Faculty of Education

UIII Education Program

Dean of the Faculty of Education: Prof. Nina Nurmilla, Ph.D.

The Faculty of Education offers Master's and Doctoral programs and both offer four concentrations:

  1. Curriculum, Teaching, and Learning.
  2. Educational Assessment and Evaluation.
  3. Education Policy, Management, and Leadership.
  4. Education and Society.

These four concentrations depart from an understanding that as an interdisciplinary discipline, education needs to be studied from a number of points of view moving from a micro to a macro one.

More specifically, the Faculty of Education borrows the Ecological System theory from psychologist Urie Bronfenbrenner which views child development as a complex system of relationships influenced by various levels of the surrounding environments, from the family and school environment to cultural values, laws, and prevailing customs. Bronfenbrenner calls these multi-layered contexts: micro (immediate context), meso, and macro (farthest contexts). The four concentrations are designed to represent the ecological system, namely those that focus on the micro context represented by the concentration of Curriculum, Teaching, and Learning; the meso context represented by the concentration of Educational Assessment and Evaluation, and the concentration of Education Policy, Management, and Leadership; while the concentration on Education and Society represents the context of a larger meso layer, linking it with the macro lenses of economics, politics, anthropology, and sociology of education.

MA in Education

The Master of Arts in Education program is academically unique. Students will be equipped with a comprehensive educational and scientific foundation, including philosophical, theoretical, sociological, religious and methodological foundations.

The Master of Arts in Education Study Program is designed to meet the needs of graduates from master’s level who have mastery and competence in the field of education holistically with comparative insight into the philosophy and the praxis of Western, Islamic and Indonesian education. This program is open to applicants from various nationalities and religious backgrounds.

The philosophical foundation is provided through a comparative educational philosophy that includes Western, Islamic and Indonesian philosophies. The theoretical foundation is provided through the concept of psychology in the context of education, curriculum development and pedagogy, learning assessment, educational evaluation, educational leadership and management, and policy analysis, including the concepts of child development, learning theory, and learning principles and strategies. The sociological foundation is provided through a conceptual and practical study of the relationship between education and society. The religious foundation is given through a conceptual and experimental study of the relationship between religion and education. Meanwhile, the methodological basis is provided through scientific research methodology in the field of education, both quantitative and qualitative approaches, and data analysis.

Expected Learning Outcomes/Competency of MA in Education

Master of Arts in Education graduates must have solid philosophical, theoretical and methodological foundations to become researchers, thinkers, designers and education consultants. This should be demonstrated by having the abilities to:

  1. Demonstrate solid knowledge about Islamic education philosophy and comparative philosophy of education, including the knowledge and expertise in one of the concentrations: (1) Curriculum, Teaching and Learning; (2) Educational Assessment and Evaluation; (3) Educational Policy, Management and Leadership; (4) Education and Society;
  2. Conduct research projects using a range of research methods (qualitative and quantitative) and related approaches to produce research that contributes to the body and advancement of knowledge in the field of education;
  3. Show a proficient ability to communicate research through various formats —oral, written and new media (social media platforms)—to international audiences in academic forums and public audiences;
  4. Evaluate an educational program or policy at all levels of education.
  5. Show professional attitudes appropriate for future career plans.

Curriculum Structure

The curriculum of the IIIU’s Master of Arts in Education program consists of foundation, concentration, and elective courses. Foundation courses are subjects that are required for all MA in Education students. Concentration core courses are subjects to be taken by MA in Education students in their respective concentrations. As well, students are free to choose from elective courses to enrich and strengthen their knowledge and skills. Students can take elective courses offered in the Faculty of Education. There is an open possibility for Faculty of Education students who wish to take elective courses in other faculties in IIIU.

The IIIU academic calendar follows a semester system consisting of odd and even semesters for each academic year. All course sessions and thesis writing are conducted in English. The MA in Education program is a two-year course (four semesters).

Concentration Courses (6 credits)

IIIU’s Master of Arts in Education program offers four areas of concentration to choose from. Students must take at least two of the following compulsory concentration courses:

A. Curriculum, Teaching and LearningHuman DevelopmentLearning Design and Technologies

B. Educational Assessment and EvaluationEducational EvaluationEducational Assessment

C. Educational Policy, Management and LeadershipEducational Policy AnalysisEducational Management and Leadership

D. Education and SocietyEquity and EducationEducation and Society

Foundation Courses(21 credits)All students in the Master of Arts in Education program are required to take the following foundation courses:

1. Comparative Philosophy of Education

2. Psychology in Education

3. Education and Society

4. Educational Research Methodology

5. Statistical Analysis

6. Islamic Education

7. Islam Wasathiyah (mandatory course offered at the Faculty of Islamic Studies)

Independent Study (3 Credits)

Master of Arts in Education students must take independent studies according to their topics of interest, with thesis research and writing as a final goal. Independent study is a separate learning process under the guidance of an academic supervisor to produce a literature review related to the chosen topic.

Elective Courses (6 credits)

Master of Arts in Education students must take two elective courses of their choice. There are four elective courses from which students can choose; each has 3 credits:

1. Learning Design and Technologies

2. Educational Management and Leadership

3. Equity and Education

4. Educational Assessment

Thesis (6 credits)

Students who have completed all required courses are set to conduct research and write a thesis on a topic based on their concentration as a final requirement to obtain a Master of Arts in Education degree. The research process and thesis writing will be guided by a thesis supervisor appointed by the Faculty of Education.

Semester 1

Semester 2

Semester 3

Semester 4


Ph.D. in Education

The IIIU’s Faculty of Education offers a degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education. The doctoral program in the Faculty of Education is dedicated to studying the basics of comparative educational philosophy and its variations in Western and Muslim societies to learn traditionally defined areas such as the history of education and research methods in education, educational philosophy, sociology and academic anthropology.

The distinction of IIIU’s Doctor of Philosophy in Education is to advance educational studies’ excellence in societies and promote engagement with the development of education research worldwide. In this sense, doctoral graduates from the IIIU Faculty of Education will be offered an approach to studying education in diverse contexts where they help improve the quality of education while maintaining their cultural identities.

Career Path

The graduates of the PhD in Education program of the Faculty of Education at the IIIU are intended to work and advance their careers as but are not limited to, academics, research scientists, education leaders, educational policy consultants and advisors, consultants, and advisors for international agencies.

Expected Learning Outcomes/Competency of Ph.D. in Education

PhD in Education graduates must have solid philosophical, theoretical and methodological foundations to become academics, research scientists, education leaders, and education policy consultants and advisors. This should be demonstrated by having the abilities to:

  1. Demonstrate solid knowledge about Islamic education philosophy and comparative philosophy of education, including the knowledge and expertise in one of the concentrations: (1) Curriculum, Teaching, and Learning; (2) Educational Assessment and Evaluation; (3) Educational Policy, Management, and Leadership; (4) Education and Society;
  2. Conduct research projects using a range of research methods (qualitative and quantitative) and related approaches to produce research that contributes to the body and advancement of knowledge in the field of education;
  3. Communication: Show a proficient ability to communicate research through various formats —oral, written and new media (social media platforms)—to international audiences in academic forums and public audiences;
  4. Evaluation: Evaluate an educational program or policy at all levels of education;
  5. Professional Attitudes: Show professional attitudes appropriate for future career plans.

Curriculum Structure

The curriculum of the PhD in Education program at IIIU consists of: the foundation of major philosophies of education, research methodology, concentration core courses, elective courses, independent study, student colloquium, and dissertation that includes research writing and defense. The foundation and research methodology courses are required for all Doctor of Philosophy in Education students. Concentration core courses are subjects to be taken by Doctor of Philosophy in Education students in their respective concentrations. Students are free to choose from the elective courses to enrich and strengthen their knowledge and skills.

There in an open possibility for Faculty of Education students who wish to take elective courses in other faculties in IIIU. All Doctor of Philosophy in Education students must meet the requirements to complete independent study, a student colloquium, and a dissertation— research, writing and defense. The overall credits that must be taken by PhD students are 45 credits, which consist of 20–24 credits for courses and 25 credits of dissertation writing related activities: Independent Study, Student Colloquium, and Dissertation Research.

IIIU’s academic calendar follows a semester system consisting of odd and even semesters for each academic year. All course sessions and dissertation writing are conducted in English.

Foundation Courses (9 Credits)

All students in the PhD in Education program are required to take the following foundation courses:

1. Comparative Philosophy of Education

2.  Islamic Education

3. Wasathiyatul Islam in the Globalizing World

Research Methodology in Education (6 credits)

All PhD students in Education Study Program are required to take the following research methodology courses:

1. Graduate Seminar in Educational Research (Quantitative, Qualitative, Mixed-Method)Choose one of the courses below:

2. Critical Discourse Analysis

3. Quantitative Analysis and Advanced Statistics

Concentration Courses (6 credits)

PhD in Education Study Program at IIIU offers four areas of concentration, the compulsory courses of each concentration are:

a. Curriculum, Teaching, and Learning

  1. Theories of Learning
  2. Instructional Design and Technology

b. Educational Management and Policy

  1. Graduate Seminar of Educational Management and Leadership
  2. Graduate Seminar on Education Policy.

c. Educational Evaluation and Assessment

  1. Educational Assessment
  2. Graduate Seminar on Large-Scale Assessment

d. Education and Society

  1. Education and Human Capital
  2. Graduate Seminar on Education in a Pluralistic Society

Elective courses (6 credits)

The Doctor of Philosophy in Education students are required to take elective courses of their choice, all PhD courses in UIII are eligible to take.

Independent Study (6 credits) & Student Colloquium (3 credits)

Doctor of Philosophy in Education students must undertake independent studies according to their topics of interest, with dissertation research and writing as a final goal. Independent study is a separate learning process under the guidance of an academic supervisor to produce a literature review related to the chosen topic.Doctor of Philosophy in Education students also have to take a student colloquium, a formal forum for students to present their research papers and be evaluated by peers and professors in the second or third years of their studies.

Dissertation: Research, Writing, Defense (12 credits)

Students who have completed all required courses are set to conduct research and write a dissertation as a final requirement to obtain a Doctor of Philosophy in Education degree. The dissertation research and writing process will be guided by a team of dissertation committees appointed by the Faculty of Education.


Career Path

The graduates of the MA in Education program of the Faculty of Education at UIII are intended to work and advance their careers as, but are not limited to, academia, education practitioners, education program and curriculum designer, educational researchers, education government officials, education manager and supervisors, educational assessment specialists, education program evaluators, education policy analysts, and education consultants at national and international institutions.

The graduates of the Ph.D. in Education program of the Faculty of Education are intended to work and advance their careers as, but are not limited to, academia, research scientist, education leader, educational policy consultant and advisor, consultant, and advisors for international agencies.

List of Lecturers and Researchers

To see the list of lecturers from the Faculty of Education, click here.

Faculties and Study Programs