#  Gavin Murphy 

Assistant Professor in the School of Education, Trinity College, Dublin

 

 

 



   ![Gavin Murphy](/sites/g/files/omnuum4496/files/styles/hwp_4_5__480x600/public/2025-08/Gavin%20cropped.jpg?itok=dJpn0HSG) 

 



 





 

**Dr. Gavin Murphy** is an educator, researcher, and scholar with expertise in the field of teacher education and development, educational leadership (most notably, leadership development), data and evidence use, and school and system improvement. Dr Murphy earned his Ph.D. in Education and Lifelong Learning from University College Dublin in 2020. Prior to this, he completed an MPhil as a Cambridge Trust European Scholar at the University of Cambridge in 2016, before an Endeavour Fellowship at the University of Melbourne in 2018. With a diverse professional background, Dr Murphy is also a qualified secondary school languages teacher. He has gained extensive practical experience in various educational settings, both nationally in Ireland as well as internationally in the UK, Switzerland and Australia.

Dr. Murphy joined Trinity College Dublin as Assistant Professor in the School of Education 2020. Here, Dr Murphy is deeply engaged in research-led and research-driven teaching. He is actively engaged in various programs, including the Professional Master of Education (PME) support pre-service teachers’ research, the MEd in Leadership and Policy in Education as Strand Leader, and has also taught on research-intensive programs including the PhD and D.Ed. Through his teaching, he intertwines theory, research, practice, and policy, creating a comprehensive learning experience for students. He regularly collaborates with community-based teacher educators and system leaders in his teaching.

Dr. Murphy's research is at the forefront of central debates linking educational policy, leadership, and teacher and school leaders’ professional education. His focus lies in exploring the development and implementation of educational change and reform at the system level, research-informed improvements in schools, and - at this juncture - the promotion of educational quality and equity through effective teaching and leadership development. His research has been published in leading peer-reviewed journals, such as the Journal of Educational Administration; Educational Management, Administration, and Leadership; the Journal of Educational Administration and History; School Leadership and Management; and others. Dr Murphy also initiated an educational leadership webinar series in 2020 titled 'In Conversation With,' which features prominent international academics discussing contemporary educational leadership issues and is publicly available on Trinity College Dublin's channels.

Beyond the classroom, Dr. Murphy has contributed significantly to programmatic quality, review, and development on both an international and national scale. He has served as an external examiner on educational leadership programs at the prestigious University of Glasgow, Scotland, and the Master of Education program at University College Cork. These experiences have honed his ability to enhance educators' professional development and align curricula with national qualification frameworks.