Early Childhood Education (100% online) (MA)

Entry requirements

Please see our website for further information on entry requirements for this course.

Months of entry

January, March, April, June, September, October

Course content

About the course
Help give children the best start in life with the Keele difference – a 100% online MA from a university ranked in the top 10 in England for Education

- 100% online MA within 24 months
- Keele alumni discount available

An online Master’s degree designed to equip educators with solid foundations, enabling young children to thrive

Keele’s 100% online MA Early Childhood Education is designed to prepare educators for professional practice in early years settings. Whether you’re a child psychologist, school counsellor, child therapist or support worker, gain the skills to enhance your career and help take it to the next level.

This programme is ideal if you are seeking to progress as an educator working with young children. Our education graduates have secured roles in a broad range of sectors and settings, including education, politics, local authorities, policy think tanks, business, national and international NGOs, the Civil Service, and the creative industries.

Flexible online study for practitioners seeking to improve the educational and life outcomes of children

This modular, part-time Master’s degree is ideal for professionals with busy lives and demanding schedules. We aim to remove barriers to learning, such as time, location and cost, so your studies will fit in with your existing commitments from the very beginning.

Access course content at times that suit you and establish your own study schedule around existing family or work commitments. Our flexible online approach allows you to further your career without taking a career break, making space for professional development but not at the expense of other responsibilities.

Choose from six start dates per year, so you can start your studies at a point that suits you for maximum freedom and flexibility.

There are no geographical barriers to studying our 100% online MA Early Childhood Education programme – and students join us from across the UK and the rest of the world.

This means you can meaningfully engage in your online Master’s wherever you’re based, and whatever your commitments. While you’ll never need to attend an on-campus session or face-to-face meeting, our remote learning model means you will still experience high quality teaching and learning. Your studies will be enriched by regular interaction and collaboration with tutors and peers via our online learning environment, where you will engage in group activities and discussions, meet learners from different backgrounds and experiences, and make valuable connections.

What you will learn
Develop the specialist skills and knowledge to support one of the most important stages of a child’s development. Alongside the fundamental building blocks of early learning – including child development and child psychology – you will gain a deep understanding of key issues in early education, from early years policy to developing and delivering a well-rounded curricula.

This programme particularly focuses on professional development, enabling you to reflect on your own practice and grow as an education professional.

Knowledge and skills taught through core modules include:
- How children learn, play and develop
- Early years education, policy and practice
- An interconnected view of education, employment and professional identity
- Issues in global education
- Reflective practice
- Research design
- Qualitative and quantitative research methodologies
- Preparing and developing a dissertation

An outstanding learning experience at a highly ranked university

Develop as a transformational early years practitioner at a leading university for education. Keele University is ranked in the Top 10 Universities in England for Education, according to the Complete University Guide 2021, and as a Global Top 300 institution for Education (Times Higher Education World Rankings 2023).

Your early childhood studies will be enhanced by our research-rich culture and environment. The latest Research Excellence Framework rated 80% of our research as either ‘world leading’ or ‘of international importance’, and your course content will be informed by cutting-edge developments and thinking across the sector.

You will learn from Keele experts who are pushing boundaries and developing solutions to global issues. With vast experience in early childhood education, they’ll support you to grow as an educator, ensuring your learning contains the key theoretical and practical understandings to help you succeed in education roles.

We’re passionate about delivering the best possible learning experiences for our students. You’ll be supported to thrive in a university ranked 1st in England for overall course satisfaction in the Guardian University rankings 2019.

Modules
- Children’s Learning, Play and Development
- Reflecting on Practice
- Education, Employment and Professional Identity
- Global Education Issues
- Research Methods
- Research Design
- Early Years in Practice
- Early Years, Policy and Education
- Preparing a Dissertation
- Dissertation

Information for international students

Please see our website for further information for international applicants for this course.

Fees and funding

Please see our website for further information on fees and funding for this course.