I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Policy at the London School of Economics. Prior to this, I was a postdoctoral prize fellow in sociology at Nuffield College, University of Oxford, where I also obtained my DPhil (PhD). I am an associate member at Nuffield College and also affiliated with Young Lives, the Department of Social Policy and Intervention, and the Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science. I currently serve as an Associate Editor for European Societies and as an editorial board member of the British Journal of Sociology of Education.

My research interests include social and educational inequalities, sociology of education, and cross-border policy diffusion with a particular (but not exclusive) focus on emerging and developing economies.

Journal articles 

Hossain, Mobarak. (2024). The Mismatch between World Bank Actions and the Decentralization of Educational Systems in LMICs. American Educational Research Journal. Open access


Hossain, Mobarak. (2023). The linkage between school autonomy and inequality in achievement in 69 countries: Does development level matter? Journal of Development Studies. Open access


Hossain, Mobarak. (2023). Large-scale Data Gathering: Exploring World Bank’s Influence on National Learning Assessments in LMICs. International Journal of Educational Development. Open access


Hossain, Mobarak. (2023). Perceptions of key education actors towards PISA: The case of Scotland. Oxford Review of Education. Open access


Hossain, Mobarak. (2022). Diffusing "destandardization" reforms across educational systems in low- and middle-income countries: the case of the World Bank, 1965 to 2020. Sociology of Education. Open access


Hossain, Mobarak. (2021). Does Greater Community Involvement Mean More Parent-Teacher Interaction? Evidence from Seven Developing Countries. International Journal of Educational Development, 83, 102378. link  pre-print


Hossain, Mobarak. (2021). Gender Differences in Experiencing Coronavirus-Triggered Economic Hardship: Evidence from Four Developing Countries. Research in Social Stratification and Mobility, 71, 100555. link  free access


Hossain, Mobarak. (2021). Unequal Experience of COVID-Induced Remote Schooling in Four Developing Countries. International Journal of Educational Development, 85, 102446. open access  pre-print


Hossain, Mobarak. (2021). COVID-19 and gender differences in mental health in low- and middle-income countries: Young working women are more vulnerable. SSM - Mental Health, 100039. open access

Working papers 

Hossain, Mobarak & Jukes, Matthew. (2023). Gender differences in socioemotional skills among adolescents and young adults in Ethiopia, India, Peru and Vietnam. Research Report, Oxford: Young Lives

Book chapters 

Hossain, Mobarak. (2018). The Effects of Governance Reforms on School Supervision: An Analysis of Six Developing and Emerging Economies. Pp. 127-160 in Cross-nationally Comparative, Evidence-based Educational Policymaking and Reform, edited by Alexander W. Wiseman and ‪ Petrina Davidson‬. Bingley, UK: Emerald Publishing.‬ link

Policy papers

Hossain, Mobarak. (2017). The State of Accountability in the Education Sector of Bangladesh: A Critical Overview. GEM Report Background Paper. Paris: UNESCO. link


Hossain, Mobarak. (2017). School Inspection Challenges: Evidence from Six Countries. GEM Report Background Paper. Paris: UNESCO. link