Education (Research)

The information provided on this page was correct at the time of publication (November 2025). For complete and up-to-date information about this course, please visit the relevant University of Oxford course page via www.graduate.ox.ac.uk/ucas.

The DPhil in Education is intended to provide you with the wide range of research skills required of a professional educational researcher, as well as in-depth knowledge, understanding and expertise in your chosen field of research.

All doctoral students belong to one or more of the three major research themes in the department, including typically, their supervisor’s, becoming part of a vibrant educational research community with an active set of doctoral student-led events, seminars and conferences.

You will be given opportunities to present your work at a variety of seminars and sessions in the department, including student-run conferences. In addition, the department as a whole sponsors regular seminars and public lectures which attract distinguished national and international speakers.

You will develop your skills through a range of research methods and skills training courses, particularly in your first year (first two years if you are studying part-time). At the heart of the skills provision is the Research Training Seminar, where you will present and develop your research ideas and proposals with the benefit of feedback and support from your peers. You will work closely with supervisors on literature review and study design for your thesis, and you are encouraged to make the most of the doctoral training and research methods provision available across the Social Sciences Division.