Student Benefits

Join us as a BAICE Student Member!

If you become a BAICE Student Member you will receive the same benefits as other BAICE members (see our Membership Benefits page).

In addition, BAICE student members:

  • can apply for Student Fieldwork Grants that support UK-based PhD students to undertake overseas fieldwork;
  • can apply for the BAICE Student Prizes given for the best papers presented at BAICE/UKFIET conferences and re-written as papers;
  • may publish titles of their thesis in Compare and post the abstracts of their research degrees on the BAICE website;and
  • have a chance to be elected as the BAICE Student Representatives to serve for two years, or to be part of the supporting student committee.
Group of BAICE student members

BAICE Student Representatives organise an annual conference to support postgraduate research. The themes of past student conferences include:

  • 2017 – Addressing the messiness of data analysis: Praxis, readiness and tips from doctoral research (Institute of Education, London)
  • 2016 – Understanding, embracing and reflecting upon the messiness of the fieldwork (Institute of Education, London)
  • 2015 – Methodological challenges in comparative and international educational research: Doctoral perspectives (University of Cambridge)
  • 2014 – Education and plural societies: Conflict and comparison (Queens University Belfast)

Selected papers from student conferences have been published in Compare as full articles or Forum pieces.

Naveed, A., Sakata, N., Kefallinou, A., Young, S., &Anand, K. (2017). Understanding, embracing and reflecting upon the messiness of doctoral fieldwork. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 1-20.
(http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03057925.2017.1344031)

The student representatives and the student committee organise further events specifically geared to the needs of research students. BAICE student members are invited to suggest proposals for workshops or events to the Student Representatives with the possibility of obtaining funding from BAICE.

Your Student Representatives are responsible for bringing the student voice to the Executive Committee Meetings and organising Student Activities, including conferences and events that are tailored to students’ needs.

Current Student Representatives

  • Pritha Dahal

    Pritha Dahal

    Pritha Dahal has over ten years of experience as a high school teacher in Nepal, where she has worked with students from a variety of social backgrounds. She has trained community schoolteachers from community schools and has served as a visiting faculty member at the School of Education at Kathmandu University. In addition, Pritha has collaborated with several non-governmental organizations on various educational projects. Through these experiences, she has developed a strong belief in the importance of collaboration among all education stakeholders—including learners and teachers—to find effective, long-term  contextual solutions rather than just temporary fixes. Currently, Pritha is pursuing her PhD at the School of Education, University of Glasgow. Her research focuses on exploring learner-centred education models that are relevant to the context of Nepali community schools. She aims to gain a deeper understanding of the daily teaching and learning experiences of both students and teachers. Additionally, Pritha is committed to amplifying the voices of learners and educators to better understand the current pedagogical practices in Nepali schools.
  • Kate Matzopoulos

    Kate Matzopoulos

    Kate Matzopoulos is a PhD candidate in the Department of Education at the University of Bath. Her research explores decolonising education through Indigenous knowledge systems. She is currently working in collaboration with a Ju/’hoansi community in Nhoma, Namibia, to co-create a curriculum rooted in their onto-epistemologies. With a background in theatre education, Kate is passionate about creative and unconventional research dissemination, using artistic and participatory methods to challenge traditional academic structures. Alongside her research, she serves as co-chair of the Decolonising Education Collective (DEC) at the university, working to bridge theory and practice, foster critical dialogue, and drive institutional change. Her academic, professional, and advocacy work centre on Indigenous rights, educational equity, and the role of the arts in social transformation.