Ancient History & Archaeology & Geography
Ancient History and Archaeology are both concerned with understanding social, political and cultural experience in the past.
Geography is a discipline inherently suited to addressing current and future societal challenges. It asks questions about how and why human, physical, and environmental phenomena vary across space and time.
Award Name | Degree - Honours Bachelor (Level 8 NFQ) |
---|---|
NFQ Classification | Major |
Awarding Body | University of Dublin |
NFQ Level | Level 8 NFQ |
Award Name | NFQ Classification | Awarding Body | NFQ Level |
---|---|---|---|
Degree - Honours Bachelor (Level 8 NFQ) | Major | University of Dublin | Level 8 NFQ |
Duration
4 years full-time
Specific Subjects or course requirements
Minimum Entry Requirements: Irish Leaving Certificate
To be considered for admission to a degree course at the University you must:
Present six subjects, three of which must be at grade 5 or above on higher Leaving Certificate papers or at least grade 5 in the University matriculation examination.
The six subjects above must include:
A pass in English.
A pass in mathematics (or foundation-level mathematics (see note 2)) and a pass in a language other than English
OR
A pass in Latin and a pass in a subject other than a language.
Specific Subjects Required
Ancient History and Archaeology
None
Geography
None
Leaving Certificate General Entry Requirements
To qualify for admission to an honours degree course at the University you must:
1 meet the minimum entry requirements (see above).
2 satisfy course specific requirements (where applicable), see above.
3 where there is competition for places, have good enough examination results to be included among those to whom offers are made (see the Leaving Certificate scoring system or Advanced GCE (A Level) scoring system).
Minimum Entry Requirements: Irish Leaving Certificate
To be considered for admission to a degree course at the University applicants must:
› Present six subjects, three of which must be at grade 5 or above on higher Leaving Certificate papers or at least grade 5 in the University matriculation examination.
The six subjects above must include:
› A pass in English.
› A pass in mathematics (or foundation-level mathematics (see note 2)) and a pass in a language other than English OR
› A pass in Latin and a pass in a subject other than a language.
Notes:
1 A pass means grade O6/H7 or above in the Leaving Certificate and grade 7 or above in the University matriculation examination.
2 Mathematics at foundation-level is acceptable for minimum entry requirements only, for all courses except nursing or midwifery courses. Irish at foundation-level is not acceptable for minimum entry requirements, course requirements or for scoring purposes.
3 Students may combine grades achieved in different sittings of their Leaving Certificate/Matriculation examinations for the purpose of satisfying minimum entry and/or course requirements, but not for the purposes of scoring. This is not permitted for Medicine.
4 Combinations of Leaving Certificate subjects not permitted:
› Physics/chemistry may not be presented with physics or chemistry.
› Biology and agricultural science may not be presented as two of the six subjects required for minimum entry requirements, and they may not be presented together to satisfy course specific requirements. However, both may be used for scoring purposes.
› Art and music may not be offered as two of the three higher Leaving Certificate grades for minimum entry requirements, but both may be used for scoring purposes.
Bonus Points for Higher Level Mathematics
All students presenting H6 or above in higher level mathematics will have 25 points added to their score for mathematics. The bonus points will only be relevant where mathematics is scored as one of a student’s six best subjects for points purposes.
An applicant’s six best results from one sitting of the Leaving Certificate will be counted for scoring purposes. Applicants may combine results from the Leaving Certificate and the Trinity matriculation examination of the same year for scoring purposes.
The minimum entry levels (points) for Trinity in recent years are available at: www.tcd.ie/study/apply/admission-requirements/ undergraduate
Age Requirement
Applicants seeking admission in 2025 must have a date of birth before 15 January 2009.
Garda Vetting
Students on courses with clinical or other professional placements may be required to undergo Garda vetting procedures prior to commencing placements. If, as a result of the outcome of the Garda vetting procedures, students are deemed unsuitable to attend clinical or other professional placement, they may be required to withdraw from their course. Students who have resided outside Ireland for a period of 6 months or more will be required to provide police clearance documentation from the country (including different states) or countries in which they resided.
Students who accept an offer will be informed of the procedures to be followed to complete the vetting process (as part of the student orientation information).
Fitness To Practice
Professional courses demand that certain core competencies are met by students in order to graduate and practice professionally after qualification. Trinity has special responsibility to ensure that all students admitted to all professional programmes will be eligible for registration by the relevant professional body upon graduation. It is important to us that our students are able to fulfil the rigorous demands of professional courses and are fit to practice.
Health Screening
Offers of admission to the following courses are made subject to certain vaccination requirements and/or certain negative test results:
› Clinical Speech and Language Studies
› Orthodontic Therapy, Dental Science, Dental Hygiene, Dental Nursing, and Dental Technology
› Medicine › Nursing and Midwifery
› Occupational Therapy
› Pharmacy
› Physiotherapy
› Radiation Therapy
› Social Studies (Social work)
Full details are available at: www.tcd.ie/study/apply/admissionrequirements/ undergraduate
Leaving Certificate Vocational Progamme LCVP
These modules are accepted for scoring purposes only and are awarded the following points: Distinction 66, Merit 46, Pass 28.
QQI FET Applicants General Information
There is an entry route to a number of degree programmes in Trinity for applicants presenting appropriate QQI/FET Level 5 or 6 Major Awards. Applicants presenting distinctions in five modules can be considered for admission.
Full information on courses with QQI entry routes, requirements etc., can be found at the link below.
Careers / Further progression
Ancient History and Archaeology
Graduate skills and career opportunities
Recent graduates have entered many fields including archaeology, archaeological consultancy in Ireland and the UK, heritage and museum work (for example the National Museum of Ireland), art restoration, teaching and higher education policy, publishing, business, computing, accountancy, government and social work. Recent graduates are working for companies as diverse as McKinsey and Co. and Cambridge University Press. Each year some of our graduates also opt to pursue a research career in history or archaeology beginning with postgraduate study in Ireland or abroad.
Geography
Graduate skills and career opportunities
Geographers are trained to analyse and provide solutions to diverse global challenges, ranging from the environmental and the urban, to the economic, political and social. This combination of subject specific (such as GIS, remote sensing, and modelling) and transferable skills (such as teamwork and problem solving) make geography graduates highly valued in today’s job market, where adaptability and flexibility are widely regarded as assets. The ease with which our graduates find employment in all sorts of sectors suggests that employers know this!
Careers taken up by graduating geography students include urban and regional planning, environmental consultancy, research and teaching, financial services, foreign affairs, leisure, tourism and overseas development.
Further information
Mature Students
All undergraduate courses in Trinity are open to mature applicants. Mature student applicants are not required to satisfy the normal minimum entry requirements and are not required to meet competitive academic entry levels (such as Leaving Certificate points), but are considered in the first instance on the basis of how relevant their life, work and educational experiences are to the course(s) that they wish to pursue. In addition, all applicants should demonstrate an interest in and knowledge of their course choice(s).
In order to apply to Trinity as a mature applicant you must:
› be an EU applicant (see page 216 TCD Undergraduate Prospectus 2025)
› be at least 23 years of age on 1 January 2025
› submit a CAO application form to the Central Applications Office (CAO) by 1 February 2025
Late applications will not be considered from mature students.
CAO applications may be made online at: www.cao.ie
Further information about applying through the CAO as a mature student can be found www.
For information on Alternative Entry Routes go to: https://www.tcd.ie/study/apply/alternative-paths-to-trinity/
Entry 2025
Early online application (discounted): Fee €30 Closing Date: 20 January 2025 at 5pm
Normal online application: Fee €45 Closing Date: 1 February 2025 at 5pm
Late online application - restrictions apply (see page 3 2025 CAO Handbook): Fee: €60 Closing Date: 1 May 2025 at 5pm
Change of Mind - restrictions apply (see page 3 2025 CAO Handbook): Fee: Nil Closing Date: 1 July 2025 at 5pm
Be sure to complete any action well in advance of closing dates. You should avoid making an application close to a closing date. No extensions to closing dates will be allowed and all application fees are non-refundable.
LATE APPLICATIONS
Late Applications are those which are received after 5pm on 1 February 2025. The closing date for late applications is 5pm on 1 May 2025, subject to the restrictions listed on page 3 of the 2025 CAO Handbook. The online facility for late applications opens on the 5 March 2025 at 12:00 noon - a fee of €60 applies.
Restrictions
As a CAO applicant you may experience one or more of the following restrictions based on your course choices, your category of application, or restrictions imposed by the HEIs that you wish to apply to. Please read the section on 'Restrictions' on page 3 of the 2025 CAO Handbook carefully. This section includes information on:
General Restrictions
1. Making a late application
2. Making changes to your course choices
Restricted Courses
3. Applying for a restricted course
Mature Applicants
4. Mature applicants
Supplementary Admissions Routes
5. Applying for DARE and/or HEAR
What is Ancient History and Archaeology?
Ancient History and Archaeology are both concerned with understanding social, political and cultural experience in the past. This course offers you the opportunity to range across these two broad disciplines. You will study the Greek and Roman worlds by working with historical and literary documents alongside the material remains of ancient sites and artefacts. All material is studied in translation and no knowledge of Greek or Latin is required, but there are opportunities to take introductory modules in the languages. Ancient History and Archaeology:
Do you enjoy…
Learning about Greek and Roman life?
Studying archaeological sites and objects?
Exploring political, social and cultural history?
The course for you?
You will enjoy this course if you are interested in studying the history and culture of the Greeks and Romans — their achievements and their profound influence on the modern world — through the complementary study of history and archaeology. You will have the opportunity to get practical experience and take part in study tours.
Your degree and what you’ll study
Over your four years you will develop a broad understanding of the ancient world through its history and archaeology, moving from introductory courses in the first year, to more focused thematic topics in the second and third years, and choosing from a range of specialised options in your final year. In these modules, you will explore not only the Greek and Roman worlds specifically but also their relationships with neighbouring cultures, such as Egypt and the Near East, and their place within the Mediterranean and beyond. A combination of end-of-semester examination and continuous assessment (such as essays, seminar presentations and Ancient History and Archaeology team projects, artefact studies and short commentaries on texts) is used to assess your progress, and a thesis is written in the final year.
What is Geography?
Geography is a discipline inherently suited to addressing current and future societal challenges. It asks questions about how and why human, physical, and environmental phenomena vary across space and time. Geography is intrinsically interdisciplinary and, as the world becomes increasingly interconnected, geographers are well placed to bring their understanding and skills to bear on social and environmental issues.
Do you enjoy…
Learning to understand the way that global environmental change will alter our future?
Finding out about the developing world and geopolitics?
Analysing landscapes and landscape development over time?
Geography: The course for you?
Today, geographical knowledge and experience are more important than ever, helping us to understand a dynamic and rapidly changing world. Our staff are world leaders in their chosen field and bring that expertise to their teaching. You will get to study in the classroom and the field, and undertake independent research in Ireland, overseas, and even on Mars!
Ancient History and Archaeology
First year
In first year you will take three modules which give you a solid introduction to the Greek and Roman worlds and the skills and approaches of the two disciplines. There are approximately six hours of classes per week in the first year.
Greek and Roman History
Greek and Roman Art
Sources and Methods in History and Archaeology
Second and third years
Modules in the second and third years offer the opportunity to focus on specific themes and periods in the history and archaeology of the Mediterranean, develop a deeper awareness of methods and theory, engage with ethical issues concerning cultural heritage, discuss key themes of relevance to both the ancient and modern world, and to do ‘hands on’ work with artefacts. Over the two years you will study topics in: Greek and Roman Archaeology and History, Late antiquity, the archaeology of the Aegean Bronze Age, Minoan Crete, Southern Italy, and Roman Britain. There are also options to do practical archaeological work or an approved study tour to the Mediterranean in place of a taught module in these years.
Fourth year
If you decide to study Ancient History and Archaeology in the final year you will be able to choose from a range of special subject options on offer. Modules offered recently include Ancient Cyprus; Entertainment and Spectacle in the Greek and Roman Worlds; Goddesses of the Ancient Mediterranean; Anthropology and the Greeks; Kings and Cities; Constantine; How to be Happy; the Ancient Novel; Roman Satire; The Art of Persuasion; Early Christianity.
You will also write a thesis on a subject of your choice. This is an opportunity to carry out research which will allow you to develop independent ideas and acquire critical skills while investigating in greater depth an area that particularly interests you.
There are QQI/FET routes available for this course. Please see www.cao.ie for details.
Study abroad
Trinity has strong links with many Classics departments abroad, including active participation in the Erasmus exchange programme. The Department has valuable Erasmus links with the Universities of Cyprus, Udine (Italy), Geneva, Bordeaux and Koç (Turkey). Students are also able to avail of University-wide exchanges, for example, to North America and Australia. These opportunities allow students the option of spending a year or part of a year abroad. For more information on study abroad destinations and requirements visit: www.tcd.ie/study/study-abroad
Geography
Your degree and what you’ll study
The first year Geography course aims to provide a solid grounding in human, physical and environmental geography, focusing on materials that are dealt with in greater depth in later years. During fourth year, students specialising in Geography undertake a research dissertation and choose from optional modules that include:
Understanding Environmental Change.
Globalisation and African Development.
Historical Geography I and II.
Periglacial Geomorphology.
Environmental Governance II.
Spatial Analysis Using GIS.
Stormy Geomorphology.
Urban Geography: Cities, Space and Culture.
A combination of continuous assessment and end-of-semester examination is used.
There are QQI/FET routes available for this course. Please see www.cao.ie for details.
Study abroad
There are opportunities for students to spend all or part of the third year studying abroad at Exeter, Bordeaux, Paris-Sorbonne, Prague (Charles University), Utrecht or Stockholm universities.
Further information on study abroad opportunities can be found at: www.tcd.ie/study/study-abroad/outbound/options
www.histories-humanities.tcd.ie
www.tcd.ie/Classics
Email:
ryanw1@tcd.ie
classics@tcd.ie
www.tcd.ie/geography
E geog@tcd.ie