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Graduate Diploma in Mentoring and Leadership in Schools (International)

Note: The 'At a Glance' section below is indicative only.

Available: Full-time

Level: 9

Duration: 1 year

Location: MIC Limerick

Delivery Mode:

Face-to-face

Assessment:

Exams, essays and presentations.

  • Programme Overview
  • Programme Content
  • Entry Requirements
  • How to Apply
  • Ask a Question

Programme Overview

The purpose of this programme is to provide Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for school leaders. These leaders will have already proven themselves to be committed to the considered and effective management of an educational setting. This programme aims to enhance school leaders’ ability to mentor newly-qualified teachers who will shadow them in their schools.

The programme is designed for school coordinators and principals who want to further develop themselves and their professional practice, while also developing as professional colleagues within their own settings. The programme will be of interest to participants who have taught, managed or supervised for some time, who may wish to develop their skills as school-based mentors for supporting teacher induction in English Language Teaching and/or the professional learning of colleagues in this field more generally. It is intended for existing teachers who wish to develop their skills as mentors through:

  • Enquiry, reflection and experimentation with their own practices
  • Studying ways of supporting other teachers’ professional learning, through effective coaching and feedback strategies, grounded in adult learning theory
  • Asking questions and recognising and valuing previous experience
  • Role play and development of the mentoring conversation
  • A team approach involving regular and varied discourse in class

The programme also supports the development of reflective professionals who can lead and manage all school functions effectively, with confidence, vision and courage. Therefore, the programme is designed to appeal to those who wish to:

  • Extend their skills and knowledge for school-based collaborative professional learning more generally
  • Support other teachers’ professional learning through mentoring, coaching and leadership
  • Deepen their understanding of, and enhance the processes of curriculum implementation, development planning and leadership for learning

Key Features

The development of:

  • Reflective professionals who can lead and manage with confidence, vision and courage
  • Professionals who lead, value and promote research-based learning
  • Reflective professionals who demonstrate a critical understanding of collaborative professional learning
  • Professionals with an understanding of policy–making, policy implementation and policy impact nationally and internationally
  • Professionals with the knowledge, attitudes, values and skills to support professional development through mentoring
  • Professionals with a critical understanding of coaching psychology and applied techniques
  • Professionals who understand key concepts in the leadership and management of curriculum change
  • Professionals who appreciate the importance of leading improvement in learning and teaching through teacher agency and self-evaluation
A Professional Development Opportunity
A Professional Development Opportunity
The programme should be of particular interest to all aspiring and existing school leaders

Programme Content

Typically, the programme will run over two 12-week semesters in autumn and spring.

Programme Learning Outcomes
Knowledge – Breadth and Kind
Demonstrate a systematic knowledge of mentoring and leadership at the forefront of current theory and practice and apply appropriate theoretical insights in supporting teacher learning.
Know-how and Skills – Range and Selectivity
Use a broad range of approaches to support the learning needs of other teachers, including lesson observation, constructive feedback and curriculum planning.
Discuss critically their own practice as teachers and as professional colleagues/mentors using insights gained from reflection, from shared analysis with their peers, and from the literature.
Competence – Context and Role
Integrate learning from their study of teacher development, teachers’ professional learning, curriculum and school leadership in order to support professional learning in schools.
Show a critical understanding of current trends in leadership and teacher learning.
Competence – Learning to Learn
Value and demonstrate a commitment to their own professional development and to that of other teachers, especially newly qualified teachers, and to shared professional responsibility.
Competence – Insight
Explain the characteristics of effective professional development provision.
Use evidence-based practice to evaluate their own professional growth, their work as mentors and leaders as well as the professional development provision for teachers more generally.
Examples of modules offered:

  • Professional Support and Teacher Development
  • National and international issues in education and the implications for school leadership and mentoring
  • Principles and practices of undertaking educational research in the field of leadership and mentoring
  • Teacher Learning and Mentoring
  • Leading and Curriculum Change
  • Leading learning and teaching through school self-evaluation
  • Leadership and Management Portfolio Development
  • Coaching Psychology as applied to Educational Contexts

Programme content may vary year to year.

Entry Requirements

A 2.2 honours primary degree.

Relevant prior experience in teaching or related fields considered on a case-by-case basis.

Entry requirements and the application process vary according to country of origin. For information that is specific to your home country, click here.

For English language requirements, click here.

How to Apply

Programme intake is once a year in September.

EU Applicants

Applications are now closed.

Transferring from another 3rd Level Institution

The transfer route into MIC depends on the content overlap of your new and old course and the number of places on the new course in the year you apply. Before submitting an application you should contact International@mic.ul.ie where we will consider your case with the relevant Head of Department of the course you wish to transfer to.

EU/Non-EU Status Assessments

The designation of a student as being from the EU or a Non-EU country determines the fees they will pay at MIC, i.e. there may be cases where a non-EU national acquires EEA citizenship during the course of their third-level studies and would qualify for EU fees for example. 

Click here for more information on EU/Non-EU assessments which will be conducted by MIC International office to determine status.

Fees

For information on Postgraduate Fees, click here.

Contact
Contact
Non-EU Applicants:
+353 61 204988 / +353 61 774787

Ask a Question

  • Programme Overview
  • Programme Content
  • Entry Requirements
  • How to Apply
  • Ask a Question