Higher Education University of Surrey

Overview

At the University of Surrey   you'll benefit from our vibrant research culture and you’ll work alongside leading academics who are at the forefront of their respective fields, giving you access to expertise in a range of areas of higher education.

What you will study

Our PhD is research-based, so you’ll spend most of your time developing a research question, conducting original research, analysing your results and writing up your findings, all under the guidance of your project supervisors. We’ll also give you tailored research methods training through online and face-to-face tutorials.

Current students are researching topics including:

• Internationalisation of higher education: Chinese language learning in Pakistan.
• Promoting English foreign language students’ willingness to communicate through teacher classroom behaviour and strategies in the Saudi context.
• Challenges to teaching values: Exploring the effect of changing national context on the professional identity of international academics teaching in UK universities.
• Students’ experiences: Neoliberal expectations and students’ mental health in British higher education.
• Enhancing EFL students’ feedback literacy in China’s application-oriented universities.

We will equip you with the skills and knowledge needed to shape professional practice and policy, allowing you to pursue a highly fulfilling career in academic, research and learning development positions within the higher education sector. Graduates also can take up roles as researchers for government think-tanks, as well as policy research advisers.