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Courses
Courses
Choosing a course is one of the most important decisions you'll ever make! View our courses and see what our students and lecturers have to say about the courses you are interested in at the links below.
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University Life
University Life
Each year more than 4,000 choose University of Galway as their University of choice. Find out what life at University of Galway is all about here.
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About University of Galway
About University of Galway
Since 1845, University of Galway has been sharing the highest quality teaching and research with Ireland and the world. Find out what makes our University so special – from our distinguished history to the latest news and campus developments.
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Colleges & Schools
Colleges & Schools
University of Galway has earned international recognition as a research-led university with a commitment to top quality teaching across a range of key areas of expertise.
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Research & Innovation
Research & Innovation
University of Galway’s vibrant research community take on some of the most pressing challenges of our times.
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Business & Industry
Guiding Breakthrough Research at University of Galway
We explore and facilitate commercial opportunities for the research community at University of Galway, as well as facilitating industry partnership.
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Alumni & Friends
Alumni & Friends
There are 128,000 University of Galway alumni worldwide. Stay connected to your alumni community! Join our social networks and update your details online.
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Community Engagement
Community Engagement
At University of Galway, we believe that the best learning takes place when you apply what you learn in a real world context. That's why many of our courses include work placements or community projects.
Accessibility & LanguagePostgraduate Courses
Postgraduate Programmes
Drama and Theatre Studies at University of Galway is ranked in the top 100 Performing Arts subject rankings in the QS World University Rankings for 2024.
See University of Galway's performance in the 2024 Subject Rankings here.
Image above: 2023-2024 MA student Nouf Rafea leads the audience in a performance experiment as part of the module “Performance Lab.”
Image above: Drama and Theatre Studies staff celebrating the launch of Galway International Arts Festival’s SELECTED programme in summer 2022.
The O’Donoghue Centre for Drama, Theatre and Performance is a leading international centre for the study of drama, theatre and performance, committed to developing the next generation of theatre-makers, educators and researchers who are critically engaged, socially aware and collaboratively minded through postgraduate education at MA and PhD level.
Our community is constituted by award-winning and critically acclaimed scholars, artists, partners and alumni, in dialogue and sharing ideas throughout the world.
- We value finding the balance between theory and practice, historical and contemporary genres, individual work and collective co-creation.
- We believe theatre, performance, storytelling and creativity are essential to a vibrant and energised society.
- We specialise in contemporary performance practices (including but not limited to devised theatre and collective co-creation), producing, playwriting, applied theatre, archival research, and Irish theatre underpinned by diverse staff research specialisms across the spectrum of theatre history and performance studies.
We are in the process of ensuring our postgraduate programmes have added value for students interested in teaching the forthcoming Leaving Certificate subject ‘Drama, Film and Theatre Studies’, in collaboration with the Huston School of Film and Digital Media.
MA Programmes
We offer:
Students have the option to study a self-directed programme OR select a designated emphasis in either:
- Theatre Practice and Production
- Playwriting and Dramaturgy
Our MA makes direct central use of University of Galway’s unique resources, including our dynamic partnerships with key Irish theatre and arts organisations and our extensive collection of Irish theatre archives.
Read more about the MA’s programme outline and special features including the Druid Academy here.
There are competitive and/or achievement-based scholarships available for the MA in Drama and Theatre Studies.
These include the Siobhán McKenna Scholarship, the Taught Postgraduate Master’s Scholarship (EU), the Merit Scholarship (International Students only), and University of Galway University of Sanctuary (UoS) Scholarships.
You can download our scholarships informational sheet Scholarship FAQ's to learn more about how to be considered for these awards.
You can watch a video about the Siobhán McKenna Scholarship Award and inaugural 2023-2024 winner Nouf Rafea here.
You can learn more about inaugural McKenna Scholarship award winner Nouf Rafea’s theatre practice and story here.
PhD Programmes
University of Galway is the world’s leading centre for the study of Irish theatre history. The Centre for Drama, Theatre and Performance is the ideal location for you to pursue your PhD in this area, as well as other specialisations within contemporary and international theatre and performance practice, using either research or practice-as-research methodologies.
Image: PhD student Stefanie Weenink performs in Il-Jesus, a practice-as-research exploration of Maltese and Irish identities, language, religion and national belonging through an autobiographical lens
We offer:
- Structured PhD AHSS in Drama and Theatre Studies [full-time] (GYG43)
- PhD in Drama and Theatre Studies [full-time] (GYG44)
- PhD in Drama and Theatre Studies [part-time] (GYG45)
Read more about our PhD programme and staff areas of specialism, including how to make an expression of interest for consideration to be matched with a supervisor, please click here.
In order to make an application to any of our Postgraduate programmes please click here.
You may also find the FAQ section on the Postgraduate Admissions website helpful.
