'I was nervous doing the course as a part-time student as I worried that I may be at a disadvantage. This was definitely not the case. The course is structured so well, and the support I received from [the MA staff] Karin, Neil and Sue (as well as the other students over both years) ensured that I was given the same opportunities, guidance and experience as everyone else. I have really enjoyed this degree and I can see that it has changed the way I think. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading, thinking and being challenged.'

The [M(Res)] seminars I attended in CIRCL during my one year’s visit are always inspiring and profound, which have greatly improved my research skills and changed my mindset for doing research in children’s literature. The seminars taught me to find the perspectives in the text we analysed and develop my own judgment, which is the most challenging yet most rewarding thing in doing research. From my own experience as a teacher, such seminars are most effective in forging critical and independent thinking, which is not only crucial for learning to do research on any MA programme, but also essential for our life and career in the long run. I am greatly grateful for Karin, Neil and Sue for their very generous help and friendship.

'My undergraduate degree was English Literature with Education Studies at the University of Cambridge and as part of that course I took a module in Children's Literature and absolutely loved it. I therefore decided to research MA courses so that I could further develop my interest. I was advised by my tutors at Cambridge that the most rigorous course was the one offered by the University of Reading and I was thrilled to be offered a place. During the MA the tutors were friendly and supportive and I made lots of new friends. The course was as rigorous as promised with an emphasis on developing critical thinking and analytical skills. During the course I felt like my academic reasoning skills developed in leaps and bounds. I found it to be such a stimulating experience that I applied to extend my studies into a PhD. I was awarded a full studentship and with Karin's support I gained my PhD after just over 3 years. I am now a lecturer in Education Studies at the University of Plymouth [and later University of Exeter] and I find that I still constantly draw on the analytical skills I learnt during my time at Reading.'

My one year’s visit in CIRCL is the most rewarding academic experience that I have ever had. I found the [M(Res.)] seminars very stimulating. With “positive reinforcement”, all the participants are encouraged and involved. I am always encouraged and inspired by the discussions that were held in the seminars, which are though-provoking and very interactive, heated sometimes yet always in a very pleasant and harmonious atmosphere. I am greatly indebted to Karin, Neil and Sue for their wonderful seminars, which will have long-lasting influence on my career.

'The Children’s Literature MA has aided my development of extensive academic skills and has introduced me to complex and fascinating theoretical approaches, which can be used to question supposedly obvious or accepted ideas encountered not just in Children’s Literature but across all types of literature.  However, I also feel the MA has provided me with some essential skills including problem-identifying and solving by working out the implications and effects of the claims made by others,  as well as, to use an (albeit apt) cliché, really encouraging me to think outside of the box.  I have now gone on to secure a job in the educational charity sector and believe the skills I have acquired from the MA not only helped me to get the job in the first place, but will continue to be invaluable tools I can use in the future.'

'Studying the Children’s Literature MA at Reading was a hugely challenging and rewarding experience for me. When I began the course I had no idea how much my own thinking, reading and argument would develop, so much so that by the end I considered continuing with a PhD. A year after completing the MA I won University Studentship funding to undertake a PhD at CIRCL. I would recommend the Children’s Literature MA to anybody who wishes to develop their critical thinking in any subject area, not just Children’s Literature. The reading and analytical skills that I developed on the MA [became] central to the argument of my PhD thesis.'