Literature & Publishing

There are three main components to the MA in Literature and Publishing curriculum: assessed modules, ROPES, and the MA Portfolio Project or Dissertation. You will enrol in six taught modules (3 in each semester). Throughout the academic year, you will have the option to work on ROPES, an extracurricular project that provides participating students with practical, cv-enhancing experience in project management, production, marketing, sales, design, and teamwork. During Semester 2, you will begin work on the research and writing of either a research-based MA dissertation or an MA Portfolio Project, which you complete during the summer and submit in mid-August.

Curriculum Information

Curriculum information relates to the current academic year (in most cases).

Course and module offerings and details may be subject to change.



Year 1 (90 Credits)

Required EN6128: Publishing: Perspectives and Professionalisation

Required EN579: Contemporary Publishing

Required EN6133: Literature and Publishing Portfolio Project

Required EN570: Book History

Optional EN527: Literature Of North America

Optional MK5139: Social Media Marketing Theory

Optional EN672: Environmental Literature: Nature and Narration

Optional FR6101: Language, Gender and Power

Optional EN6125: WB Yeats and the Cultural Revolution

Optional EN6143: Media for Social Change

Optional EN581: Copy-editing and Proofreading

Optional EN6101: Books Journalism

Optional EN547: Literature And Colonialism

Optional MK5116: Negotiations

Optional EN671: Literature for Children and Young Adults in the 21st Century

Optional EN573: Travel Literature

Minimum entry requirements for this programme include an NQAI Level 8 qualification with an overall degree result of H2.2 and with a H2.1 in one subject (or a BA with a 3.0 GPA or equivalent). Please note that admission to this programme is highly selective and meeting minimum achievement thresholds does not guarantee entry.



Candidates who do not meet the minimum entry criteria are encouraged to contact the programme director to discuss eligibility under the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) process. Such candidates may be interviewed to ascertain their suitability for the programme.

1 year full-time

Next start date September 2026

The MA in Literature and Publishing prepares you for a wide-range of exciting careers in publishing, the creative industries and beyond. The combination of advanced research, critical thinking and communication skills and practical knowledge fostered by the programme is highly relevant to employment in fields including: publishing and related industries, teaching, arts administration, public service, public relations, marketing, publishing, broadcasting and journalism. Some students also continue to further postgraduate studies, including PhD research and career opportunities in academia.



In recent years, graduates from the programme have filled posts as agents, editors and booksellers. They have gone on to work at companies including: Curtis Brown Books, Gill Education, Irish Writers Centre, Kenny's Books, Lilliput Press, Literature Ireland, O’Brien Press, Pan Macmillan, Poetry Ireland, Penguin, RTE, and UCD Press.