Full Time option suitable for:

Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes
International (Non EEA) applicants currently residing outside of the EEA Region. Yes

Part Time option suitable for:

Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes
International (Non EEA) applicants currently residing outside of the EEA Region. No

The MMus "Music and Culture" degree will appeal to students who wish to prepare for further research in Music and to those who wish to gain a deeper understanding of historical musicology and ethnomusicology. The programme aims to develop students’ analytical research skills and independent critical and reflective thinking and writing, within a supportive research-oriented environment.

We value ambition, dedication, and passion for music in all its forms: critical reflection on music, performance to the highest professional standards, and engagement with composition through analysis, reflection and the creative process.

The programme gives students an opportunity to work with scholars of international standing in the School’s core disciplines of historical musicology and ethnomusicology. The MMus degree furnishes students with the core intellectual tools for pursuing musical research, whilst also encouraging independent scholarship. In keeping with UCD's motto of bringing the best of Ireland to the world and the best of the world to Ireland, a special focus lies on how the history and the present state of music and musicological discourses in Ireland relate to their international counterparts.

The degree emphasises progression from taught foundational modules, through focused case studies reflecting the School's major research strengths, to opportunities for independent research. Teaching is in small seminars and requires intensive student preparation. The Graduate Colloquium enables students to present autonomous research (a twenty-minute paper) in a supportive peer environment. The programme culminates in the writing of a research dissertation on a topic of the student’s choosing.

On completion of the programme the students should

• have developed a specialised understanding of the principal developments and trends within the core disciplines of historical musicology and ethnomusicology and be conversant with a wide range of methodological and interdisciplinary approaches.
• have acquired an understanding of how Ireland's musical history and present state of musical and musicological discourses relate to those of other countries.
• be able to undertake independent research and deal confidently with the various forms of primary evidence available for research in musicology.
• demonstrate critical understanding of diverse academic viewpoints.
• be able to deliver oral presentations clearly and confidently, and 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 Musicology and Music, but also within a wide range of professional contexts.

Many alumni of the MMus Degree have gone on to successful careers in arts administration, journalism, and teaching. Recent graduates have also gone on to pursue doctoral work in musicology and ethnomusicology at internationally-renowned institutions such as Cambridge University, 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); they also hold positions with the BBC and RTÉ (radio and television) and the Royal Opera House Covent Garden.

View All Modules Here

Core Modules
Trimester 1 (30 credits)

Foundations in Historical Musicology, 10 credits 

Foundations in Ethnomusicology, 10 credits

Doing Research, 5 credits

Ethno/Musicology in Ireland Seminar 1, 5 credits

Core and Option Modules
Trimester 2 (30 credits)

Popular Music Ethnography, 10 credits (option)

Post-Truth, Politics & Music, 5 credits (option)

Death in Music, 5 credits (option)

Sounding Ireland Onscreen, 5 credits (option)

Advanced Music Theory, 5 credits (option)

Graduate Colloquium, 5 credits (core)

Ethno/Musicology in Ireland Seminar 2, 5 credits (core)

Core Modules

Trimester 3 (30 credits)

Dissertation, 30 credits (core)

MMus Music & Culture (Z357) Full Time
EU          fee per year - € 7990
nonEU    fee per year - € 21520

MMus Music & Culture (Z358) Part Time
EU          fee per year - € 4800
nonEU    fee per year - € 10760

***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 International Scholarships.

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.

• MLitt Music FT
• PhD Music FT
• PhD Music PT