Professor Manuel Souto Otero

Research areas

My main areas of interest are education policy analysis and evaluation, and sociology of education. I have a particular interest in:

-the link between education and work (including, although not restricted to, digitalisation, the future of work and its implications for skills development),

-internationalisation and international student mobility,

-the recognition of learning (in particular non-formal and informal learning),

-digital technologies in education,

-the governance of education systems.

Most of my work focuses on post-compulsory education. I make use of a range of qualitative and quantitative methodologies in my work.

Research projects

During my career I have undertaken a large number of research and consultancy projects on education issues for the European Commission, European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (Cedefop), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural and Organisation (UNESCO), the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), International Labour Organisation (ILO), various government departments in the UK and internationally, think-tanks and voluntary sector organisations.

Recent research projects include: the Evaluation of Erasmus+ -the largest investment programme in the area of education of the European Commission- and a feasibility study of a European recognition and quality assurance system in higher education, which will contribute to a Council Recommendation on this topic in 2024 (both for DG Education and Culture of the European Commission); capacity building work for in the area of recognition of learning for UNESCO and the ILO (for countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America), the 2023 edition of the European Inventory on Validation of non-formal and Informal Learning, which covers 30+ European countries, and the coordination of a network of experts in Adult Learning (both for DG Employment of the European Commission). I recently completed, as Co-Principal Investigator, the project "Digital Disruption and the Future of Work: Reimagining Education, Skills and Employability".

Visiting positions

I have been a Visiting Scholar at the University of California Berkeley (Berkeley, USA), Juan March Institute for Advance Studies in the Social Sciences (Madrid, Spain), Senior Professorial Fellow at the Singapore University of Social Sciences (Singapore) and International Fellow at the College for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences and Humanities at the Research Alliance Ruhr (Universities of Duisburg-Essen, Bochum and TU Dortmund, Germany). During 2023 I was on secondment at ICF (Nasdaq ICFI), as a Director in the Public Policy Division, leading research projects and evaluations for the European Commission.

Work for Research Councils and reviewing

I am/ have been a member of the Grants Assessment Panel of the UK Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) (2022-), the Norwegian Research Council and the Portuguese Research Council and have been grant reviewer for various organisations including the European Research Council (ERC), DG Education and Culture, European Commission; DG Research, European Commission; Dutch Research Council (NWO); Research Foundation - Flanders.

I am Associate Editor of the Journal of Education and Work (2008-), Executive Editor of the British Journal of Sociology of Education (2023-) and Member of the Advisory Board of the Journal of Education Policy (2022-). I review for a large number of leading journals in the areas of education, sociology, social policy and management.

Recent awards:

Best Article Award "European Journal of Education Article of the Year 2021" for Souto-Otero, M. (2021) 'Validation of non-formal and informal learning: covert and overt' European Journal of Education, vol.56(3), pp. 365-379.

Best Article Award "2021 Comparative and International Education Society Study Abroad and International Students Special Interest Group" for Van Mol, C., Caarls, K. and Souto-Otero, M., (2021) International student mobility and labour market outcomes: An investigation of the role of level of study, type of mobility, and international prestige hierarchies. Higher Education, 82(6) pp.1145-1171.

Runner-up for “Educational Review Article of the Year 2013" for Souto-Otero, M. (2013) ‘Neo-liberalism and continuing vocational training governance in the UK: an examination of three theoretical accounts’ Educational Review, vol.65(1), pp.20-35.

Doctoral supervision

I welcome applications for doctoral supervision from highly energetic candidates -recent students have obtained funding from the Chinese Scholarship Council, Economic and Social Research Councill of the UK, Government of Oman, Government of Saudi Arabia, amongst other bodies, or have been self-funded). Recent topics include:

- The Role Of Student Council Engagement In Shaping Policies In Higher Education (Dr. Faisal Al Balushi),

- The Impact Of Credentials And Social Capital On Employment Outcomes (Dr. Khalifa Al Harmi).

- PhD Degree Mobility And Career Outcomes (Dr. Amnah Albehiji).

- Entrepreneurship Education And Economic Diversification Strategies (Dr. Issa Al Shabibi).