Sustainability

September 2026

Approximate Available Places 6

Find out about the mature entry requirements at https://www.ucc.ie/en/study/undergrad/entryreqs/matureapplicants/

HEAR

DARE

RPL

Approximate Available Places Overall 65

What Will it Cost?

Entry 2026

Early online application (discounted): Fee €35 Closing Date: 20 January 2026 at 5pm

Normal online application: Fee €50 Closing Date: 1 February 2026 at 5pm

Late online application - restrictions apply (see page 3 2026 CAO Handbook): Fee: €65 Closing Date: 1 May 2026 at 5pm

Change of Mind - restrictions apply (see page 3 2026 CAO Handbook): Fee: Nil Closing Date: 1 July 2026 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 2026. The closing date for late applications is 5pm on 1 May 2026, subject to the restrictions listed on page 3 of the 2026 CAO Handbook. The online facility for late applications opens on the 5 March 2026 at 12:00 noon - a fee of €65 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 2026 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

This BSc in Sustainability aims to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of sustainability challenges, integrating interdisciplinary perspectives across environmental, social and economic dimensions. It aims to equip students with the skills and competences to work with diverse stakeholders and teams to bring about change within industry, society and government towards sustainability, within local and global contexts.

The programme fosters systems thinking and practical problem-solving skills, enabling students to navigate complexity and trade offs. The programme is built around an innovative core curriculum which introduces underpinning subjects including planetary boundaries, environmental and climate science, systems thinking encompassing food, energy and business and social science, ethics and environmental justice, law, medicine and development, and develop core competencies and skills in research, stakeholder engagement, communication, critical thinking and team-work.

This will be achieved by developing core competencies and skills in the following areas:

-Scientific literacy: environmental, earth systems, ecological science
-Technical skills: understanding of renewable energy, circular economy, food systems, life cycle analysis
-Social and economic literacy: introduction to the social and economic sciences.
-Research, programming, data handling and statistical analysis
-Complex problem-solving: ability to synthesize, communicate and apply knowledge from multiple disciplines; interdisciplinary collaboration; systems thinking; understanding and addressing sustainability challenges holistically
-Applying critical thinking and ethical principles in decision-making; challenging assumptions and developing innovative solutions.
-Understanding of “bigger picture” and context relating to sustainability
-Applying principles from many disciplines to address sustainability challenges in the real world
-Leadership: Project management; writing and presentation for diverse audiences; translating complex concepts into accessible language; teamwork; advocacy skills.
- To develop disciplinary specialisation and expertise, students will take a specialised thematic stream.

Sustainability, Science and Climate Action Stream
This stream, anchored in the College of Science, Engineering and Food Science, will develop deeper knowledge and skills in environmental and climate science; microbiology and ecology; computer and data science, and food, energy and industrial systems.

Sustainability, Society and Culture Stream
This stream, anchored in the College of CACSSS will focus on the societal, cultural and ethical dimensions of sustainability and will equip students to understand the impact of climate change on individuals and society and to gain employment in areas concerned with social policy, heritage, education, public sector, communications.

Sustainable Business and the Circular Economy Stream
This stream, anchored in the College of Business and Law will focus on economic dimensions of sustainability and more specifically how businesses can pursue more sustainable business models and practices. This stream will prepare students to gain employment in industry and voluntary sector.

All students take core modules in law, health, political economy, leadership, and transformative change.
Opportunities include:

International field trip (Year 3)
Work placement or study abroad (Year 3)
Capstone project (Year 4)

Within each year, you can decide to take elective modules from a broad choice of subjects from across the university.

Year 1 - Common Entry
Semester 1 - Core Modules
SU1001 Sustainability in the context of planetary boundaries (10 credits)
SU1002 Sustainability grand challenges: From local to global (10 credits)
SU1003 Sustainability & Global Development (5 credits)

Semester 1 - Electives
Pre-placement
Language
Science
Creative
Humanities

Other
Semester 2 - Core Modules
SU1004 Ethics & Environmental Justice (5 credits)
SU1005 Introduction to research and data analysis for sustainability (5 credits)
SU1006 Sustainability and Climate Action (SEFs): Fundamentals of Environmental and Climate Sciences - Stream 1 (5 Credits)
SU1007 Sustainability, Society and Culture (CACSSS) - Stream 2 (5 Credits)
SU1008 Sustainable Business and Circular Economy (B&L) - Stream 3 (5 Credits)

Semester 2 - Electives
Pre-placement
Language
Science
Creative
Humanities
Other

Years 2, 3, and 4
This programme is the pathway to a distinct degree. Following completion of first year, you choose your preferred degree pathway from the following streams:

Sustainability, Science and Climate Action
Sustainability, Society and Culture
Sustainable Business and Circular Economy

Students will have the option to undertake a work placement, study abroad or complete a research project in year 3 of study. Those who wish to study abroad in a non-English speaking environment will be required to take the necessary language modules as part of their chosen electives in Year 1 and 2.

Sustainability and Climate Action Stream
The Sustainability, Science and Climate Action thematic stream, anchored in the College of Science, Engineering and Food Science (SEFS) is designed for students passionate about scientific and technological approaches to sustainability. This stream equips students with the knowledge and skills to understand, analyse, and address sustainability challenges using scientific principles, engineering innovation, and data-driven approaches. Students take foundational modules in environmental and climate sciences, exploring biogeochemical cycles, climate systems, environmental chemistry and biodiversity, and develop a grounding in analytical, scientific and technical subjects including climate adaptation, energy systems, and ecosystems and ecology, and gain a foundation in programming through Python. Students then develop deeper skills and expert knowledge in data analytics, materials science and industry, climate adaptation, and food systems, integrating knowledge across disciplines to address sustainability challenges. They are also introduced to critical perspectives on philosophies of science in relation to sustainability.

Sustainability, Society and Culture Stream
The Sustainability, Society and Culture thematic stream anchored in the College of Arts, Celtic Studies and Social Sciences caters for students passionate about approaching sustainability from cultural, historical, political and psychological perspectives. It pays attention to the language of sustainability and provides a space for imaginative and creative responses to the challenges that sustainability poses for society. It provides students with an understanding of the centrality of culture to interpretations of sustainability, as well as human interactions with non-human nature, and our living and dying environment. We will also shine a light on how culture, history, heritage and language shape our responses to ecological threat and ground our identities as resilient and resistant communities. This stream explores the multiple creative ways - literature, film, theatre and other forms - can navigate the challenges of sustainability, critique prevailing orthodoxies and help to negotiate and construct safe and inclusive futures.

Sustainable Business and the Circular Economy Stream
The Sustainable Business and Circular Economy stream, anchored in the College of Business and Law, focuses in particular on the economic dimensions of sustainability. This stream covers a wide range of topics related to sustainable business and the circular economy, including: meanings of sustainability in the public and private sectors; the circular economy, sustainable production and consumption, the challenge of waste, corporate social responsibility (CSR), Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Standards, schools of economic thought, growth vs degrowth, the food economy, small business and entrepreneurship. It helps students to understand how systems and resources work, and builds the knowledge, skills and practices of working in teams to understand the world of business and economics as they relate to all aspects of sustainability.

Capstone Project
A capstone project in Year 4 will provide you with the opportunity to apply the core theoretical knowledge and disciplinary skills developed from Years 1-3. You will be addressing a sustainability problem drawn from the local community, industry, policy, and relating the issue to the global context, such as putting knowledge into action, from local to global and identifying challenges; developing solutions across planet, society and economy.

Book of Modules

Prof Hannah Daly
discoverstem@ucc.ie
https://www.ucc.ie/en/sustainability-institute/

International Students