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Master of Arts (Education)

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Overview

Complete your MA in three semesters

You can complete an MA in three semesters of full-time study. If you study part-time, an MA will normally take three years to complete.

  • Level

  • Postgraduate, NZQF Level 9

  • Distance learning

  • Available

  • Duration

  • 1.5 year(s) full-time. Available part-time.

  • International

  • Available for international students via distance learning

Fully investigate your education interests

With a Master of Arts (Education) at Massey, you can further investigate education issues that interested you as an undergraduate.

Massey offers you flexibility in the subjects you study, so you can follow your passions, whatever area of education you’re interested in.

You’ll graduate with great skills - this programme will help your decision-making and give you a better understanding of developments in education and society.

Complete your MA in three semesters

Massey’s Master of Arts is 180 credits. This means you can complete an MA in three semesters of full-time study. If you study part-time, an MA will normally take three years to complete.

If you want to be a teacher

Please note that the Master of Arts (Education) does not qualify you to be a teacher. Explore education study options at Massey and the qualification you need to become a teacher in our education pathways tool.

Careers and further study

Careers

A Master of Arts (Education) can open up a variety of career pathways. Education is a broad sector where you can work in education-based services or in educational roles in other organisations.

Possible careers and employment fields include:

  • policy analysts
  • educational roles in aid agencies, etc
  • social services roles
  • government and non-government educational services
  • research and evaluation in an educational context
  • policy development.

Entry requirements

University admission

All students must meet university entrance requirements to be admitted to the University.

Programme admission

Required

Master of Arts 180 credits

To enter the Master of Arts 180 credits you will:

  • have been awarded or qualified for a Bachelor of Arts degree (or equivalent) with a major in the intended postgraduate subject, with at least a B grade average across the 200/300-level major courses.

Master of Arts 120 credits

To enter the Master of Arts 120 credits you will have been awarded or qualified for:

  • a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) with a subject in the intended postgraduate subject, or
  • a Postgraduate Diploma in Arts with an endorsement in the intended postgraduate subject, or
  • an equivalent qualification:

Research pathway: for entry to the research pathway you need a B+ grade average across the 700-level courses

Coursework pathway: for entry to the coursework pathway you need a B grade average across the 700-level courses.

You will need to provide verified copies of all academic transcripts for studies taken at all universities other than Massey University. 

English language requirements

To study this programme you must meet Massey University's English language standards.

Prior learning, credit and exemptions

For information on prior learning, exemptions and transfer of credit or other questions:

If you do not have the entry requirements

English language and foundation courses

If you need help with your English language skills before you start university, we have courses and programmes that may help.

Courses and planning

Credit summary

180 credits

From the Schedule to the Degree including:

  • Completion of Part One and Two
  • Completion of a subject

Choose a

  • Research pathway (including a 90 or 120 credit thesis) or
  • Coursework pathway (including a 60 credit research report).
 

Advanced entry: Those who have already completed specified qualifications in advance of the minimum entry requirements may be able to complete this degree in 120 credits.

This is a parts-based qualification. This means there are regulations around your completion of Part One before progressing to Part Two, etc.

See ‘Courses for this programme’ below for schedules of courses.

Courses for this specialisation

Part One: Coursework Pathway (120 credits) or Research Pathway (Between 60 and 90 credits)

254702 Facing Big Questions in Education 30
254744 Educational Issues Among Pacific Islands Peoples in New Zealand 30
254773 Educational Policy Analysis 30
254774 Evaluation of Educational Organisations 30
254775 Management of Human Resources in Educational Organisations 30
261765 Trends in Digital Education 30
263704 Advanced Studies in Motivation and Learning 30
265737 Young Children and Their Families 30
267782 Quantitative Research in Education 15
267783 Qualitative Research in Education 15
269733 Mana Motuhake: Contemporary Issues in Māori & Indigenous Education 30

Part Two: Coursework Pathway

60 credits
267860 Professional Inquiry 60

Part Two: Research Pathway

Between 90 and 120 credits
267871 Thesis 120 Credit Part 1 60
267872 Thesis 120 Credit Part 2 60
267880 Thesis 90
267881 Thesis 90 Credit Part 1 45
267882 Thesis 90 Credit Part 2 45
267899 Thesis 120

Planning your programme

Planning overview

If you study full-time, you’ll take 120 credits per year or 60 credits per semester.

The Master of Arts (Education) is a parts-based qualification. That means you must complete the first part, before moving to the second. Read the regulations for this programme to find out more.

Grades achieved in the first 60 credits will determine eligibility for progression to Part Two.

  • For the coursework pathway a minimum B grade average is required.
  • For the research pathway a minimum B+ grade average is required.

Master of Arts 120 credits

If you enrol in a thesis, you commence with Part One, followed by Part Two in the next enrolment period. Both parts combine to meet the thesis requirements with a single grade assigned to each part.

If the thesis cannot be submitted at the end of the initial Part Two enrolment, you must re-enrol in Part Two (and pay fees) each semester until submission is made.

Maximum time limits for completion

There are maximum time limits to complete postgraduate qualifications.  If you do not complete within the maximum time, you may be required to re-apply for the programme if you wish to continue your studies.

Time limits for Honours, Distinction and Merit

Where your qualification is completed within the stated time limit and to a high standard, you may be able to graduate with a class of Honours, Distinction or Merit. 

Fees and scholarships

Fees and finance

Fees, student loans and free fees scheme

Your tuition fees may be different depending on the courses you choose. Your exact fees will show once you have chosen your courses.

There will also be some compulsory non-tuition fees and for some courses, there may also be charges for things such as study resources, software, trips and contact workshops.

Already know which courses you're going to choose?

If you already know which courses you are going to take, you can use our fees calculator to get an estimate of your fees.

Student loans (StudyLink) and Fees Free scheme

You may be eligible for a student loan to help towards paying your fees.

The New Zealand Government offers fees-free tertiary study for eligible domestic students. Find out more about the scheme and your eligibility on the Fees Free website. To use the site's eligibility checking tool, you will need your National Student Number.

Current and returning Massey students will find their National Student Number on their student homepage.


A good fit if you:

  • have an undergraduate major in education
  • want to be involved in current education debates
  • are keen to investigate a particular aspect of education for a research report or thesis.

Meet our lecturers

Taking research ideas and making them accessible to the audiences who might use them is a key responsibility of my job. I hope my love of teaching mathematics and belief that all of us can experience at least a little of the wonder of mathematics shines through. As a member of our Centre for Research in Mathematics Education (CeRME), you will have access to a range of mathematics educators and their research interests.

Professor Glenda Anthony
Professor

    Accreditations and rankings

    QS ranking - Education

    Massey is ranked in the world's top 200 universities for education in the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings.

    Key information for students

    button for easy access to information about this qualification

    Compare qualifications and academic information across different New Zealand institutions.

    Regulations

    Review this important information before you apply for this programme. This gives you full details of the rules and regulations about what you need to study and what you must achieve in order to graduate with this qualification. That includes structure, courses and requirements. These regulations should be read in conjunction with all other Statutes and Regulations of the University including the below.

    Postgraduate regulations

    General Regulations for Postgraduate Degrees, Postgraduate Diplomas and Postgraduate Certificates.

    Regulations for this programme

    Applying and enrolling

    Applying for the programme

    Check you are ready

    If you are ready to apply, have a look at our application checklist. It will help you get prepared with what you need. Please also check the entry requirements carefully before you apply.

    Choose your programme and click on Apply now

    You will apply for the programme using the Apply now button on this page. You’ll also choose your specialisation (major, subject or endorsement) if applicable.

    Some programmes have additional requirements such as the submission of a portfolio or CV. Click on Apply now and you will be able to submit those documents as part of the application process.

    Receive and accept an Admission Offer of Place

    You will receive an Admission Offer of Place when you have been accepted into the programme. You need to accept this before you can enrol in your courses. International students also need to pay their fees at this point.

    Enrolling in courses

    You’ll then get access to your own student homepage (also known as the student portal). This is where you can enrol in courses. Any updates on your application or enrolments will also be on your student homepage. Make sure you check this regularly.

    When you choose courses, ensure you check for any requirements that apply including:

    • prerequisites (courses you have to do before the one you are enrolling in)
    • corequisites (courses you have to do at the same time as the one you are enrolling in)
    • restrictions (courses that you cannot enrol in if you are completing or have completed another identified similar course)
    • location – for instance some distance-based courses still have an on-campus element, so double check that the way the course is taught is suitable for your situation.

    Each of our courses has its own webpage where you can find this information. You can use our course search to find course pages.

    More information on courses is in the ‘Courses for this programme’ section on this page.

    You can find information on application due dates and semester dates on the key dates page.

    We look forward to welcoming you to Massey!

    If you have any questions, contact us through the Enquire button on this page.

    What are courses and credits?

    What are courses and credits?

    Each Massey programme is made up of courses (in some tertiary institutions they are called ‘papers’).

    You will have some compulsory courses and some you can choose from.

    Each course is worth a certain amount of credits (often 15 credits, but this does vary). You must gain a set number of credits to be able to graduate from this programme.

    There may also be some rules about which courses you need to pass to progress to the next year, or stage, of your study (known as progression). There are also courses you must pass to graduate with a specialisation.

    • See the ‘Courses for this programme’ section for the list of courses.
    • Courses search

    Understanding course numbers

    The first three digits of our course numbers show you which subject the course is about.

    The second three digits show you the level and course ID number. For instance:

    • sub-degree courses are '0' (i.e. xxx.0xx)
    • undergraduate study begins at 100-level, (i.e. xxx.1xx)
    • as you progress through 200- and 300-level courses this number changes to 2 and 3 respectively. The higher the number that starts the second three digits, the higher the level of study.
    1 6 2 . 3   0 1
    Subject area   Level   Course ID number

    Workload and time management

    Use this tool to help determine how much time you will need each week to complete your studies.

    Estimate workload

    Returning students

    For returning students, there may be changes to the majors and minors available and the courses you need to take. Go to the section called ‘Transitional Provisions’ in the Regulations to find out more.

    In some cases the programme or specialisation you enrolled in may no longer be taking new enrolments, so may not appear on these web pages. To find information on the regulations for these programmes go to the Massey University Calendar.

    Please contact us through the Enquire button on this page if you have any questions.

    Scholarships and awards

    Scholarships related to this programme

    There are a number of scholarships available for new and current students. They could relate to your situation, achievement or interest.

    Find and apply for scholarships