Miriam Firth

Dr. Miriam Firth serves as a Senior Lecturer in Education Management and Leadership at the University of Manchester's Manchester Institute of Education, where she champions Vocational Education, Employability, and Flexible Assessment innovation. Her leadership extends to Chair of the national AGCAS Creative Industries Task Group, School Governor at Delamere School, and Governor for Edgehill University's Students Union, with collaborations spanning HESA, QAA, JISC, and Advance HE.

Her academic credentials include a Doctorate in Education (PhD), Master of Arts (MA), and Bachelor of Arts (BA), complemented by a Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice (2010) and Principal Fellowship of Advance HE (2023). She teaches undergraduate and postgraduate programs in Employability, Scholarship in Higher Education, and Teaching & Learning.

Dr. Firth's research centers on Vocational Education pathways, flexible assessment frameworks, and service dynamics in tourism/hospitality sectors. Her work directly supports UN Sustainable Development Goals for quality education and decent work, emphasizing practical applications for student success in evolving labor markets. Recent focus explores AI integration in assessment and co-creation of authentic learning experiences.

Her publication trends (2020-2023) reveal concentrated expertise in assessment flexibility and graduate employability, with significant contributions to vocational education handbooks and service encounter analysis in leisure industries. This output bridges theoretical research with sector-specific implementation strategies.

Recognition includes:

• Campaign of the year (2018)
• Humanities Outstanding Supervisor Award (UG) (2020)
• Students' Outstanding Teaching Award nomination (2019)
• Teacher of the year awards (2010, 2011)

As academic lead for Manchester's Flexible Learning Project and QAA Optionality in Assessment Project, she has secured cross-institutional partnerships and developed widely adopted employability textbooks. Her supervision excellence is evidenced by the 2020 Humanities Outstanding Supervisor Award, while external examiner roles at five universities demonstrate sector-wide influence.

Dr. Firth actively shapes national discourse through the AGCAS Creative Industries Task Group and Flexible Learning Project, driving assessment innovation that prioritizes student agency and industry relevance across vocational education pathways.