Projects per year
Personal profile
Research interests
My research focuses on the globalization of education, using a sociological approach to study global trends in policy and practice. My recent research has investigated flows of international students in higher education, social media networks between universities, the relationship between education and inequality, and education in conflict-affected and fragile states. I am particularly interested in the application of new methodologies to these topics, with recent papers using social network analysis and multilevel modelling.
I hold a PhD in Education from UCLA, and my research has been funded by the Higher Education Academy, the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the Leadership Foundation for Higher Education, the European Commission, and the Dutch Ministry for Foreign Affairs. I am also a co-editor of the Comparative Education Review and received the George Bereday Award for the most outstanding article in the journal in 2013. I am a member of the Comparative and International Education Society (CIES) and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
At the University of Bath, I am Director of Studies for the DBA in Higher Education Management. This is an interdisciplinary professional doctorate for managers and administrators in higher education institutions. It has an extremely international composition with candidates in senior positions in many universities worldwide. I also teach on the University's Professional Doctorate in Policy Research and Practice and supervise theses on the Education Doctorate (EdD) programme.
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Projects 2014 2020
Organisational Perspectives on Accountability and Learning (OPAL): School Management Models and the Social Impact of Schooling in Mumbai and Kathmandu
1/10/17 → 30/09/20
Project: Research council
Social Media Networks and Communications Leadership in HE.
12/03/14 → 11/03/15
Project: Central government, health and local authorities
University Middle Managers as Agents of Culture Change for Public Engagement
15/01/18 → 31/12/18
Project: UK charity
Changing patterns in vocational entry qualifications, student support and outcomes in undergraduate degree programmes
1/04/14 → 31/03/15
Project: Central government, health and local authorities
Research Output 2008 2018
Following the leader? Network models of “world-class” universities on Twitter
Shields, R., 1 Feb 2016, In : Higher Education. 71, 2, p. 253-268Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
Globalization and international student mobility: a network analysis
Shields, R., 2013, In : Comparative Education Review. 57, 4, p. 609-636 28 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
'Development in reverse'? A longitudinal analysis of armed conflict, fragility and school enrolment
Shields, R. & Paulson, J., 2015, In : Comparative Education. 51, 2, p. 212-230 19 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
The network of bilateral aid to education 2005-2015
Shields, R. & Menashy, F., 20 Jul 2017, In : International Journal of Educational Development.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
False equivalence? Differences in the post-16 qualifications market and outcomes in higher education
Shields, R. & Masardo, A., 20 Mar 2017, In : Educational Review. p. 1-18 18 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
Thesis
A university in a period of disruption: identity as an explanatory interpretation of strategic decision-making
Author: Mazzoleni, E., 30 Jun 2016Supervisor: Shields, R. (Supervisor)
Student thesis: Doctoral Thesis › Doctor of Business (DBA)
Curriculum reform in the Faculty of Health Sciences at La Trobe University
Author: Swerissen, H., 9 Oct 2017Supervisor: Jamieson, I. (Supervisor) & Shields, R. (Supervisor)
Student thesis: Doctoral Thesis › Doctor of Business (DBA)
Examining Shifts in Institutional Positioning in the Evolving Irish Higher Education System
Author: Hannon, M., 2 Nov 2017Supervisor: Davies, J. L. (External person) (Supervisor) & Shields, R. (Supervisor)
Student thesis: Doctoral Thesis › Doctor of Business (DBA)
Facilitatory and Inhibitory Factors in Higher Education Mergers: Case Studies from the Irish Institute of Technology Sector
Author: Kenneally, A., 27 Jun 2017Supervisor: Shields, R. (Supervisor) & Davies , J. (External person) (Supervisor)
Student thesis: Doctoral Thesis › Doctor of Business (DBA)
Internationalisation of South African higher education: rationales and implementation
Author: Sowazi, S., 14 Sep 2017Supervisor: Shields, R. (Supervisor)
Student thesis: Doctoral Thesis › Doctor of Business (DBA)