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History  (HSS1)

BA (NFQ Level 8) · Academic Year 2020/2021
School
School of History
Attendance
Full Time
Level
Undergraduate
NFQ Level
Award
Bachelor of Arts
Mode of Delivery
On Campus
Programme Director
Professor Michael Staunton
Overall Programme Credits:
Programme Credits:
Stage 1
Core/Option: 50 Electives: 10
Stage 1
Core/Option: 55 Electives: 5
Stage 2
Core/Option: 50 Electives: 10
Stage 3
Core/Option: 50 Electives: 10
Stage 4
Core/Option: 50 Electives: 10
Major/Minor Core & Option Credits:
Stage 2: 50
Stage 3: 50
Stage 4: 50

Curricular information is subject to change.

In your first year (called Stage 1) you take 12 modules over two semesters. You must study core modules in History and typically two further Arts subjects.

Stage 2 students progress with a major in History, students also get the chance to take a small number of elective modules from any School across the University during their degree programme.

See below for the full list of subjects. Further details per stage will be displayed when browsing through subject. Please note that some subject combinations may not be possible, for timetable or other reasons.

(Please Note:Stage 1 below is only applicable to direct entry students. Students entering the BA programme via DN500 (Omnibus) do not select specific majors until stage 2. DN500 students must apply to the relevant School for entry to a single major).

The Single Subject Major in History is designed to provide students with an in-depth knowledge and understanding of the past, and the research skills with which to pursue that knowledge and understanding. It is aimed at anyone who has an interest in history, and no prior qualification in the discipline is required. What we do expect is that students approach the subject in an inquisitive and critical way, and are prepared to consider the history of Ireland and the world from a variety of perspectives. A particular feature of the Single Subject Major is that students are introduced from an early stage to how professional historians conduct research, and given the opportunity to pursue their own research. 



The syllabus takes in the entire sweep of history, from the fall of the Roman Empire to the present, and embraces all aspects of human experience. This includes conflict and political change, the lives of individuals and the fortunes of nations and civilisations. It also includes how people lived, how they thought and how they expressed themselves. The study of history, then, overlaps with the study of such subjects as gender, medicine, the media, religion and literature. Students learn through a combination of lectures, seminars and independent study. Emphasis is placed on students working in small groups with active researchers in the field. 



The objective is not only to learn what happened in the past. It is also about identifying and evaluating historical evidence, and about posing questions and framing answers based their consideration. The Single Subject Major, therefore, allows you to deepen your study of history, while teaching skills that are valuable in any career you choose.


1 - Demonstrate a familiarity with of a broad range of historical periods and situations, Irish and international.
2 - Demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of selected fields of historical study.
3 - Appreciate continuities and contrasts between diverse historical periods and situations.
4 - Analyse primary source evidence, place it in context and assess its reliability.
5 - Use primary sources in an ethical and effective way, informed by an understanding of how professional historians conduct research, pose questions and frame answers.
6 - Demonstrate an understanding of diverse academic viewpoints and methodologies.
7 - Deliver oral presentations clearly and confidently, and engage constructively in group discussions.
8 - Submit written work which is coherently argued, backed up by evidence, well-presented, and documented in an academic format appropriate to the discipline.
9 - Research and write a minor dissertation on a specific historical topic in consultation with a supervisor.

History is obviously an enormous subject - which is why some students choose to study it as a single subject. The range of modules takes you from the fall of the Roman Empire and the rise of barbarian kingdoms to the impact of US foreign policy in the 20th century.

It is not essential to have studied History to Leaving Certificate. If you read widely and have a good interest in general knowledge, your overall examination performance in English, for example, will offer a fair guide to your aptitude for history. See subject description for History.

In your first year (called Stage 1) you take 12 modules over two semesters. You must study core modules in History and typically two or three other subjects including up to two modules from outside the BA Programme area.

Stage 2 students progress with a major in History. Students also take four elective modules from within or outside their main subject area at Stages 2 and 3 of their degree programme.

In Stage 1 you will be introduced to a range of modules focusing on European and Irish history across a period of almost 2,000 years.

In Stage 2 you will take six core (compulsory) modules and choose from a range of optional modules spanning the Rise of the Asian Tigers, 20th Century Italy, The Age of Mohammed, and a variety of Irish periods including the Vikings, the Normans, Cromwell and the Stuarts, Irish Emigration and the Celtic Literary Revival.

Stage 2 also includes a dissertation in an area of interest to you. You will be shown how to plan a research strategy, how to find primary materials and how to write a major (10,000 word) research dissertation. Completing a substantial piece of primary research is both a challenge and a reward.

Opportunities currently include:

  • University of Vienna, Austria
  • Université de Rouen, France
  • Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, Germany
  • University of Pisa, Italy
  • University of Bergen, Norway
  • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA
  • University of New South Wales, Australia

    • History graduates can find employment in:
     

    • Broadcasting and Journalism
    • Business
    • Civil Service
    • Law
    • Publishing
    • Public Relations
    • Politics
    • Research
    • Teaching
    • Marketing
    • Policymaking
    • Tourism
    • Heritage

      Graduates are also eligible to apply for UCD MA programmes in History, which include specialisms in Irish, European, International and Medieval History, Public History and History of Medicine.

    Stage 2

    Students must register to three Stage 2 core modules and select five Level 2 option modules.

    Stage 3

    Students must register to four Stage 3 core modules. In addition, students must select two 10-credit Level 3 option modules, one in each trimester, and one 5-credit Level 3 option module.

    Stage 4

    Students must register to four final stage core modules. In addition, students must select two 10-credit Level 3 option modules, one in each trimester, and one 5-credit Level 3 option module.

    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.

    Module Type Module   Trimester Credits
    Stage 2 Core Modules
    		 HIS21140 History Today Autumn  5
    Stage 2 Core Modules
    		 HIS32750 Themes in Contemp British Hist Autumn  10
    Stage 2 Core Modules
    		 HIS21300 Marathon Spring  10
    Stage 2 Options - A) Min 5 of:
    Stage 2 Option Modules:
    		 HIS20460 Islam and Christianity in the Middle Ages Autumn  5
    Stage 2 Options - A) Min 5 of:
    Stage 2 Option Modules:
    		 HIS20950 European Statecraft, Strategy & Culture, c. 1470-c.1770: Personalities & Power Autumn  5
    Stage 2 Options - A) Min 5 of:
    Stage 2 Option Modules:
    		 HIS21180 Migration and Environment in Ireland, 1500 - 1800 Autumn  5
    Stage 2 Options - A) Min 5 of:
    Stage 2 Option Modules:
    		 HIS21220 Modern China Since 1600 Autumn  5
    Stage 2 Options - A) Min 5 of:
    Stage 2 Option Modules:
    		 HIS21270 France Since the Revolution Autumn  5
    Stage 2 Options - A) Min 5 of:
    Stage 2 Option Modules:
    		 HIS20820 Nazi Germany Spring  5
    Stage 2 Options - A) Min 5 of:
    Stage 2 Option Modules:
    		 HIS20960 Living Loving & Dying in 19th Century Ireland Spring  5
    Stage 2 Options - A) Min 5 of:
    Stage 2 Option Modules:
    		 HIS21170 The Making of the Middle East Spring  5
    Stage 2 Options - A) Min 5 of:
    Stage 2 Option Modules:
    		 HIS21240 Celts, Romans and Vikings: The Formation of Early Ireland Spring  5
    Stage 2 Options - A) Min 5 of:
    Stage 2 Option Modules:
    		 HIS21260 From the Goldmines to Trump: A global history of nativism and anti-immigration since the mid-19th c. Spring  5
    Stage 2 Options - B) Min 0 of:
    This a College of Arts and Humanities module, It is the equivalent of an elective. You take it instead of taking one of your Stage 2 electives. Please make sure that you have selected the correct number of programme options from the list above. This is not one of your required options.
    		 HUM20010 Career Readiness for Arts Autumn  5
    Stage 3 Core Modules
    		 HIS30550 Research Skills Seminar Autumn  5
    Stage 3 Core Modules
    		 HIS32510 The Anthropocene: Exploring global environmental history Autumn  5
    Stage 3 Core Modules
    		 HIS30990 BA Dissertation Autumn and Spring (separate)  10
    Stage 3 Core Modules
    		 HIS31040 Conference Spring  5
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31280 Rise, Fall, Rise of Modern Japan Autumn  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31320 The Irish Revolution, 1910-1923 Autumn  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31460 Medicine, Culture and Society Autumn  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31500 Past, Present and Future in Medieval England Autumn  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31510 Religion & Society in Independent Ireland, 1922-1968 Autumn  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31720 Irish Emigration and the Diaspora, 1800-2012 Autumn  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31860 Slavery and the New World Autumn  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31900 Roads to Heaven & Hell Autumn  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32430 Florence 1200 - 1400 Autumn  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32550 Gender, War and Memory: Women in Late Qing and Republican China Autumn  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32650 Migration Nation: The Irish Migration Experience since 1945 Autumn  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32690 Revolution and War in Twentieth-Century Vietnam Autumn  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32710 Manufacturing Truth in the Modern World Autumn  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32730 The Digital Humanities Autumn  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32660 Conservative Political Activism in the United States, 1960-1980 Autumn and Spring (separate)  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32720 Frontiers of Empire Autumn and Spring (separate)  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31250 Dynastic Politics, Culture & Diplomacy in Post-Westphalian Germany Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31290 Gender, Sexuality and Family in Ireland, 1870s-1970s Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31310 Madness and Civilisation Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31400 British Atlantic History, 1607-1776 Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31760 Irish Foreign Policy, 1919-73: A Place Among the Nations Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31840 The First World War: cultures and consequences Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32230 Biography and History Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32300 Weaponizing the Word: Media and Conflict in Pre-Industrial Europe Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32330 Venice in the modern European imagination Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32360 Environment & Power in Modern Russia Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32480 Anticolonial Thought in the Twentieth Century Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32620 US Pivots To Asia, 1890s-1950s Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32670 Empires, Nations and War Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32680 Medieval Myth and History Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32740 Pagans, Priests and Martyrs: Conversion to Christianity in Medieval Ireland Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32760 The Great Famine in Global Perspective Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32770 Life on the Edge: Drugs, Institutions, and Stigma in Ireland since 1960 Spring  10
    Stage 3 Options - B) Min 1 of:
    Level 3 5 credit options
    		 HIS32460 Conquering Ireland, 1579-1691 Autumn  5
    Stage 3 Options - B) Min 1 of:
    Level 3 5 credit options
    		 HIS32700 Digital Revolutions Autumn  5
    Stage 3 Options - B) Min 1 of:
    Level 3 5 credit options
    		 HIS32310 Revolutionary Russia, 1905-1921 Spring  5
    Stage 3 Options - B) Min 1 of:
    Level 3 5 credit options
    		 HIS32380 Genocide & Mass Violence in the Twentieth Century Spring  5
    Stage 4 Core Modules
    		 HIS30550 Research Skills Seminar Autumn  5
    Stage 4 Core Modules
    		 HIS32510 The Anthropocene: Exploring global environmental history Autumn  5
    Stage 4 Core Modules
    		 HIS30990 BA Dissertation Autumn and Spring (separate)  10
    Stage 4 Core Modules
    		 HIS31040 Conference Spring  5
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31280 Rise, Fall, Rise of Modern Japan Autumn  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31320 The Irish Revolution, 1910-1923 Autumn  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31460 Medicine, Culture and Society Autumn  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31500 Past, Present and Future in Medieval England Autumn  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31510 Religion & Society in Independent Ireland, 1922-1968 Autumn  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31720 Irish Emigration and the Diaspora, 1800-2012 Autumn  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31860 Slavery and the New World Autumn  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31900 Roads to Heaven & Hell Autumn  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32430 Florence 1200 - 1400 Autumn  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32550 Gender, War and Memory: Women in Late Qing and Republican China Autumn  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32650 Migration Nation: The Irish Migration Experience since 1945 Autumn  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32690 Revolution and War in Twentieth-Century Vietnam Autumn  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32710 Manufacturing Truth in the Modern World Autumn  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32730 The Digital Humanities Autumn  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32660 Conservative Political Activism in the United States, 1960-1980 Autumn and Spring (separate)  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32720 Frontiers of Empire Autumn and Spring (separate)  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31250 Dynastic Politics, Culture & Diplomacy in Post-Westphalian Germany Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31290 Gender, Sexuality and Family in Ireland, 1870s-1970s Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31310 Madness and Civilisation Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31400 British Atlantic History, 1607-1776 Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31760 Irish Foreign Policy, 1919-73: A Place Among the Nations Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS31840 The First World War: cultures and consequences Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32230 Biography and History Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32300 Weaponizing the Word: Media and Conflict in Pre-Industrial Europe Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32330 Venice in the modern European imagination Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32360 Environment & Power in Modern Russia Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32480 Anticolonial Thought in the Twentieth Century Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32620 US Pivots To Asia, 1890s-1950s Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32670 Empires, Nations and War Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32680 Medieval Myth and History Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32740 Pagans, Priests and Martyrs: Conversion to Christianity in Medieval Ireland Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32760 The Great Famine in Global Perspective Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - A)2 of:
    Students must select two level 3 option modules, one in each trimester.
    		HIS32770 Life on the Edge: Drugs, Institutions, and Stigma in Ireland since 1960 Spring  10
    Stage 4 Options - B) Min 1 of:
    Level 3 5 credit options
    		 HIS32460 Conquering Ireland, 1579-1691 Autumn  5
    Stage 4 Options - B) Min 1 of:
    Level 3 5 credit options
    		 HIS32700 Digital Revolutions Autumn  5
    Stage 4 Options - B) Min 1 of:
    Level 3 5 credit options
    		 HIS32310 Revolutionary Russia, 1905-1921 Spring  5
    Stage 4 Options - B) Min 1 of:
    Level 3 5 credit options
    		 HIS32380 Genocide & Mass Violence in the Twentieth Century Spring  5

    See the UCD Assessment website for further details, including worked examples of how degree award GPAs are calculated

    Module Weighting Info
     
      Award GPA
    Programme Module Weightings Rule Description Description >= <=
    BHACS001 Stage 3 - 50.00%
    Stage 2 - 50.00%
    		 Standard Honours Award First Class Honours

    3.68

    4.20
    Second Class Honours, Grade 1

    3.08

    3.67
    Second Class Honours, Grade 2

    2.48

    3.07
    Pass

    2.00

    2.47
    BHACS011 Stage 4 - 50.00%
    Stage 2 - 50.00%
    		 Standard Honours Award First Class Honours

    3.68

    4.20
    Second Class Honours, Grade 1

    3.08

    3.67
    Second Class Honours, Grade 2

    2.48

    3.07
    Pass

    2.00

    2.47
    BHACS023 Stage 3 - 70.00%
    Stage 2 - 30.00%
    		 Standard Honours Award First Class Honours

    3.68

    4.20
    Second Class Honours, Grade 1

    3.08

    3.67
    Second Class Honours, Grade 2

    2.48

    3.07
    Pass

    2.00

    2.47
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