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MMus Music & Culture

MMus (NFQ Level 9)

This course is available through the following application route(s)

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The cutting-edge research that lies at the heart of our taught MMus programme has both an Irish grounding and a worldwide reach. We offer students the opportunity to work closely with scholars of international standing in the School’s core disciplines of ethnomusicology, historical musicology and composition. Students take foundation modules in two of these three areas. This provides a solid and diverse methodological foundation from which to progress to specialist modules, where students choose from a wide range of topics  based on the research specialisms of our staff. Some of these, including “Sounding Ireland Onscreen” and “Contemporary Music in Ireland, Britain and North America,” display the programme’s deep engagement with Irish musical culture. Others enable students to explore musical practices stretching through history and across the globe, from ‘Creating the Musical Self in Medieval Europe’ to ‘A History of Electronic Music’. These specialist studies provide the perfect springboard for students to carry out their own independent research project, with which the programme culminates, resulting either in a dissertation or a portfolio of compositions.

Overall, the degree furnishes students with the core intellectual tools for pursuing research and creative practices in musicology, ethnomusicology or composition, while also facilitating specialisation and encouraging independent scholarship. Students form an integral part of our lively, collaborative research culture and engage regularly with visiting seminar speakers. For those students who want to go on to doctoral study, our faculty are experienced in supporting them to develop research ideas and funding proposals. Our graduates also go on to a range of related careers in the arts and cultural heritage sector, media, teaching, and many other professions.
The UCD School of Music is one of the leading centres for graduate musical study in Ireland and a QS World Top 100 Performing Arts department.

About This Course

On completion of the programme, students should:

  • have developed a specialised understanding of the principal recent developments and trends within at least two of the core disciplines of historical musicology, ethnomusicology and composition, and be conversant with a wide range of methodological and interdisciplinary approaches;

  • have acquired an understanding of how current Irish musical and musicological discourses relate to those in broader international contexts;

  • have developed, if taking composition options, a good command of a range of compositional techniques in different styles and genres;

  • be able to undertake independent research and deal confidently with the various forms of primary evidence available for research in historical musicology and ethnomusicology;

  • demonstrate critical understanding of diverse academic viewpoints;

  • be able to deliver oral presentations clearly and confidently, and to engage constructively in group discussions;

  • be able to analyse primary and secondary evidence, place it in context, and assess its reliability;

  • demonstrate the ability to participate appropriately in an academic community;

  • have developed solid writing skills including the ability to engage in rigorous and original research-based work;

  • have developed a range of transferable skills and experience, including disciplined work methods, rigorous, and analytical and imaginative thinking, which would facilitate scholarly progression in music and musicology, but also within a wide range of professional contexts

Many alumni of the MMus Degree have progressed to successful careers in arts administration, teaching, and arts journalism and broadcasting, with recent graduates going on to the BBC, RTÉ (radio and television) and the Royal Opera House Covent Garden.

Other former students have gone on to pursue doctoral work in musicology and ethnomusicology at internationally-renowned institutions such as The Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, King’s College London, and the Royal Irish Academy of Music. Our graduates occupy academic posts throughout Ireland and the UK (including Royal Holloway, Goldsmiths, Leeds, Birmingham and Manchester) and further afield (including Queensland and Sydney)

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 1 Core Modules
 MUS40340 Doing Research Autumn  5
Stage 1 Core Modules
 MUS41220 New Ideas in Musicology Autumn  5
Stage 1 Core Modules
 MUS41210 Graduate Colloquium Spring  10
Stage 1 Options - A) Min 2 of:
Select 2 of
 MUS41070 Foundations in Ethnomusicology Autumn  10
Stage 1 Options - A) Min 2 of:
Select 2 of
 MUS41080 Foundations in Hist Musicology Autumn  10
Stage 1 Options - A) Min 2 of:
Select 2 of
 MUS41260 Foundations in Composition Autumn  10
Stage 1 Options - B)20CR:
To fill out remaining credits students select: (a) the 10-credit module and two 5-credit modules OR (b) four 5-credit modules.
 MUS31280 The Symphony in Europe Spring  10
Stage 1 Options - B)20CR:
To fill out remaining credits students select: (a) the 10-credit module and two 5-credit modules OR (b) four 5-credit modules.
 MUS41050 Sounding Ireland Onscreen Spring  5
Stage 1 Options - B)20CR:
To fill out remaining credits students select: (a) the 10-credit module and two 5-credit modules OR (b) four 5-credit modules.
 MUS41240 A History of Electronic Music Spring  5
Stage 1 Options - B)20CR:
To fill out remaining credits students select: (a) the 10-credit module and two 5-credit modules OR (b) four 5-credit modules.
 MUS41250 Contemporary Music in Ireland, Britain, and North America Spring  5
Stage 1 Options - B)20CR:
To fill out remaining credits students select: (a) the 10-credit module and two 5-credit modules OR (b) four 5-credit modules.
 MUS41280 Applied Ethnography Spring  5
Stage 1 Options - B)20CR:
To fill out remaining credits students select: (a) the 10-credit module and two 5-credit modules OR (b) four 5-credit modules.
 MUS41290 Fieldwork Spring  5
Stage 1 Options - B)20CR:
To fill out remaining credits students select: (a) the 10-credit module and two 5-credit modules OR (b) four 5-credit modules.
 MUS41300 Creating the Musical Self in Medieval Europe Spring  5
Stage 1 Options - C) Min 1 of:
Select 1 of
 MUS41130 Dissertation Summer  30
Stage 1 Options - C) Min 1 of:
Select 1 of
 MUS41270 Composition Portfolio Summer  30

Emma Arthur
MMus, Music and Culture 2023
 

MMus Music & Culture (Z357) Full Time
EU          fee per year - € 9330
nonEU    fee per year - € 22600

MMus Music & Culture (Z358) Part Time
EU          fee per year - € 4660
nonEU    fee per year - € 11300

***Fees are subject to change

Tuition fee information is available on the UCD Fees website. 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 University Scholarships and Fees webpage.

Non-EU students are advised to apply by March 1 to receive a decision on course entry in time to apply, if successful in gaining a place on the course, for the UCD Global Excellence Scholarships, which can cover up to 100% of fees (deadline 31 March). The School of Music also offers scholarships specifically in historical musicology, ethnomusicology, and composition, for both EU and non-EU students.

A Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor in a cognate area with a minimum 2.1 or an equivalent of a UCD GPA of 3.08 (NFQ Level 8) or equivalent.  Cognate areas include Music, Musicology, Ethnomusicology, Music Education and Performance Studies.  In some cases the School of Music will accept applicants from English, History, Sociology and Anthropology.  However, the School will first assess the applicant's ability to read musical notation and engage with Music Theory. Written sample work (1000-4000 words) and two positive academic references will be required.  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 an overall 7.0 in IELTS, with no individual band lower than 6.5, or equivalent.

These are the minimum entry requirements – additional criteria may be requested for some programmes.

You may be eligible for Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL), as UCD recognises formal, informal, and/or experiential learning. RPL may be awarded to gain Admission and/or credit exemptions on a programme. Please visit the UCD Registry RPL web page for further information. Any exceptions are also listed on this webpage.

Full Time option suitable for:

Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes
International (Non EU) applicants: Yes

Part Time option suitable for:

Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes
International (Non EEA) applicants: No


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General application route(s) for Irish/UK/EU applicants* for International (non-EU) applicants* to MMus Music & Culture:

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Z357
MMus Music & Culture
Master of Musicology

Full-Time
Commencing September 2025
Graduate Taught
Apply
showAudience-audienceEU showAudience-audienceInt
Z358
MMus Music & Culture
Master of Musicology

Part-Time
Commencing September 2025
Graduate Taught
Not available to International applicantsApply
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