ObjectivesLifelong learning is a broad concept, covering learning that takes place in formal and informal educational settings, in the workplace, in community and voluntary organisations, in the home and in the family. It is a key issue in Government policy and public debate. A PhD/MPhil Lifelong Learning will be of interest to you if you wish to gain and develop knowledge, skills and understanding of lifelong learning through independent research. You might be working within a learning organisation, in the public or private sectors; within community or voluntary groups or organisations; or in the home and with your family. You might be a teacher or a trainer, or working in the community, in neighbourhood renewal or urban regeneration projects. As a research student in the Faculty of Lifelong Learning, you will be interested in your own development as a lifelong learner and will be seeking to engage in critical debate and key issues of lifelong learning. You will develop your skills as an independent and active learner, and apply your research skills with theoretical perspectives and understandings of lifelong learning.
Entry requirementsEntry requirements Good degree in a relevant subject.
Academic titleLifelong Learning (PhD / MPhil)
Course descriptionStaff research areas
Research interests include: lifelong learning; post-compulsory education; adult and continuing education; gender and education; citizenship; education in later life; education and social class; lifelong learning policy and practice; wider benefits of learning; community-based learning; international service learning.
Study resources
As a research student within the Faculty of Lifelong Learning, you will be able to attend relevant modules on the MSc Lifelong Learning: Policy and Practice and the MSc Teaching in Lifelong Learning, as well as other courses for research students.
The programme has close links with the Birkbeck Institute for Lifelong Learning (BILL). The Institute promotes new ways of researching lifelong learning, which bridge academic, policy and community contexts, with a particular focus on pedagogies of lifelong learning. BILL hosts seminars, events and meetings and aims to develop and sustain research into lifelong learning within the Faculty and the College, as well as at national and international levels. You will also benefit from our close links with the Centre for Research on the Wider Benefits of Learning and their seminar series.
The Faculty has a range of links with other departments, both in Birkbeck and at other universities, and arrangements for joint supervision according to your interests are therefore possible.