Bachelor of Arts with Children's Studies

College of Arts, Social Sciences, & Celtic Studies

Key facts

Entry requirements

Minimum Grade HC3 in two subjects and passes in four other subjects at H or O level in the Leaving Certificate including: Irish, English, another language and three other subjects recognised for entry purposes.

Additional requirements

Students must satisfy the Garda/Police Vetting Requirements.

Duration: 4 years

Next start date: September 2012

Entry points(2011): 460

A Level Grades (2011): AAA (A-Level) & b (AS) or equivalent combination approx.

Average intake: 15

Course overview

The BA with Children's Studies is an interdisciplinary programme that seeks to understand the human condition from the perspective of children. It focuses on children's lived experiences and on the issues that affect them and it draws on expertise from a wide range of areas including Literature, the Creative Arts, Law, Human Rights, Health Promotion, Sociology and Psychology. At present, the BA with Children's Studies is the only degree in Ireland or the UK that enables students to combine two Arts subjects with a specialism in Children's Studies.
The BA with Children's Studies is not a vocational training in childcare. It will not train you to work in a crèche or to be a school teacher. It will, however, give you exposure to a wide range of theoretical approaches to childhool and adolescence and enable you to gain valuable practical experience working with the young. It is particularly suited to those who are interested in working with children or adolescents and who would like to know mroe abvout the possible career paths available to them.
The expertise acquired through a BA with Children's Studies degree will benefit you in your other degeree subjects, it will help you to identify the caeer path that best suits your talents and ambitions, and it will open doors of employment upon graduation. The course is both theoretical and practical and the degree course combined with the transferable skills embedded within will enhance your general employability and assist you in gaining access to postgraduate programmes in the area.

Course outline

Year One:

  • Children and the Creative Arts
  • Children in Social Contexts
  • Modern Children's Literature and Film

Year Two:

  • European Fairytale
  • Child Law
  • Psychology

Year Three:

  • Connecting Research, Policy and Practice in Children's StudiesChildren and Human Rights
  • Designing Play: Workshop in Creativity for Children
  • Children and Health
  • Work Placement/Study Abroad

Year Four:

You will complete your studies in your two core degree subjects and may incorporate in your final year projects the specialist skills and knowledge you have gained over your previous three years.



We recommend that students of Children's Studies include a modern language among their other subjects so they can significantly broaden employment options (students interested in Primary School teaching should take Gaeilge).

Further education

Graduates of this programme will be eligible for entry into postgraduate professional qualifications in primary and secondary teaching, social work, research in children, health promotion, advertising and public relations; advocacy and community development both nationally and internationally.

Find out more

College of Arts, Social Sciences, and Celtic Studies
t 353 (0)91 493 958
f 353 (0)91 495 508
E collegearts@nuigalway.ie
www.nuigalway.ie/arts

CAO code

GY110

Fees for this course

EU (Total): €5,822
 - Tuition: €3,598
 - Student contribution: €2,000
 - Student levy: €224
Non-EU (Total): €12,750

Find out what these course fees mean

Current Students

Alex Kent

BA (Children's Studies)

"I found studying the Bachelor of Arts (Children's Studies) at NUI Galway extremely interesting. I did not know what to expect when I applied for the course, but I was pleasantly surprised when I began to study. The topics are highly interesting and very relevant. I would highly recommend this course to anyone who has an interest in children or working with them in the future."    

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