Educational Leadership and Management MSc/PgDip/PgCert
MSc/PgDip/PgCert Educational Leadership and Management
MSc PgDip PgCert Educational Leadership and Management
Overview
If you're currently working in an educational role and want to develop your leadership and management skills – and get a qualification that'll help you fulfil your career ambitions – this course is for you.
On our Educational Leadership and Management course, offered as a MSc, PgDip, PgCert, you'll learn about leadership strategy, decision-making in education, and human resource management. And whether you're a teacher, social and healthcare worker, police trainer, nurse or youth worker, you'll build on your previous skills, studies and experience and develop your expertise, theories and techniques to postgraduate level.
Once you graduate, you'll have developed the skills and knowledge to take on new responsibilities in educational leadership and management, and to seek out ambitious new roles.
You can study on campus or through distance learning, and full or part-time while you continue to work. If you're not already working in education, please take a look at our MA Education Studies course.
You can study this course full-time, part-time or part-time by distance learning. The MSc and PgDip takes 1 year full-time and 2 years part-time. The PgCert takes 6 months full-time and 1 year part-time.
Start dates
All variations of this course start in September and January.
Entry requirements
Educational Leadership and Management entry requirements
Qualifications or experience
- A minimum of a second-class honours degree or equivalent in a relevant subject. Equivalent professional experience and/or qualifications will be considered.
English language requirements
- English language proficiency at a minimum of IELTS band 6.5 with no component score below 6.0.
If you don't meet the English language requirements yet, you can achieve the level you need by successfully completing a pre-sessional English programme before you start your course.
Qualifications or experience
- A minimum of a second-class honours degree or equivalent in a relevant subject.
- Equivalent professional experience and/or qualifications will be considered.
English language requirements
- English language proficiency at a minimum of IELTS band 6.5 with no component score below 6.0.
If you don't meet the English language requirements yet, you can achieve the level you need by successfully completing a pre-sessional English programme before you start your course.
What you'll experience
On this course, you'll:
- Learn the key themes in current research and professional practice, through a combination of lectures, seminars, group work and presentations
- Be taught be experts who bring their enthusiasm to the classroom, including a personal tutor who will guide you in your studies
- Apply what you learn in your current workplace, to ensure that your learning is meaningful and professionally relevant
- Stay connected to your lecturers through our online virtual learning environment
- Write a dissertation based on your chosen area of interest (MSc only)
- Have 24/7 access to our university library
Careers and opportunities
We'll provide you with as much support as possible in finding employment through close contacts, careers events, recruitment fairs and individual advice.
What can you do with an Educational Leadership and Management Distance Learning course?
The course is ideal for teachers, educational trainers, lecturers and instructors across the educational sector, who aspire to senior leadership and management positions. Many graduates move on to senior management positions in educational organisations.
Work experience and career planning
We'll help you to identify opportunities that will complement your studies.
When you finish the course, our Careers and Employability service can help you find a job that puts your leadership and management skills to work in the education industry.
After you leave the University, you can get help, advice and support for up to 5 years from our Careers and Employability service as you advance in your career.
What you'll study on this MSc/PgDip/PgCert Educational Leadership and Management course
Each module on this course is worth a certain number of credits.
You need to study modules worth a total of 180 credits. For example, 4 modules worth 30 credits and 1 module worth 60 credits.
Modules
All courses
- Human Resource Management in Education (Core; 30 credits)
- Decision Making in Education (Optional; 30 credits)
MSc / PgDip only
- Leadership, Policy and Strategy: The Management of Educational Change (Core; 30 credits)
- Research Methods in Education (Core; 30 credits)
MSc / Distance-learning only
- Education in a Global Context (Optional; 30 credits)
MSc only
- Dissertation (Core; 60 credits)
Changes to course content
We use the best and most current research and professional practice alongside feedback from our students to make sure course content is relevant to your future career or further studies.
Therefore, some course content may change over time to reflect changes in the discipline or industry and some optional modules may not run every year. If a module doesn't run, we'll let you know as soon as possible and help you choose an alternative module.
Learning support
As well as support by faculty teaching staff and your personal tutor, you can use the University’s Academic Skills Unit (ASK).
ASK provides one-to-one support in areas such as:
academic writingnote takingtime managementcritical thinkingpresentation skillsreferencing working in groupsrevision , memory and exam techniques
Teaching
Teaching on this course includes:
- seminars
- group work
- lectures
- student presentations
- one-to-one tutorials
How you'll spend your time
Each academic year is divided into 2 teaching blocks:
- September/October to December/January – teaching block 1
- January/February to May – teaching block 2
How you're assessed
You'll be assessed through:
- online tests and quizzes
- reflective commentaries
- case study work
- article critiques
- online discussions
- research proposal
- a dissertation
Course costs and funding
Tuition fees
All fees subject to annual increase.
MSc
UK/EU/Channel Islands and Isle of Man students
- Full-time (September 2022 and January 2023 start): £9,400
- Part-time (September 2022 start): £4,700 per year (90 credits)
- Part-time distance learning (September 2022 and January 2023 start): £4,050 per year (90 credits)
International students
- Full-time (September 2022 and January 2023 start): £16,200
- Part-time (September 2022 start): £8,100 per year (90 credits)
- Part-time distance learning (September 2022 and January 2023 start): £4,050 per year (90 credits)
PgDip
UK/EU/Channel Islands and Isle of Man students
- Full-time (September 2022 start): £6,270
- Part-time (September 2022 start): £3,130 per year (60 credits)
- Part-time distance learning (September 2022 start): £2,700 per year (60 credits)
International students
- Full-time (September 2022 start): £10,800
- Part-time (September 2022 start): £5,400 per year (60 credits)
- Part-time distance learning (September 2022 start): £2,700 per year (60 credits)
PgCert
UK/EU/Channel Islands and Isle of Man students
- Full-time (September 2022 start): £3,130 (60 credits)
- Part-time (September 2022 start): £3,130 (60 credits)
- Part-time distance learning (September 2022 start): £2,700 (60 credits)
International students
- Full-time (September 2022 start): £5,400 (60 credits)
- Part-time (September 2022 start): £5,400 (60 credits)
- Part-time distance learning (September 2022 start): £2,700 (60 credits)
Funding your studies
Find out more how to fund your studies, including the scholarships and bursaries you could get. You can also find more about tuition fees and living costs, including what your tuition fees cover.
If you're a UK student, you may be eligible for a Government postgraduate loan, which you can use to help with course fees and living costs.
Applying from outside the UK? Find out about funding options for international students.
Additional course costs
These course-related costs aren’t included in the tuition fees. So you’ll need to budget for them when you plan your spending.
Additional costs
Our accommodation section shows your accommodation options and highlights how much it costs to live in Portsmouth.
You’ll study up to 6 units a year. You may have to read several recommended books or textbooks for each unit.
You can borrow most of these from the Library. If you buy these, they may cost up to £60 each.
We recommend that you budget £75 a year for photocopying, memory sticks, DVDs and CDs, printing charges, binding and specialist printing.
If your final year includes a major project, there could be cost for transport or accommodation related to your research activities. The amount will depend on the project you choose.
There may be travel costs for internships/placements. These will vary depending on the nature of internship/placements and can range from £50 - £1000.
Apply
Start your application by choosing which award you want to study below.
Don't worry if you change your mind – it's easy to switch to a different award or mode of study after you apply.
Starting in September 2022
- Full-time study September 2022 start (1 year)
- Part-time study September 2022 start (2 years)
- Distance learning study September 2022 start (2 years)
Starting in January 2023
- Full Time January 2023 start (1 year)
- Distance learning study January 2023 start (2 years)
Starting in September 2022
- Full time study (1 year)
- Part time study (2 years)
- Distance learning study (2 years)
Starting in September 2022
- Full-time study (6 months)
- Part-time study (1 year)
- Distance learning study (1 year)
International students
If you're from outside of the UK, you can apply directly to us (above) or you can get an agent to help with your application. Check your country page for details of agents in your region. To find out what to include in your application, head to the how to apply page of our international students section.
If you don’t meet the English language requirements for this course yet, you can achieve the level you need by successfully completing a pre-sessional English programme before you start your course.
Admissions terms and conditions
When you accept an offer to study at the University of Portsmouth, you also agree to abide by our Student Contract (which includes the University's relevant policies, rules and regulations). You should read and consider these before you apply.
- Subject area
- Childhood, Youth Studies and Education



