MA (Landscape Archaeology)
College of Arts, Social Sciences, & Celtic Studies
Course overview
Drawing on a wide range of expertise in prehistoric and historic landscapes, the MA (Landscape Archaeology) offers an intensive one-year programme in landscape archaeology. The course provides a critical understanding of landscapes, their components, character and relevance in today’s society.
Key facts
Entry requirements
A NQAI Level 8 degree in Archaeology awarded at Second Class Honours Grade 2 standard overall with at least a Second Class Honours Grade 2 in Archaeology or its equivalent in education and professional experience. An interview forms part of the selection process.
Duration:
1 year, full-time
Next start date: September 2013
ECTS weighting: 90
Average intake: 12
Closing date: 10th May, 2013 - extended to 1st July, 2013
Course outline
The history of landscape archaeology is explored, as are contemporary philosophical treatments of the concept of landscape. Various issues surrounding the protection, management, and presentation of archaeological landscapes are considered and case-studies are used to examine the wide range of such landscapes and their components. There is emphasis on fieldwork training and a critical understanding of the range of sources used. Students are provided with a basic foundation in GIS and its applications in archaeology and are introduced to electronic survey and digital mapping, geophysical prospection, and data processing. Practical demonstrations and field exercises are an important element of the programme.
Programme content (subject to change):
- Landscape Perspectives
- Interpreting Landscapes
- Managing Landscapes
- Investigating Landscapes
- Digital Landscapes
- Geographical Information Systems and Landscape Archaeology
- Dissertation
The programme is based on six modules:
- Landscape perspectives: you are introduced to the fascinating world of landscape studies, and its theoretical foundations.
- Interpreting landscapes: this module focuses on how different archaeological landscapes can be read and interpreted based on case studies reaching from the Neolithic to the present day.
- GIS and Landscape Archaeology: this is an introduction to the basic concepts of GIS, and via tutorials you will gain basic proficiency in a selection of archaeological applications in ArcGIS 9.3.
- Managing landscapes: the role of archaeology in the planning process is explored. You are also introduced to the politics of landscape and Public Archaeology.
- Investigating landscapes: the wide range of sources and methods used in landscape archaeology are explored, with a focus on their potential and limitation.
- Presenting landscapes: via tutorial you are introduced to Adobe Photoshop. The module also consists of a week’s field school in the Burren, Co. Clare.
Applications and selections
Who teaches this course?
- Dr Stefan Bergh
- Dr Carleton Jones
- Mr Conor Newman
- Dr Michelle Comber
- Dr Elizabeth FitzPatrick
- Dr Kieran O'Conor
- Ms. Maggie Ronayne
- Mr. Joe Fenwick
- Ms. Angela Gallagher
In addition, up to 15 guest lecturers contribute to the course and these include staff members of other academic departments in NUI Galway and archaeologists from the National Roads Authority, from local authorities, from private consultancies, from other academic institutions and from The Discovery Programme.
Requirements and assessment
Find out more
T 353 91 492 052
E stefan.bergh@nuigalway.ie
www.nuigalway.ie/archaeology/Graduate_Program/ma_landscape_archaeology.html
PAC code
GYA80
Fees for this course
EU (Total): €6,015
- Student levy: €224
Non-EU (Total): €13,250
Download taught and research
Graduate profile
Andrew Whitefield
3rd Year PhD student
"I joined the NUI Galway MA in Landscape Archaeology in 2008, and the following year embarked on my PhD. My thesis will investigate prehistoric life in Ireland around the time of the first farmers, focusing on new approaches to the interpretation of the archaeological evidence. It is the capacity of archaeology to explore the diversity of human experience and shed light on how the past shapes the present that particularly inspires me. The Archaeology Department at NUI Galway provides a supportive learning environment which is at the cutting edge of many of the teaching and research methods that are changing the way we understand the past."