Inclusive Education MSc, PgDip (ICL)
Awards: MSc, PgDip (ICL)
Study modes: Full-time, Part-time Intermittent Study
Accreditation
Funding opportunities
Programme website: Inclusive Education
The experience of engaging with the MSc Inclusive Education has been a life-changing one, both personally and professionally. Studying at Moray House has provided me with a range of opportunities which have encouraged me to critically reflect on my teaching practice, engage with other teaching professionals and develop my academic writing skills.
The MSc Inclusive Education has been designed for graduates who want to make a difference to the lives of children and young people in education. Our distinctive approach presents a re-imagined future for learners and teachers, where responding to human diversity is recognised as the point, not the problem, of education.
Enhance your opportunities for employment or advancement in the education field, particularly concerning educational and social disadvantage, additional support for learning and other specialist areas, on this programme. If you are a graduate in education, psychology and related social science backgrounds you will find that the programme builds on your previous study.
You will compare inclusive educational practices in Scotland, the UK and across the world. You will study particular approaches to removing barriers to learning and including all children.
The programme offers a number of routes, including Postgraduate Diploma specialist pathways designed primarily for people who are teaching or who want to teach in these specialist areas:
- Postgraduate Diploma (visually impaired learners)
- Postgraduate Diploma (deaf learners)
Accreditation
The British Association of Teachers of the Deaf has endorsed the PgDiploma Inclusive Education (Deaf Learners) pathway and supports the way it acts as a professional qualification.
The Scottish Association for Visual Impairment Education (SAVIE) has endorsed the PgDiploma Inclusive Education (Visually Impaired Learners) pathway and supports the way it acts as a professional qualification.
Colleagues from NALDIC, the subject association for EAL, contribute to learning and teaching on the Inclusive Education Multilingual Learners courses, as we jointly seek to promote educational excellence and equity for all pupils, across the UK and internationally.
Accredited Provider of the Mandatory Qualification for specialist teachers in England
For teachers who reside and work in England, to teach a class of pupils with hearing impairment (HI), vision impairment (VI), or multi-sensory impairment (MSI), a teacher must hold a mandatory qualification in addition to qualified teacher status.
To offer the mandatory qualification in sensory impairment (MQSI), providers must be approved by the Department for Education. Our MSc Inclusive Education (Visually Impaired Learners) is accredited by the Department for Education.
For those who reside elsewhere in the United Kingdom, this qualification is recognised as leading to the Qualified Teacher of Children and Young People with Vision Impairment (QTVI) qualification.
You will be taught through a combination of:
- workshops
- lectures
- seminars
- problem-based learning activities
- debates
- peer group learning
The Master's degree culminates in an independently researched dissertation for another 60 credits.
Compulsory courses
- Sources of Knowledge
- Conceptualising Research
And one of the following:
- Collaborative Working in Children’s Services
- Education for All
- Inclusive Pedagogy
- Teachers as Agents of Change
Option courses
You will choose around four option courses (80 credits). Option courses are subject to change each year but have previously included:
- ADHD, Dyspraxia and Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties: an introduction
- Assessing pupils/students with visual impairment
- Audiology and audiometry
- Autism and Developmental Disabilities
- Autism Spectrum Disorder, Developmental Language Disorder and Dyslexia
- Collaborative working in children's services
- Comparative approaches to inclusive and special education
- Education for all
- Foundations of international child protection
- Inclusion of children with visual impairment: policy and practice
- Inclusive Pedagogy
- Language and communication
- Multilingual Learners and Additional Support Needs
- Multilingual Learners and Specific Learning Difficulties
- Teachers as agents of change
- Placement / Inclusion (for teachers of deaf children)
- Specific learning difficulties: Dyslexia
- An option course worth up to 40 credits from within Moray House School of Education and Sport or from elsewhere in the University (at SCQF level 11), subject to approval by the Programme Director
Specialist Pathways for Teachers
Our part-time specialist pathways offer practising teachers a Postgraduate Diploma in teaching deaf or visually impaired learners. You will meet the Scottish and English governments' mandatory qualifications for teaching deaf and visually impaired children.
Courses particularly aligned to these pathways include:
- Cerebral Visual Impairment
- Issues and strategies for teaching and learning (visual impairment)
- Promoting achievement and curriculum access to deaf / multilingual learners
- Deaf Studies
- Professional Placement
Find out more about compulsory and optional courses
We link to the latest information available. Please note that this may be for a previous academic year and should be considered indicative.
| Award | Title | Duration | Study mode | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSc | Inclusive Education | 1 Year | Full-time | Programme structure 2024/25 |
Graduates of the MSc Inclusive Education are equipped to:
- Develop and appropriately apply knowledge, skills and attitudes relevant to inclusive education and the contexts in which it takes place.
- Reflect critically on the relationships between theory and practice and explore issues in the implementation of educational and social principles and ideals.
- Engage with and where appropriate influence policy issues and the practice of professionals in relation to the delivery of inclusive education.
- Develop extended skills in research and enquiry, including the use of literature, reviewing evidence, gathering, organising and evaluating data, responding to evidence and providing critical comment.
Suiting newly qualified teachers and experienced practitioners alike, this programme provides a qualification that can open doors to a new career in inclusive and special education or an advanced role in the field.
Many graduates continue or go on to become teachers in schools and further/higher education, taking on leadership positions in education, or specialist or peripatetic teaching posts in relation to visually impaired, deaf or multilingual learners. Some work with NGOs and third sector organisations, in policy positions in education, or go on to doctoral-level research.
It can also provide the foundations for a career in policy formation and development, as well as a broad range of highly transferable skills, such as communication and project management, which can be applied to roles in any field.
These entry requirements are for the 2025/26 academic year and requirements for future academic years may differ. Entry requirements for the 2026/27 academic year will be published on 1 Oct 2025.
A UK 2:1 honours degree, or its international equivalent, in a relevant discipline.
Protecting Vulnerable Groups
All successful applicants for our PG Diploma Inclusive Education Deaf Learners Pathway will be required to join Disclosure Scotland's Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme, or add to their existing registration, before starting the programme. Applicants who don't live in the UK, or who have spent more than a year abroad, will need to provide equivalent verification from the relevant national authority.
Students from China
This degree is Band C.
International qualifications
Check whether your international qualifications meet our general entry requirements:
English language requirements
Regardless of your nationality or country of residence, you must demonstrate a level of English language competency which will enable you to succeed in your studies.
English language tests
We accept the following English language qualifications at the grades specified:
- IELTS Academic: total 7.0 with at least 6.5 in writing, and 6.0 in all other components. We do not accept IELTS One Skill Retake to meet our English language requirements.
- TOEFL-iBT (including Home Edition): total 100 with at least 23 in writing, and 20 in all other components. We do not accept TOEFL MyBest Score to meet our English language requirements
- C1 Advanced (CAE) / C2 Proficiency (CPE): total 185 with at least 176 in writing, and 169 in all other components.
- Trinity ISE: ISE III with passes in all four components.
- PTE Academic: total 73 with at least 65 in writing, and 59 in all other components. We do not accept PTE Academic Online.
- Oxford ELLT: 8 overall with at least 7 in writing, and 6 in all other components.
Your English language qualification must be no more than three and a half years old from the start date of the programme you are applying to study, unless you are using IELTS, TOEFL, Trinity ISE or PTE, in which case it must be no more than two years old.
Degrees taught and assessed in English
We also accept an undergraduate or postgraduate degree that has been taught and assessed in English in a majority English speaking country, as defined by UK Visas and Immigration:
We also accept a degree that has been taught and assessed in English from a university on our list of approved universities in non-majority English speaking countries (non-MESC).
If you are not a national of a majority English speaking country, then your degree must be no more than five years old at the beginning of your programme of study.
Find out more about our language requirements:
Tuition fees
| Award | Title | Duration | Study mode | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSc | Inclusive Education | 1 Year | Full-time | Tuition fees |
| PgDip (ICL) | Inclusive Education (Deaf Learners) | Up to 4 Years | Part-time Intermittent Study | Tuition fees |
| PgDip (ICL) | Inclusive Education (Visually Impaired Learners) | Up to 4 Years | Part-time Intermittent Study | Tuition fees |
Funding for postgraduate study is different to undergraduate study, and many students need to combine funding sources to pay for their studies.
Most students use a combination of the following funding to pay their tuition fees and living costs:
- borrowing money
- taking out a loan
- family support
- personal savings
- income from work
- employer sponsorship
- scholarships
Explore sources of funding for postgraduate study
GREAT scholarship: Mexico
One GREAT scholarship will be available to applicants from Mexico who apply for 2024 entry. This award is for £10,000 towards postgraduate taught (Masters) degree tuition. Further details on eligibility criteria and how to apply can be found on the GREAT scholarship website.
India Merit Scholarship
The University is offering a new international scholarship for the most academically gifted Postgraduate Taught (PGT) Masters students applying from India. These awards cover £5,000 towards tuition fees for PGT Masters students studying on campus during the 2024/25 academic year. The Scholarships will be tenable for the first year of study only and will be automatically deducted from your student tuition fee balance.
UK government postgraduate loans
If you live in the UK, you may be able to apply for a postgraduate loan from one of the UK’s governments.
The type and amount of financial support you are eligible for will depend on:
- your programme
- the duration of your studies
- your tuition fee status
Programmes studied on a part-time intermittent basis are not eligible.
Other funding opportunities
Search for scholarships and funding opportunities:
- Postgraduate Admissions
- Phone: +44 (0)131 650 4086
- Contact: Admissions Office
- Programme Co-Director, Dr Lisa Fernandes / Dr Martin Toye
- Contact: inclusiveeducation@ed.ac.uk
- Moray House School of Education and Sport
- Old Moray House
- Holyrood Campus
- Edinburgh
- EH8 8AQ
- Programme: Inclusive Education
- School: Education and Sport (Moray House)
- College: Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences
Applying
Select your programme and preferred start date to begin your application.
MSc Inclusive Education - 1 Year (Full-time)
PgDip Inclusive Education (Deaf Learners) (ICL) 2 - 4 years (Part-time Intermittent Study)
PgDip Inclusive Education (Visually Impaired Learners) (ICL) 2 - 4 years (Part-time Intermittent Study)
Due to high demand, this programme operates a gathered field approach to admissions, with two application deadlines as noted below.
Each application round has a decision deadline, also listed below, but note that we may make offers to the strongest candidates on an ongoing basis, in advance of the published decision deadline.
We strongly recommend that you apply as early as possible, especially if you intend to apply for funding. Applications may close earlier than published deadlines if there is exceptionally high demand. If you are considering applying for our pre-sessional English Language programme, please make sure you apply in Round 1.
Please note that for an application to be reviewed, it must be a complete application by the deadline with all supporting documentation uploaded, including references and transcripts. English language documentation can be submitted later but if you have already met the English language entry requirements for your programme at the time of application, your application may be considered more competitive in selection than applications where an English language test still needs to be taken.
Selection deadlines
| Round | Application Deadline | Places awarded |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 13 January 2025 | 17 April 2025 |
| 2 | 29 May 2025 | 30 June 2025 |
Deadlines for UK/Scotland fee status
After Round 2, if there are still places available, applications will remain open only to applicants who are eligible for the UK/Scotland fee rate, including the EU/EEA Pre-settled Scotland fee status. Applications will remain open no later than 30 June 2025 and may close earlier than this if the programme becomes full, so we strongly recommend you apply as soon as possible.
If you apply with another fee status after 29 May 2025, your application will be rejected.
(Revised 18 October 2024 to add application deadlines and selection process information)
You must submit one reference with your application.
Find out more about the general application process for postgraduate programmes:
Further information
- Postgraduate Admissions
- Phone: +44 (0)131 650 4086
- Contact: Admissions Office
- Programme Co-Director, Dr Lisa Fernandes / Dr Martin Toye
- Contact: inclusiveeducation@ed.ac.uk
- Moray House School of Education and Sport
- Old Moray House
- Holyrood Campus
- Edinburgh
- EH8 8AQ
- Programme: Inclusive Education
- School: Education and Sport (Moray House)
- College: Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences