford and Cambridge. In the UK's recent Research Excellence Framework (2021), we were ranked first for research strength and research power in Education, according to the Elsevier REF 2021 Results Analysis Tool. We attract extensive research funding each year and host many prestigious research centres and projects.

As a research student in the department, you can participate in the seminars organised by department research centres and special interest groups within your department and across the whole of IOE. You have access to the world renowned UCL library catalogue and the IOE’s specialist Education library – through these you can access publications of all kinds to ensure you have the resources to support your EdD journey. 

EdD is only available as a part-time course. Students are required to be in employment in an education-related field. The course duration is 4-7 years.

Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4

Compulsory modules





Compulsory modules



Compulsory modules



Compulsory modules



Accessibility

The department will endeavour to make reasonable adjustments for students with disabilities, including those with long-term health conditions, neurodivergence, learning differences and mental health conditions. This list is not exhaustive. If you're unsure of your eligibility for reasonable adjustments at UCL, please contact Student Support and Wellbeing Services.

Reasonable adjustments are implemented on a case-by-case basis. With the student's consent, reasonable adjustments are considered by UCL Student Support and Wellbeing Services, and where required, in collaboration with the respective department.

Details of the accessibility of UCL buildings can be obtained from AccessAble. Further information about support available can be obtained from UCL Student Support and Wellbeing Services.

For more information about the department and accessibility arrangements for your course, please contact the department.


Visit us

All open days and events

Online - Open day

Graduate Open Events: Research courses: MPhil/PhD including Integrated Research Methods routes

IOE's impactful research leads the world in education and related social science. It informs our doctoral courses, supporting the largest cohort of education students in the UK. Meet our academics, hear about the courses you are interested in and have the chance to ask any questions you might have.

Watch on demand event

Fees and funding

Fees for this course

UK students International students
Fee description Part-time
Tuition fees (2026/27) £3,790
Tuition fees (2026/27) £15,650

Postgraduate Taught students benefit from a cohort guarantee, meaning that their tuition fees will not increase during the course of the programme, but UCL reserves the right to increase tuition fees to reflect any sums (including levies, taxes, or similar financial charges) that UCL is required to pay any governmental authority in connection with tuition fees.

The tuition fees shown are for the year indicated above. Where the course is offered on a flexible/modular basis, fees are charged pro-rata to the appropriate full-time Master's fee taken in an academic session. Further information on fee status, fee increases and the fee schedule can be viewed on the UCL Students website: ucl.ac.uk/students/fees.

Additional costs

Students are responsible for covering any travel, accommodation and expenses involved in their Institution-Focused Study and/or thesis, and should account for these costs when planning their finances.

For in-person teaching, UCL’s main teaching locations are in zones 1 (Bloomsbury) and zones 2/3 (UCL East). The cost of a monthly 18+ Oyster travel card for zones 1-2 is £119.90. This price was published by TfL in 2025. For more information on additional costs for prospective students and the cost of living in London, please view our estimated cost of essential expenditure at UCL's cost of living guide.

Funding your studies

EdD students should enquire with their employers about the possibility of full or partial funding. You may also be eligible for a UK Doctoral Loan - more details about who can apply and what you might get are at https://www.gov.uk/doctoral-loan

For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.

See all the ways you can fund your studies

Next steps

Before you apply for the EdD you should contact a potential principal supervisor: see our guidance on finding a supervisor. Applications will not be considered without agreement and confirmation of a principal supervisor.

Applicants should provide a 2,000-word research proposal summarising their proposed research should they be admitted to the EdD, stating how the course would enhance their professional development. 

All students are interviewed by the course leader and potential principal supervisor before being offered a place on the EdD. Interviews usually happen within six weeks of the complete application being received. The EdD has a rolling application process so early application is advised if a place is to be secured for the coming academic year. Potential supervisors may not be available in July/August. Therefore, securing a principal supervisor before July is strongly advised.

Please note that you may submit applications for a maximum of two graduate courses (or one application for the Law LLM) in any application cycle.

Choose your programme

Please read the Application Guidance before proceeding with your application.

Year of entry: 2026-2027

Apply for this course

Got questions? Get in touch

Learning and Leadership
Learning and Leadership

ioe.edd@ucl.ac.uk

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