Public Advocacy & Activism

The MA in Public Advocacy and Activism is designed for individuals from diverse academic and professional/volunteering backgrounds and activists who are eager to learn more about the area, develop their understanding of the structures and dynamics, and increase their practical effectiveness by learning new skills. Whether you are a recent graduate aiming to build specialist knowledge, a professional looking to advance your career, or someone with a background in volunteering and/or activism, this programme offers space to reflect on the place of advocacy and activism in the world, and the skills and expertise to help you succeed in your goals.

Year 1 (90 Credits)

Required FM6114: The Practice and Theory of Advocacy

Required FM6115: Short Filmmaking for Advocates

Required FA515: Dissertation

Required FM6116: Communication, Media & Marketing for Advocates

Optional DJ6135: Reporting Economics and Politics

Optional FR6101: Language, Gender and Power

Optional MU651: Popular Music and Activism

Optional FM6119: Film, Politics, and Colonialism

Optional SP6122: Social and Political Context of Activism and Advocacy

Optional FM6113: Service Learning For Advocacy and Activism

Optional EN6143: Media for Social Change

Candidates must hold at least a Second Class Honours Level 8 primary degree to be accepted onto the MA, but it is possible to be accepted onto the Postgraduate Diploma with a lower academic qualification, and then transition to the MA (within the same academic year) if a student achieves a 60% grade average in the taught modules (which comprise a total of 60 ECTS). (The Postgraduate Diploma is the MA programme without the 30 ECT minor dissertation).

1 year full-time, 2 years part-time.

Next start date September 2026

The MA is designed for those interested in working in local or international advocacy and activism, including areas such as:



Community organizations

Development

Labour

Human rights

Health and environment

Education

Politics

A number of roles would be suitable for graduates, whether in research advocacy, campaigning and lobbying, academia, communications, or activism. Given the diversity of our students’ backgrounds and their interests, it is unsurprising that our graduates have taken many different paths, but, in general, our graduates aspire to be working in organisations that share their concerns and values.



A diverse range of careers and occupations



Depending on their interests and motivations, some have sought employment in the not-for-profit sector, working with large organisations such as Amnesty International, SOAR, Trócaire, GOAL, PLAN International, UNOCHA, and PETA, and others with smaller local and community-based organisations, working in areas such as housing, mental health, Traveller rights, animal rights, social care, gender equality, and education.



Some graduates work with in local politics; two of our graduates were recently elected to the Irish national parliament (the Dáil). Our students have been prominent in campaigns in Ireland, including the City of Sanctuary (and University of Sanctuary), Fossil Free, Marriage Equality, and Repeal. One of our first graduates runs an organic farm; another is an award-winning poet, whose poetry draws on her activism, and interrogates a wide range of social issues. A recent graduate is working with Active*Consent, a growing movement that was developed from research carried out on this campus regarding education and sexual consent.