Originally from Ukraine, Maria came to the UK over 20 years ago to study her undergraduate degree in molecular biology in London.

She has since switched careers to follow her passion for education research and progressive teaching methods. We talked to Maria about what brought her to Bath in 2025 to study the part-time distance-learning MA Education.

What brought you to education?

I came to London when I was 18, where I studied my first degree in molecular biology. Once I graduated, I realised that I didn't want to carry on with the practical side of it. With all respect to lab work, I wanted something less routine, where no two days were the same. Eventually, I spent over a decade working in higher education in a dynamic environment – in admissions, international student recruitment, and marketing. I worked alongside universities worldwide, mainly in English-speaking countries, and I quite enjoyed supporting students on their international study paths.

However, somewhere deep inside, I craved pursuing an academic career since I love reading and researching. So, naturally, I wasn’t fully fulfilled in my job and wasn’t sure which career path to take. When I had my first child, I decided to dedicate a few years to raising my son. That means I had a career break and I had time to reflect on what to do next.

At the same time, I faced a dilemma about how to raise my child. Realising that all parents are their children’s first teachers, I was thinking a lot about early years education. That’s when I started reading about education and came across alternative education models.

I was shocked, to be honest, because I’d only been exposed to a one-size-fits-all educational approach, so I was intrigued and became really interested in learning more. This coincided with my firm wish to pursue a new career path.

I was 38 at that time, and it was not an easy decision. I knew I had to start over again, and frankly, I was stressed. It was daunting to go back to university again, so I took a short course at the Maria Montessori Institute to test whether this was something I wanted to do.

After successfully completing the course, my enthusiasm took over, and I decided to study a bachelor's degree in Montessori Education, which I completed in 2025 with a first-class and a Dean's Award. During my undergraduate studies, I published my first article and presented at a conference for the first time, which I’m very proud of.

How did you end up doing a master’s at Bath?

I was really enjoying my education journey, but while working on my dissertation, I found out I was expecting another baby. At that time, I had very clear plans for what to do next in my new career and already held master's degree offers from a few universities. Due to these circumstances, I had to change my plans all over again over the summer. That’s when I decided to study online, because I didn’t want to give up on my education.

One of the reasons I chose the University of Bath was the variety of modules (or ‘units’) on offer. Coming from a Montessori educator background, I wanted to gain a broader scope of knowledge in the field of education. A few modules specifically caught my attention at Bath, as very few universities offer them in the UK – such as curriculum studies and educational assessment, with a combination of modules related to social science, psychology and education innovations. So, the range of knowledge offered through these units is wide. I felt that this master's degree would enhance my existing knowledge and offer completely new perspectives.

Another benefit was that, while most universities offer a part-time master’s degree over two years, Bath gives me a lot more flexibility with up to four years of study. It allows you to take one unit per semester and work around a job and childcare, which was very important to me. It can be very difficult, especially for women, to build a career in academia and figure out how to advance while taking care of a baby, so having more flexible study options helps a lot.

The final factor was, of course, Bath’s high rankings, but honestly, that wasn’t the main thing for me as much as the course content.

How have you found the course so far?

One thing I really love about Bath is the fact that you can pick literally any module in any semester you wish – apart from the introductory “Educational Futures” unit. Initially, I wasn’t too excited about this unit, but I ended up actually loving it! It taught us about sustainability in education and current research perspectives. I ended up learning a lot, and I enjoyed my assignment, which I found quite creative in its approach.

I’ve always wanted to contribute to academic discourse, and during my studies at Bath, I recently gave a poster presentation at Edge Hill University on my expertise in Montessori philosophy. I’m grateful to Dr Gil Ortega for reviewing it and providing motivating feedback ahead of the conference.

I’m also a guest editor for one of the UK’s Montessori magazines and try to do some independent research and writing on the side, hopefully to get published in an academic journal in the future. On top of that, I contribute as a reviewer for HundrED, a Finnish education initiative that reports on educational innovation across the world and invites reviewers within the education sector, like myself, to share their opinions.

It's quite a lot to juggle at times with childcare and deadlines on my master’s course, but there are so many opportunities to get involved, and it’s helpful to combine my studies with continuing to contribute to the world of education.

What does the future look like for you?

Obviously, I would love to do a PhD, that's my dream. For now, the master’s helps me to crystallise my interests because I'm still in the middle of deciding which route within education to take. Currently, I have a few specific interests in psychology and the philosophy of education. I'm also passionate about progressive education and an advocate for a child-centred approach to teaching and learning.

It can feel a bit lonely at times to be so interested in what is essentially still a niche topic, and to be less focused on applying my knowledge to classroom teaching. But after all, education is more than just the practice of teaching. It’s about theory, research and publishing, it’s about helping families with parenting, working for governments, informing policies and interdisciplinary approaches with subjects like psychology or sociology.

People like me, who look at progressive methods, are quite a critical minority, at least in the UK, so we tend to provoke! And I feel quite privileged to be able to do that, and motivated by the opportunity to voice those perspectives in my course seminars and assignments.

Moving forward, I would also love to support parents through public speaking and writing. I’d love to bring more insights from educational theory to these audiences, to help others learn, for instance, about early years education and the science behind it.

Interestingly, when I started my education journey, I never liked writing. I always preferred speaking. But as I progressed, I began to enjoy writing, and I feel that my master’s course continues to enrich my academic writing skills, which is important for my professional growth.

What advice would you give future students?

Studying online can be a bit strange at times, especially if you’ve not done it before! You get to study at your own pace, which is a great bonus. You get exposed to students all across the world, who work in very different educational systems, but of course you don’t get to have the same experience as if you were on campus full-time.

The course has definitely met my expectations, and likewise, the university expects a lot from you academically! There’s always support from the academics or the Skills Centre, but at master’s level you’ll be challenged to study mostly independently, think critically and self-reflect. The reading lists we’re given always include different views on an issue, which I appreciate a lot and find helpful. Besides that, I’ve visited Bath a few times and love the city, so it’ll be nice to come back for my graduation!

To conclude, no matter how hard it is to juggle studying and parental responsibilities, I enjoy it because I'm still growing, and that mindset is a part of me. I’m really grateful that degrees like this exist, as they allow people like me to keep progressing. Being a career switcher is something I now feel very positive about. There are plenty of people following a different passion later in life, and this is an opportunity not to be missed!