Irish Studies BA (Hons)

About this course

This degree offers students a unique opportunity to study the history, politics, culture, literature, and language of Ireland. The interdisciplinary nature of the course provides students with a broad grounding in the humanities and social sciences, equipping graduates with a diverse and versatile skills set suitable for a wide-range of careers.

Introduction

You will explore Irish identity and society from a number of perspectives including the historical, the linguistic, the political, the literary and the ethnographic. You will then have the opportunity to develop expertise in your chosen area of study through the range of modules available in your second and third year.

The role of Ireland as an emerging independent nation, as well as part of a broader matrix of British and global history is explored. Its outstanding contribution to English literature in writers such as Wilde, Yeats, Joyce, Beckett, Bowen, McGahern, Heaney, and Edna O’Brien feature as part of this absorbing degree. Students can undertake in-depth study of the Northern Ireland ‘Troubles’ and explore the lessons which can be drawn from the region’s peace process for divided societies around the world. Students will also have the option of studying the Irish language, with modules catering to beginners as well as those who may already have a background in the language.

What you'll learn

• Knowledge and understanding of Ireland, it’s culture, history and politics
• Ability to formulate informed, sensitive and well-articulated arguments
• Debate skills
• Ability to integrate a diverse range of primary and secondary materials (such as literary and historical texts, oral interviews, sound recordings,  visual screenings of events, places and people) into your work
• Bibliographical, library and internet research skills
• Opportunity to learn the Irish language