The English Society is run by staff and students together, and recent visitors include Allen Ginsberg, Seamus Heaney, Camille Paglia and Martin Amis. There is much undergraduate literary activity, and you can now take a module in creative writing as part of your degree. Members of staff, too, are actively involved in current critical debates such as the question of Irish identity. A degree in English can open the door to a wide variety of jobs. Many of our students become teachers of English themselves, or go on to do research.
Some recent students are poets whose work is regularly published.
Most, however, do not work in education or the arts. They become civil servants, accountants, social workers, librarians, farmers, lawyers, computer experts and business executives. Whatever you do, your degree in English is likely to be useful. There are many opportunities for those who wish to continue their studies after taking a first degree. The School of English offers taught M. A. courses in Irish Writing, Medieval Studies, Renaissance Studies, Modern Literary Studies and Language Studies.