DPhil Graduate Wins BERA Doctoral Thesis Award

Dr Lucy Robinson, who has recently completed her ESRC-funded DPhil and is now a researcher within the Department, has won the 2025 BERA Doctoral Thesis Award.

Her doctoral research involved working creatively with groups of service children to explore how military life shapes their identity and school experiences. You can read her full thesis via ORA or a 3-page executive summary.

Lucy: “BERA has been brilliantly supportive with my professional development as an ECR, so I’m honoured to have received this award. I’d encourage Masters and doctoral students at the Department to engage with the range of opportunities offered by BERA.”

She is now working as part of the research team under Dr Julia Badger, Dr Ariel Lindorff and Dr Chloe Bracegirdle on the project ‘Pupil interactions and networks in special schools’ alongside teaching the Advanced Qualitative Research (AQR) course to DPhil students across the Social Sciences Division.

Annually, BERA recognises academic excellence and research rigour demonstrated by Masters and Doctorate students. This recognition underscores BERA’s commitment to developing capacity, advancing quality and methodological originality within the field of educational research.