NICIE are delighted to be working with Queens University Belfast on this exciting research project. Please see information below and a link to find out more about this hugely important PhD opportunity which is funded.
QUB School of Psychology, PhD Opportunity (FUNDED): Integrated Education in Post-Agreement Northern Ireland
Twenty-five years after the Good Friday Agreement brought an end to the Troubles, Northern Ireland (NI) still struggles with division. This is particularly pronounced within education where 94% of young people attend separate schools reinforcing existing lines of demarcation; restricting opportunities to engage in a meaningful way with others from different backgrounds. Integrated education poses a solution for meaningful contact between young people across communities from an early age, yet evidence of best practice towards integration, and positive outcomes for children attending these schools, is severely limited.
In collaboration with Northern Ireland Council for Integrated Education (NICIE), the project will provide crucial insights to one or more of the following (determined based on interests of the student and strategic goals of the partner organisation): 1) inform ethos development and the enhancement of the NICIE Statement of Principles, 2) provide high-quality evidence of potential links between integrated education and positive social outcomes to inform families, practitioners, and policymakers in NI and other divided societies, 3) inform best practice in transforming schools to integrated status, and 4) identify best-practice in addressing divisive topics in integrated settings. In addition to directly informing strategic goals of NICIE, the proposed projects will inform psychological theory around intergroup contact and community integration, and train applied psychologists to further work with NGOs and the education sector.
Application Deadline: 12 February 2024
More details on the project are available here:
