Courses


The MES is structured to allow you to work full-time while you study. This fully online program consists of ten graduate-level, three-credit courses.

Year One: 2025-2026

EDU 597 Fundamentals of Academic Writing ★3 (Summer Term 2025)
This course provides graduate students with essential skills for scholarly writing such as distinguishing among genres in academic writing, integrating research, principles of structure, citation conventions, responding to feedback, and academic integrity.
EDU 520 Foundations of School Leadership ★3 (Fall Term 2025)
Explore the foundational dimensions of school leadership including instructional leadership, fostering effective relationships, supporting the application of foundational knowledge about Indigenous Peoples, visionary leadership, leading learning communities, modelling continuous professional learning, developing leadership capacity, understanding the social context influencing schooling, and managing school operations and resources.
EDU 597 Leadership in International Schools ★3 (Spring Term 2026)
Explores characteristics of, and trends and issues related to leadership in international schools. Topics include but are not limited to the changing nature of international schools, teacher motivation for pursuing international positions, and intercultural opportunities and challenges.
EDU 521 School Leadership: Theory and Practice ★3 (Winter Term 2026)
Hone leadership practices grounded in research to demonstrate mastery of Alberta's Leadership Quality Standard (LQS). Includes a job-embedded learning component in which participants visit, observe, and collaborate with a school leader or leadership team in a school setting of their choice, in which the Alberta Program of Studies is offered.

Year Two: 2026-2027

EDU 597 Supporting Teacher Professional Development ★3 (Summer Term 2026)
This course is designed to support participants as they increase their knowledge about historical and contemporary challenges and issues in supporting educator professional growth. Topics covered in the course will be relevant to teachers, school leaders, system administrators, teacher educators, and policy-makers.
EDU 597 Leadership and Management in International Schools in Asia ★3 (Spring Term 2027)
Explores managerial functions of school leaders in international schools. Topics include but are not limited to navigating host country laws vis-a-vis provincial policies, staff evaluation and discipline, working with parents and stakeholders, and resource management.
EDU 510 Fundamentals of Educational Research ★3 (Fall Term 2026)
Explores the findings of educational research, and works to apply the results of research to educational problems. Focuses on conceptualizing methods of educational research to specific and individual educational sites and issues.
EDU 514 Planning for Educational Change ★3 (Winter Term 2027)

Explores how educational research can enhance educational change toward school improvement and focuses on utilizing appropriate research methods to create a site-based research proposal for a specific site.

Year Three: 2027-2028

EDU 515 Conducting Educational Research ★3 (Fall Term 2027)
A supervised research assignment to develop and apply knowledge and skills related to data collection, data analysis techniques and research report presentation.
EDU 900 Program Synthesis ★3 (Winter Term 2028)
A reflection and synthesis of learning from the Master of Education in Educational Studies in relation to the concepts of leadership and school/educational improvement that are the foundations of the program.

Ethics Requirement

In addition to the core and elective courses, all Master's students are required to take INT D 710: Ethics and Academic Citizenship.

  • 6 hours
  • Online
  • Asynchronous
  • Credit/No Credit

Students will be enrolled automatically in their first term.

Grading

The program uses the University of Alberta's 4-point scale grading system. For more information about the University of Alberta grading system, see the grading system at the Office of the Registrar.