Neil Cocks completed his PhD on children's literature in 2000 with a thesis on: "Reading Repetition and Difference in the Nineteenth Century Boys' School Story". During and just after his PhD studies, Neil taught as a part-time lecturer at Reading, including on the MA in Children's Literature and the (then) MA in Science Fiction Studies. In 2001, he became Head of English at South East Essex College. In October 2008, Neil was appointed as a full-time, permanent lecturer at the University of Reading. Neil's research interests are in the areas of critical theory, philosophy, pedagogy, and cultural studies, particularly with regards to ideas of childhood, and art and art-history.