Maia Chankseliani is Associate Professor of Comparative and International Education at the University of Oxford where she leads a flagship master’s course in Comparative and International Education. She convenes the Comparative and International Education Research Group at the Department of Education.

Within comparative and international education, Maia Chankseliani works at the intersection of tertiary education and development. She researches societal, institutional, and policy forces that shape tertiary education and the potential of tertiary education and research for transforming societies.

Methodologically, she utilises both qualitative and quantitative methods. Her work often combines secondary data analysis with insights gathered through semi-structured interviews and contextualised case studies.

Maia Chankseliani has published four books in the field of comparative and international education: What Happened to the Soviet University? (2022), Building Research Capacity at Universities: Insights from Post-Soviet Countries (2022), Comparing Post-Socialist Transformations: Purposes, Policies, and Practices in Education (2018), and Fairness in Access to Higher Education in a Global Perspective: Reconciling Excellence, Efficiency, and Justice (2013).

She currently leads a major research project examining the impact of international mobility on world development (funded by the U.S. Department of State). Maia Chankseliani has worked on a number of externally funded research projects and consultancies involving the UK Government agencies responsible for education and skills, UKRI/ESRC, British Council, World Bank, Qatar Foundation, the European Commission.

With a background in education research, teaching, policy-making, leadership, and consultancy, Maia Chankseliani brings to her role extensive experience in diverse international settings. This breadth of experience informs her research and enables her to bridge theory and practice.

Maia Chankseliani engages with governments and gives academic and policy-relevant talks nationally and internationally. Her research regularly features in national and international media.

She holds a BA in Philology from Tbilisi State University (Georgia), an Ed. M in International Education Policy from Harvard University (USA), and a PhD in Education from the University of Cambridge (UK).

Maia Chankseliani serves as the Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Educational Research.

Research

Books
  • Chankseliani, M., Fedyukin, I., … Frumin, I. (Eds.). (2022). Building research capacity at universities: insights from post-Soviet countries. Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-12141-8
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:20874536-f8cd-47ef-aa14-5c714fe570d1

  • Chankseliani, M. (2022). What happened to the Soviet University?. Oxford University Press. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:febe961b-4c04-44eb-bc93-78d4b0a0dda1
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:febe961b-4c04-44eb-bc93-78d4b0a0dda1

  • Chankseliani, M. (2018). Comparing post-socialist transformations: purposes, policies, and practices in education (M. Chankseliani & I. Silova, Eds.). Symposium Books. https://doi.org/10.15730/books.104
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:adace6cf-d599-4f65-8135-f6c6d5082a3f

  • Chankseliani, M. (2013). Fairness in access to higher education in a global perspective: reconciling excellence, efficiency, and justice (H. Meyer, E. St. John, M. Chankseliani, & L. Uribe, Eds.). Sense Publishers. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6209-230-3
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:f9bc139f-92ac-426f-ac5f-c594f7eaab5e

  • CHANKSELIANI, M. (2009). Procrustean Decisions in Higher Education Admissions: The Case of Georgia. VDM Verlag Dr. Müller.

  • Book chapters
  • Chankseliani, M., Fedyukin, I., & Frumin, I. (2022). Introduction. In Building Research Capacity at Universities: Insights from Post-Soviet Countries (pp. 1-14). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-12141-8_1
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-12141-8_1

  • Chankseliani, M., Fedyukin, I., & Frumin, I. (2022). Introduction. In Building Research Capacity at Universities (pp. 1-14). Springer Nature. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-12141-8_1
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-12141-8_1

  • Chankseliani, M., Fedyukin, I., & Frumin, I. (2022). Building Research Capacity at Universities: Imagining, Strategising, and Ordering. In Building Research Capacity at Universities: Insights from Post-Soviet Countries (pp. 305-327). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-12141-8_16
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-12141-8_16

  • Malinovskiy, S., & Chankseliani, M. (2018). International Student Recruitment in Russia: Heavy-handed Approach and Soft-Power Comeback. In A. Oleksiyenko, Q. Zha, I. Chirikov, & J. Li (Eds.), International Status Anxiety and Higher Education: The Soviet Legacy in China and Russia. CERC-Springer. http://cerc.edu.hku.hk/product/international-status-anxiety-and-higher-education-the-soviet-legacy-in-china-russia/

  • Chankseliani, M., & Silova, I. (2018). Reconfiguring education purposes, policies and practices during post-socialist transformations: setting the stage. In M. Chankseliani & S. Silova, I (Eds.), Comparing Post-Socialist Transformations: purposes, policies, and practices in education (pp. 7-26). Symposium Books. https://doi.org/10.15730/books.104
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:172e8242-b969-42f6-90b7-858376243261

  • Chankseliani, M. (2015). Rural disadvantage in Georgian Higher Education Admissions: A Mixed-method Study. In A. Mountford-Zimdars, D. Sabbagh, & D. Post (Eds.), Fair Access to Higher Education: Global Perspectives. University of Chicago Press. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:4aea0c65-2e65-4291-8dad-6fe7d1dfce7e
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:4aea0c65-2e65-4291-8dad-6fe7d1dfce7e

  • Chankseliani, M. (2014). Georgia: Marketization and education post-1991. In N. Ivanenko (Ed.), Education in Eastern Europe and Eurasia (pp. 277-302). Bloomsbury Academic. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:430abed8-90d5-46a9-b9f0-0a02e1bc3d5d
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:430abed8-90d5-46a9-b9f0-0a02e1bc3d5d

  • Meyer, H.-D., John, E., Chankseliani, M., & Uribe, L. (2013). The crisis of higher education access: a crisis of justice. In H.-D. Meyer, E. John, M. Chankseliani, & L. Uribe (Eds.), Fairness in Access to Higher Education in a Global Perspective: Reconciling Excellence, Efficiency, and Justice (pp. 1-11). SensePublishers. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6209-230-3_1
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:32668a33-3869-49e1-8e8e-7a39b8af7acc

  • Chankseliani, M. (2013). Higher education access in post-soviet Georgia overcoming a legacy of corruption. In Fairness in Access to Higher Education in a Global Perspective: Reconciling Excellence, Efficiency, and Justice (pp. 171-187). Sense Publishers. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6209-230-3_10
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6209-230-3_10

  • Journal articles
  • Wang, Z., Hanley, N., Kwak, J., Vari-Lavoisier, I., Al Hussein, M., Sanchez Tyson, L., Akkad, A., & Chankseliani, M. (2024). How do international student returnees contribute to the development of their home countries? A systematic mapping and thematic synthesis. International Journal of Educational Research, 125. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2024.102330
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:7d1c478e-ce41-404b-ab99-1669a670664d

  • Chankseliani, M., & Sopromadze, N. (2023). Listening to locals: regional spaces in higher education in the global south. International Journal of Educational Research, 122. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2023.102264
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:f0b8e31b-d420-4b0c-8f8c-675c8aea47ff

  • Chankseliani, M. (2022). Who funds the production of globally visible research in the Global South?. Scientometrics, 128, 783-801. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-022-04583-4
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:f45997d2-9cc7-47fc-894d-01eb8d65b932

  • Lovakov, A., Chankseliani, M., & Panova, A. (2022). Universities vs. research institutes? overcoming the Soviet legacy of higher education and research. Scientometrics, 127, 6293-6313. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-022-04527-y
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:820c9c28-4e1d-4cae-a650-bad0763aafd8

  • Charret, A., & Chankseliani, M. (2022). The process of building European university alliances: a rhizomatic analysis of the European Universities Initiative. Higher Education, 86(1), 21-44. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-022-00898-6
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:0c360c08-15dc-459b-83b1-fa953017037b

  • Chankseliani, M. (2022). International development higher education: looking from the past, looking to the future. Oxford Review of Education, 48(4), 457-473. https://doi.org/10.1080/03054985.2022.2077325
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:6b693914-932b-4af7-9ff3-1828ae22ff01

  • Yang, L., Brotherhood, T., & Chankseliani, M. (2021). A crisis of opportunity at English universities: rethinking higher education through the common good idea. Educational Review, 74(3), 591-608. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2021.1965961
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:4d2e5db7-b132-4748-81cd-3c02a28b93fe

  • Aizuddin, M., & Chankseliani, M. (2021). The role of non-state providers in informal Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education: a Malaysian perspective. Asia Pacific Journal of Education, 43(1), 189-202. https://doi.org/10.1080/02188791.2021.1908227
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:470af8c3-bd4e-41df-8eac-63f8bfbe026f

  • Chankseliani, M., & McCowan, T. (2020). Special Issue: Higher Education and the Sustainable Development Goals. Higher Education, 81(1).

  • Chankseliani, M., & McCowan, T. (2020). Higher education and the sustainable development goals. Higher Education, 81(1), 1-8. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-020-00652-w
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:5d7b8e7b-072a-46d7-a3c6-2c9e0cd80b3c

  • Chankseliani, M. (2020). The politics of exporting higher education: Russian university branch campuses in the “Near Abroad”. Post-Soviet Affairs , 37(1), 26-44. https://doi.org/10.1080/1060586x.2020.1789938
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:6c7d0136-0db4-463e-94c6-e0aa7fb00e97

  • Chankseliani, M., Qoraboyev, I., & Gimranova, D. (2020). Higher education contributing to local, national, and global development: new empirical and conceptual insights. Higher Education, 81, 109-127. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-020-00565-8
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:bd01562a-f220-4f2e-92c6-5f263a428cd1

  • Chankseliani, M., Gorgodze, S., Janashia, S., & Kurakbayev, K. (2020). Rural disadvantage in the context of centralised university admissions: A multiple case study of Georgia and Kazakhstan. Compare, 50(7), 995-1013. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057925.2020.1761294
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:002af8fc-beba-455b-ab18-5a30e149ac72

  • Kot, V., Yemini, M., & Chankseliani, M. (2020). Triple exclusion: Life stories of Jewish migrant academics from the former Soviet Union at a contested university under siege. International Journal of Educational Development, 76. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2020.102191
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:2fbb885d-345d-42a3-b2f1-951337e2d8bf

  • Opposs, D., Baird, J.-A., Chankseliani, M., Stobart, G., Kaushik, A., McManus, H., & Johnson, D. (2020). Governance structure and standard setting in educational assessment. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice , 27(2), 192-214. https://doi.org/10.1080/0969594X.2020.1730766
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:8bff9f7e-7607-4776-b5cf-2a56391c2039

  • Chankseliani, M., & Wells, A. (2019). A big business in a small state: rationales of higher education internationalisation in Latvia. European Educational Research Journal, 18(6), 639-655. https://doi.org/10.1177/1474904119830507
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:221fccc9-05e9-4d1d-9558-80d290c70777

  • Chankseliani, M. (2018). The politics of student mobility: Links between outbound student flows and the democratic development of post-Soviet Eurasia. International Journal of Educational Development, 62, 281-288. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2018.07.006
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:b18c762f-f7cd-4c1e-8043-464ddacf3d9d

  • Chankseliani, M. (2018). The politics of student mobility: Links between outbound student flows and the democratic development of post-Soviet Eurasia. 281-288.

  • Chankseliani, M. (2017). Four rationales of HE internationalisation: perspectives of UK universities on attracting students from former Soviet countries. Journal of Studies in International Education, 22(1), 53-70. https://doi.org/10.1177/1028315317725806
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:9c6928f2-a688-4a33-9708-3417a1cc56b5

  • Chankseliani, M. (2017). Charting the development of knowledge on Soviet and Post-Soviet education through the pages of comparative and international education journals. Comparative Education, 53(2), 265-283. https://doi.org/10.1080/03050068.2017.1293407
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:ca06e321-23c9-4a01-b59a-5184e1f52dd3

  • Chankseliani, M., & James Relly, S. (2016). Three-capital approach to the study of young people who excel in vocational occupations: a case of WorldSkills competitors and entrepreneurship. International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training, 3(1), 46-65. https://doi.org/10.13152/IJRVET.3.1.4
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:f5e04c7e-a3dc-4701-9f6a-94bd8ba0c88a

  • Chankseliani, M., James Relly, S., & Laczik, A. (2015). Overcoming vocational prejudice: how can skills competitions improve the attractiveness of vocational education and training in the UK?. British Educational Research Journal, 42(4), 582-599. https://doi.org/10.1002/berj.3218
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:ad4b0883-d37d-4585-999c-d69e597c9381

  • Chankseliani, M., & James Relly, S. (2015). From the provider-led to an employer-led system: implications of apprenticeship reform on the private training market. Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 4. https://doi.org/10.1080/13636820.2015.1076499
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13636820.2015.1076499

  • Chankseliani, M. (2015). Escaping Homelands with Limited Employment and Tertiary Education Opportunities: Outbound Student Mobility from Post-Soviet Countries. Population, Space and Place, 22(3), 301-316. https://doi.org/10.1002/psp.1932
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:a1d5bbbd-a9b3-4ce5-8053-2f91aecc2180

  • Chankseliani, M. (2014). Are we using Friedman’s roadmap? A comparative analysis of stimuli of private school enrolments in post-Soviet countries. International Journal of Educational Development, 38, 13-21. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2014.05.005
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:c3e98a4f-8638-492d-b9cc-77666012f5e2

  • Chankseliani, M. (2013). The financial burden of attending university in Georgia: Implications for rural students. Prospects, 43(3), 311-328. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11125-013-9274-x
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:e262f65c-ce99-4c83-91c4-9d6b05b6ab7a

  • Chankseliani, M. (2013). Rural Disadvantage in Georgian Higher Education Admissions: A Mixed-Methods Study. Comparative Education Review, 57(3), 424-456. https://doi.org/10.1086/670739
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:cb204cd1-2ab5-42dc-8668-5c3875efa114

  • Chankseliani, M. (2013). Spatial Inequities in Higher Education Admissions in Georgia: Likelihood of Choosing and Gaining Access to Prestigious Higher Education Institution. Caucasus Social Science Review, 1(1). https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:00ebae5b-324b-49b4-9b37-40eb8141bcaa
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:00ebae5b-324b-49b4-9b37-40eb8141bcaa

  • Chankseliani, M. (2008). Using service-learning activities for civic identity formation. Education Sciences and Psychology, 1(12), 13-24. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:fa5ca943-2e82-40d7-b02d-131d1acd4f08
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:fa5ca943-2e82-40d7-b02d-131d1acd4f08

  • Chankseliani, M. (2008). Gender inequality in Mozambican primary education: problems, barriers and recommendations. Political Perspectives, 2(1). https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:c6e997d7-2494-4b9c-b853-717e626bc02f
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:c6e997d7-2494-4b9c-b853-717e626bc02f

  • Chankseliani, M., Lovakov, A., & Pislyakov, V. (n.d.). A Big Picture: Bibliometric Study of Academic Publications from Post-Soviet Countries. Scientometrics: An International Journal for All Quantitative Aspects of the Science of Science, Communication in Science and Science Policy.

  • Chankseliani, M., & Anuar, A. (n.d.). Cross-country comparison of engagement in apprenticeships: A conceptual analysis of incentives for individuals and firms. International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training.

  • Reports
  • Kwak, J., & Chankseliani, M. (2023). Quantitative analysis international mobility and world development: estimating the system-level impact of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) and international exchanges. Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:104e8142-4d59-4087-8383-90c8b7d2ff0c
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:104e8142-4d59-4087-8383-90c8b7d2ff0c

  • Chankseliani, M., Keep, E., & Wilde, S. (2017). People and policy: A comparative study of apprenticeship across eight national contexts. In People and policy: A comparative study of apprenticeship across eight national contexts (pp. 1-116). Wise Qatar Foundation. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:56a3d0c9-3221-43d9-9da4-e1883e5a7a00
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:56a3d0c9-3221-43d9-9da4-e1883e5a7a00

  • Chankseliani, M., & Hessel, G. (2016). Case studies of the most popular European destinations for mobile students from Russia, Eastern Europe, Caucasus, and Central Asia. In Centre for Comparative and International Education, University of Oxford. Centre for Comparative and International Education, University of Oxford. https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.17820.90243
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:307e125e-6def-4b5e-8c3e-a984a6ddd2d1

  • Chankseliani, M., & Hessel, G. (2016). International student mobility from Russia, Eastern Europe, Caucasus, and Central Asia to the UK: trends, institutional rationales and strategies for student recruitment. In International student mobility from Russia, Eastern Europe, Caucasus, and Central Asia to the UK: trends, institutional rationales and strategies for student recruitment. Comparative and International Education, University of Oxford. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:fdbb4023-16fe-4542-9b2b-1b47993acf68
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:fdbb4023-16fe-4542-9b2b-1b47993acf68

  • Chankseliani, M., James Relly, S., & Mayhew, K. (2015). WorldSkills competitors and entrepreneurship. SKOPE. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:920f310f-39cf-4243-af1e-0f26ec4d895c
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:920f310f-39cf-4243-af1e-0f26ec4d895c

  • Chankseliani, M., Mayhew, K., & James, S. (2015). Benefits of developing vocational excellence: a report to the National Apprenticeship Service of Project 3 (phase II) of the DUVE suite of projects. In Benefits of Developing Vocational Excellence. A Report to the NationalApprenticeship Service of Project 3 (Phase II) of the DUVE suite of projects (pp. 1-67). Skills Funding Agency. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:14b74129-ea3a-4c37-97de-371c16905a16
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:14b74129-ea3a-4c37-97de-371c16905a16

  • James, S., Mayhew, K., Chankseliani, M., & Laczik, A. (2013). Benefits of developing vocational excellence: a report to the National Apprenticeship Service. Oxford: SKOPE. In Benefits of Developing Vocational Excellence A Report to the National Apprenticeship Service of Project 3 of the DUVE suite of projects. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:c9fbb733-8201-468a-92db-9d43ae122843
    https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:c9fbb733-8201-468a-92db-9d43ae122843

  • Chankseliani, M., & Gugushvili, A. (2011). External evaluation of the European Training Foundation (ETF) project on vocational education & training in Georgia. http://apps.eui.eu/Personal/Researchers/AlexiGugushvili/GeorgiaETFReport.pdf

  • Funded Research Projects

    • Improving Higher Education Participation in Georgia: Introducing Needs-Based Funding
      2022-2023
    • The Supranational Space in Higher Education (co-PI)
      2020-2023
    • University research capacity in former Soviet countries (co-PI)
      2019-2021
    • Comparative study of apprenticeships in Australia, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, Germany, India, and South Africa (PI)
      2016-2018
    • Escaping the Exclusion or Sustaining the Privilege? A Complex Reality of Student Mobility from Kazakhstan (PI)
      2016
    • A comparative investigation of student mobility from post-Soviet countries to the EU (PI)
      2016
    • International student mobility from Russia, Eastern Europe, Caucasus, and Central Asia to the UK: the perspectives of the UK HE sector (PI)
      2016
    • Developing and Understanding Vocational Excellence, funded (Research Fellow)
      2012-2015
    • External evaluation of the European Training Foundation (ETF) project on vocational education & training in Georgia, The Public Policy and Management Institute, Vilnius, Lithuania (PI)
      2011