Arts (Children's Studies)

Course Overview

This programme provides unique and applied training that is not available anywhere else in Europe. The Arts (Childrens Studies) programme provides students with the knowledge, confidence and transferable skills to identify their preferred career path. Students on this programme are expected to work with children from the very first semester and throughout the four years, including a semester-long placement, thus mixing the academic experience with practical work.

Graduates will be well-placed to pursue careers in community development work, as integration support assistants (special needs assistants), and research, as well as to gain entry to postgraduate degrees in primary teaching, play therapy, social work, speech and language therapy, health promotion, arts administration, and public advocacy.

This programme is an excellent choice for students who would like to pursue a career as primary school teachers, as it also includes an option to study Gaeilge as part of the programme (optional); our graduates are very successful in applying to the PME (primary school teaching) as well as to other professional postgraduate degrees in social work and play therapy, largely due to the significant service learning and work placement experience they gather throughout the degree.

Click to view our video for BA Child and Youth Studies: BA (Children's Studies) from our May 2021 Virtual Open Day

Key Facts

Entry Requirements

Additional Requirements

Course Outline

Year 1

· Introduction to Childrens Studies

· Children in Social Contexts

· Children and Fairy tales

· Children and Health

· History of Childhood

· Developmental Psychology

Year 2

· Exploring Irish Childhoods

· Adolescents in Ireland: Healthy and Risky Behaviour

· Research Methods

· Child Law

· Educational Pedagogies: Policies and Practice

· Children and Storytelling

Year 3

· Child-Centred Research (Philosophy for Children)

· Children and Transitions

· Children and Play

· Twenty-First-Century Young Adult Literature

· Semester-Long Placement/Exchange

Year 4

· Childrens Rights

· Children and Theatre

· E-Literacy

· Connecting Research, Practice, and Policy in Childrens Lives

· Children, Culture and Media

· Applied Behavioural Analysis

· Supporting Children with Diverse Needs

Equivalent modules may be substituted from time to time for any of the above under exceptional circumstances and when approved by the College of Arts, Social Sciences, and Celtic Studies

International Links

Students who take a foreign language as part of their BA(Childrens Studies) will have the option to study for a semester at a European University under the ERASMUS exchange programme and/or carry out their second semester work placement abroad.

A limited number of international exchange opportunities (consideration for which is based on grade averages) are also available to students not studying a foreign language. These include working in partner international schools in Spain (SEK) and/or studying Childrens Studies at York University in Canada.

Curriculum Information

Glossary of Terms

Year 1 (60 Credits)

Year 2 (60 Credits)

Year 3 (60 Credits)

Year 4 (60 Credits)

Course Overview

This programme provides unique and applied training that is not available anywhere else in Europe. The Arts (Childrens Studies) programme provides students with the knowledge, confidence and transferable skills to identify their preferred career path. Students on this programme are expected to work with children from the very first semester and throughout the four years, including a semester-long placement, thus mixing the academic experience with practical work.

Graduates will be well-placed to pursue careers in community development work, as integration support assistants (special needs assistants), and research, as well as to gain entry to postgraduate degrees in primary teaching, play therapy, social work, speech and language therapy, health promotion, arts administration, and public advocacy.

This programme is an excellent choice for students who would like to pursue a career as primary school teachers, as it also includes an option to study Gaeilge as part of the programme (optional); our graduates are very successful in applying to the PME (primary school teaching) as well as to other professional postgraduate degrees in social work and play therapy, largely due to the significant service learning and work placement experience they gather throughout the degree.

Click to view our video for BA Child and Youth Studies: BA (Children's Studies) from our May 2021 Virtual Open Day

Key Facts

Entry Requirements

Additional Requirements

Course Outline

Year 1

· Introduction to Childrens Studies

· Children in Social Contexts

· Children and Fairy tales

· Children and Health

· History of Childhood

· Developmental Psychology

Year 2

· Exploring Irish Childhoods

· Adolescents in Ireland: Healthy and Risky Behaviour

· Research Methods

· Child Law

· Educational Pedagogies: Policies and Practice

· Children and Storytelling

Year 3

· Child-Centred Research (Philosophy for Children)

· Children and Transitions

· Children and Play

· Twenty-First-Century Young Adult Literature

· Semester-Long Placement/Exchange

Year 4

· Childrens Rights

· Children and Theatre

· E-Literacy

· Connecting Research, Practice, and Policy in Childrens Lives

· Children, Culture and Media

· Applied Behavioural Analysis

· Supporting Children with Diverse Needs

Equivalent modules may be substituted from time to time for any of the above under exceptional circumstances and when approved by the College of Arts, Social Sciences, and Celtic Studies

International Links

Students who take a foreign language as part of their BA(Childrens Studies) will have the option to study for a semester at a European University under the ERASMUS exchange programme and/or carry out their second semester work placement abroad.

A limited number of international exchange opportunities (consideration for which is based on grade averages) are also available to students not studying a foreign language. These include working in partner international schools in Spain (SEK) and/or studying Childrens Studies at York University in Canada.

Curriculum Information

Irish, UK and EU Undergraduate Applications

For full details on the undergraduate admission procedure and entry requirements please refer to the Undergraduate Admissions Office webpage.

How do I apply for an Undergraduate Course?

• You can apply online to the Central Applications Office (CAO) on the CAO Web site
• You can submit a paper application which you can download from the CAO Web site

Where do I submit my paper application?

You can send your paper application to the following postal address:

The Central Applications Office 
Tower House, Eglinton Street, Galway 
T: 353 91 509800 
E: www.cao.ie

Important CAO dates to remember:

There are three closing dates for applications.

• Normal application: 1 February.
• Late applications: 1 May (Late applications may NOT be made by those applying on 1 or for entry to Medicine).
• Change of mind: 1 July.

If you are submitting a non-standard application (an entry on page three of the application form), you should submit it to the CAO Office  by the 1 February.

Further information on Undergraduate Admission is available from the Undergraduate Admissions Office.

Further information on Undergraduate entrance Scholarships:www.nuigalway.ie/admissions/scholarships/index.html.

Learn More

• Download CAO application form and handbook