Bachelor of Arts (Music)

Course Overview

The BA in Music at the University of Galway is Ireland’s newest undergraduate music degree. Students learn about the theory and history of music, and develop creative practical skills in performance, composition and technology. There is also the possibility to take a work placement in a music-related field during the third year of the degree, for which students will receive training in transferable professional skills. This is an ideal course for anyone interested in pursuing a career in music, including teaching music in secondary schools and many other fields.

Minimum Grade H5 in two subjects and passes in four other subjects at O6/H7 Level in the Leaving Certificate, including Irish, English, another language, and three other subjects recognised for entry purposes. Leaving Cert Music is recommended, but not essential.

Music graduates typically go on to careers in such fields as performance, teaching, composition, academia, sound engineering, music therapy, arts administration, journalism, broadcasting, publishing, librarianship and archivism. In some cases, this may require a further vocational qualification or postgraduate study.

The BA Arts Music programme has been designed to meet the requirement of the Irish Teaching Council, so graduates will be qualified to use music as a teaching subject as part of their study for a postgraduate degree in post-primary education.

Students will also have opportunities to avail of at the University of Galway are unique offerings in creative arts management and business, ensuring they have real-world skills that will be directly relevant to the creative arts industry in Ireland and internationally.

Music BA graduates have transferable skills in such areas as public presentations, teamwork, research, and written and verbal communication. These skills are highly attractive to employers in a wide range of fields beyond music.

Students can combine the study of music with subjects such as Psychology, Legal Studies, Information Technology or Languages, all of which open up career opportunities in those areas.