Example education dissertation topic 15:

‘The rise of the perpetual student?’ – An analysis of the extent to which the introduction of tuition fees has led to a marketization of degrees in which it is the best interests of a university never to fail a student

Though the majority of undergraduates take three years to complete their degrees there are, according to official statistics, a growing number who either change courses twice or the repeated use of ‘mitigating circumstances’ take upwards of five or six years to complete their first full course. The number of students falling into both categories has risen markedly since the introduction of tuition fees under the previous government. This dissertation charts the rise in numbers and also interviews a number of students who have either had to repeat years twice or changed their mind as to their chosen study. This dissertation also interviews course directors and through so doing seeks to answer the question as to the extent to which the rise in such ‘perpetual students’ has been motivated either by a fear of graduating and therefore having to pay back tuition fees or by the fact that students now increasingly see themselves as consumers of higher education.

Suggested initial topic reading:

• Guskey, T.R. (2000) ‘Grading policies that work against standards…and how to fix them’, NASSP Bulletin, Vol. 84(620), pp. 20-29.
• Lieberman, D.A. and Remedios, R. (2007) ‘Do undergraduates’ motives for studying change as they progress through their degrees?’ British Journal of Educational Psychology, Vol. 77(2), pp. 379-395.