- Study in an exciting, new multidisciplinary programme, with lectures by UCD staff and international experts, with practical training in laboratories and the Centre for Experimental Archaeology, and fieldtrips.
- Explore and investigate though lectures, seminars, and practical project learning how people in the past understood and worked with stone, flint, clay, pottery, wood, leather, woolen and vegetal textiles, and other materials, and how they constructed and inhabited buildings developed different technologies, and made and used things.
- Gain key professional skills in object and materials analyses, including the use of artefact photography, 3D laser scanning, photogrammetric modeling and visualization technologies, and GIS, and the use of optical microscopes and Scanning Electron Microscopes. Through the MSc programme you will have access to training in Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDX), X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) and X-ray Diffraction, thus gaining insights into how we investigate past material culture through detailed elemental analysis.
This course is available through the following application route(s)
The Graduate Diploma in Experimental Archaeology and Material Culture will allow students to develop critical thinking, practical expertise and key transferrable skills while working in the world-leading UCD Centre for Experimental Archaeology and Material Culture (CEAMAC)
- Experimental archaeology can be defined as the reconstruction of past buildings, technologies, things and environmental contexts so as to enable a better understanding of the character and role of materiality and material culture in peoples lives.
- It may also involve innovative, experiential interrogations of past lifeways and material culture, so as to explore and understand how people interact with each other and the world.
- UCD School of Archaeology has a growing momentum and international reputation in experimental archaeology and material culture studies. Students of the GDip in Experimental Archaeology and Material Culture will be integrated into UCD School of Archaeology’s European and global experimental archaeological and museum networks, particularly through Prof Aidan O’Sullivan’s Board Membership of EXARC, the ICOMOS-affiliated worldwide network of AOAMs and experimental archaeologists.
- UCD School of Archaeology is ranked in the top 100 QS subject rankings worldwide in 2024
About This Course
Graduates may progress to careers in further research (e.g. PhD), in academia, state or commercial archaeology, in cultural heritage studies, in education and public outreach, in traditional and archaeological open-air museums, in cultural tourism and heritage
management, amongst many other options.
- Further research, whether academic or professional
- Professional archaeological practice
- Museums, Living History and re-enactment
- Communicating heritage
- Heritage and education policy and practice
Below is a list of all modules offered for this degree in the current academic year. Click on the module to discover what you will learn in the module, how you will learn and assessment feedback profile amongst other information.
Incoming Stage 1 undergraduates can usually select an Elective in the Spring Trimester. Most continuing undergraduate students can select up to two Elective modules (10 Credits) per stage. There is also the possibility to take up to 10 extra Elective credits.
| Trimester | Credits | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Stage 1 Core Modules |
ARCH41170 | Material Culture | Autumn | 10 |
Stage 1 Core Modules |
ARCH41180 | Experimental Archaeology: Making, Understanding, Storytelling | Autumn | 10 |
Stage 1 Core Modules |
ARCH40850 | Practical Experimental Archaeology | Spring | 10 |
Stage 1 Options - A) Min 1 of: Students must select at least 20 credits from the Level 4 modules listed below. |
ARCH41240 | Heritage Management Challenges | Autumn | 10 |
Stage 1 Options - A) Min 1 of: Students must select at least 20 credits from the Level 4 modules listed below. |
ARCH41250 | Nature & Culture: A bridge | Autumn | 10 |
Stage 1 Options - A) Min 1 of: Students must select at least 20 credits from the Level 4 modules listed below. |
ARCH41310 | Land / Landscape | Autumn | 10 |
Stage 1 Options - A) Min 1 of: Students must select at least 20 credits from the Level 4 modules listed below. |
ARCH41270 | Archaeological Field Methods | Spring | 10 |
Stage 1 Options - A) Min 1 of: Students must select at least 20 credits from the Level 4 modules listed below. |
ARCH41340 | GIS, Cultural Heritage and Spatial Thinking | Spring | 10 |
Stage 1 Options - A) Min 1 of: Students must select at least 20 credits from the Level 4 modules listed below. |
ARCH41410 | Presenting & Managing Heritage | Spring | 10 |
Stage 1 Options - B) Min 0CR: Students MAY select a maximum of 10 credits from Level 3 modules in List B&C below (if not previously taken). |
ARCH30500 | Experiment Archaeology & Ancient Technologies | Autumn | 5 |
Stage 1 Options - B) Min 0CR: Students MAY select a maximum of 10 credits from Level 3 modules in List B&C below (if not previously taken). |
ARCH30920 | Communicating Archaeology | Autumn | 5 |
Stage 1 Options - B) Min 0CR: Students MAY select a maximum of 10 credits from Level 3 modules in List B&C below (if not previously taken). |
ARCH30990 | Between Newgrange & Stonehenge | Spring | 10 |
Stage 1 Options - B) Min 0CR: Students MAY select a maximum of 10 credits from Level 3 modules in List B&C below (if not previously taken). |
ARCH31000 | People & Extreme Environments | Spring | 10 |
Stage 1 Options - C)0 of: Students MAY select a maximum of 10 credits from Level 3 modules in List B&C (if not previously taken). Due to capacity restrictions, registration for ARCH31010 is not available online - if you wish to take this module please contact the School of Archaeology using this Google Form. |
ARCH31010 | Human Osteoarchaeology | Autumn | 10 |
Graduate Diploma in Experimental Archaeology & Material Culture (W373) Full Time
EU fee per year - € 7000
nonEU fee per year - € 15070
Graduate Diploma in Experimental Archaeology & Material Culture (W374) Part Time
EU fee per year - € 4190
nonEU fee per year - € 7540
***Fees are subject to change
EU fee per year - € 7000
nonEU fee per year - € 15070
Graduate Diploma in Experimental Archaeology & Material Culture (W374) Part Time
EU fee per year - € 4190
nonEU fee per year - € 7540
***Fees are subject to change
Tuition fee information is available on the UCD Fees website. In terms of higher education, notwithstanding Brexit, UK students will still be eligible for the EU fee rate.
Please note that UCD offers a number of graduate scholarships for full-time, self-funding international students, holding an offer of a place on a UCD graduate degree programme. For further information please see International Scholarships.
Minimum Academic Criteria
A Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelors in Archaeology/Anthropology or a cognate area with a minimum 2.2 (NFQ Level 8 ) or international equivalent is required. Candidates from cognate disciplines (e.g. History, Classics, Art History, Geography, etc) will have demonstrated previous experience and/or awareness of Archaeological or Experimental Archaeological methods and thought, by attending during their primary degree a number of Archaeology modules and/or working for a period on an Archaeological Excavation and/or working in a Museum, or Open-Air Museum. Previous academic education and/or experience in aspects of Crafts and/or Material Culture Studies will also be considered by the School. The School would reserve the right to assessing the extent and quality of such previous studies and experience. Applicants are required to submit original academic transcripts.
Additional Essential Criteria
A statement outlining the applicant's previous experience in Archaeology,, and/or cognate disciplines and the reasons for pursuing the degree, and the reasons why UCD is being chosen. Every applicant should complete this part of the application which should be approximately 300-500 words. Applicants whose first language is not English are also required to submit evidence of their English Language proficiency. It is expected that applicants will normally have reached on overall 7.0 in IELTS or equivalent. Foreign Language documentation must be accompanied by an official translation. If applicants are unable to provide final transcripts or any other required documentation by the closing date, they should contact the School directly by e-mail prior to this date.
References
For non UCD students and for UCD students who have not yet completed their Undergraduate degree, TWO references must accompany your application: one MUST be academic from the institution where your primary degree was awarded; the second reference can either be academic or from a professional employer in archaeology or from a cognate profession.
Please submit, or have your referees submit, a copy of a reference on your behalf via the Student Desk connector or email it to documentverification@ucd.ie
How to Apply
General application route(s) for Irish/UK/EU applicants* for International (non-EU) applicants* to Graduate Diploma in Experimental Archaeology & Material Culture:
| ROWCLASS | Apply to | Application Type | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| showAudience-audienceEU showAudience-audienceInt | W373 Graduate Diploma in Experimental Archaeology & Material Culture Graduate Diploma |
Full-Time Commencing 2024/2025 September |
Graduate Taught | Apply |
| showAudience-audienceEU showAudience-audienceInt | W374 Graduate Diploma in Experimental Archaeology & Material Culture Graduate Diploma |
Part-Time Commencing 2024/2025 September |
Graduate Taught | Apply |
* you can change options at the top of the page