Heritage Studies?

Lord ButterSlip

Anybody here that is doing/done this course?

LadyMayBelle

No me but the brother did it..and someone on boards also so I'll send them a pm for you..

Lord ButterSlip

Ah Thanks!

xo.mary

I'm in first year

Lord ButterSlip

xo.mary wrote: »

I'm in first year

In Castlebar??

xo.mary

Nope, Galway.

Lord ButterSlip

Oh......

But could you tell me a bit about it anyway?:D

BlondieM

Graduated in Heritage Studies 2003 from Galway with the B.A.

The course was not too difficult and the subject material in it was quite varied, interesting and different. It is enjoyable if you have an interest in all things heritage like.

However, in terms of employment oppurtunities, I would seriously advise that you consider taking further study afterwards, like a post grad. When you fininsh the course , there are little or no jobs out of it except being a tour guide here or there on various heritage sites. Most people (inlcuding myself) went on to do Post Grads/Masters. I did the HDip (Geography and History Teaching) . Others went into Primary Teaching, or Masters to get into some Environmental job. or Insurance or Sales, just using the qualification as evidence of possessing a Degree.
There was also a terrible assumption amongst the Humanities Dept that Heritage Studies was perceived only for Hippies or alternative people. Daft Really.
All I can say is, when I filled out the CAO, it was the only thing I wanted to do and it was fine and I met some great poeple. GMIT is a good place to go to college. Lecturers will help you at all costs and the focus is on the studnet rather than the college. I did my post grad in UCD and I hated it there.
Hope that is of some help.G'Luck!

blainesligonew

hi, im just after completing 2nd year of this course and i can safly say i absolutly love it.. theres a preception that this course is for hippies or people of that nature, this is what i thought when i joined my class first and i seriously considerd droping out in the first few weeks. but when i actualy interlinked with different groups of people i realised that this was just part of the college expierence. the majority of my friends are in other courses but i enjoyed the time i spent with fellow class mates who i now rate as been best friends. If u like history and the likes this course is good. nightlife in Galway is amazing and the craic is good. the lectures are great craic to be honest. you will build up a good freindship with them over the duration. two to look out for in the pubs on one of your many feild trips are paul goosling and john tunny. the course content gets tougher as you progress as can be expected. there is also the chance of you doing an erasmus program. im going to zaragoza for a year in september and i cant wait..... hope this is of any help!!

Blaine

Lord ButterSlip

Well it appears I am definatly going to do Heritage studies in Sept, so thanks for the info everyone!

xo.mary

YAY!!

hsharz

I would like to get further info on the programme and specific modules as the homepage is quite vage.

I am only looking at the 1 year Honours Add-on as I already study on Bachelor level. I am currently enrolled in Tourims Management (so havily business related) and would like to take an the Add-on to progress towards the field of Heritage & Culture Tourism.
Would you reckon it's managable to do the course if you have little previous experience in archeology, etc. I am intrested and willing to work on it but just wondering if it's too big a hassle.

Would appreciate any feedback so I have a personal opinion from a someone who's already there.

PS: English is not my mother tongue, so that's an additional disadvantage but I am more or less fluent.

PPS: Is there a big difference between the Castlebar and Galway programme?

eime86

hey i graduated from the B.A. in heritage studies in 09 . i know the course has changed since i did it , from what i know the main differences between the galway and mayo courses is that the mayo one is more focused on geography aspects of heritage while in galway it is more centered on history. i did it is galway and found it very interesting for some one to transfer in, the archaeology component would not be too difficult as most of the reading are available in the library and it would just mean a bit of extra reading of any thing you werent sure of .the lecturers in galway are very approachable and would point you in the right direction if you were having any trouble .

hsharz

thanks for the answer.
would prefer a focus on history rather than geography so I'd say I'll stick with Galway.

May I ask if you have progressed to further study or gone into work?

perfectisthe

Hey, I graduated from Heritage Studies last year with a 1:1. It's a good course, but currently there is absolutely zero chance of a job out of it. You'll need to do a postgrad, I'm doing a Hdip in History in Maynooth at the moment.

Try and figure what you want do during the course, and be prepared for when it's finished - only 7 out of 36 who graduated last year went on to do a postgrad, and, to my knowledge, not one went on work in the traditional areas associated with Heritage Studies such as tourism. In fairness though it's a hard time for all graduates, and in particular arts graduates.

hsharz

hi thanks for the reply. I would plan PostGrad in Ireland or UK anyway. The course is more or less just my entry ticket to any humanity course as I would be unlikely to be offered a Master course place with the Tourism Buisness course I'm currently doing.

And thanks for letting me knwo about job perspective, but I think it's currently hard for most graduates and who knows what is in 2-3years. Plus I would most likely go back to Germany anyway.

perfectisthe

hsharz wrote: »

The course is more or less just my entry ticket to any humanity course

That's definitely a good way to look at it. It is a good course, and at times a great course, so enjoy it! John Tunney's lectures were always a highlight for me, and the field trip to Clare Island in first year is something I'll remember for the rest of my life.

JGEP

Hi hsharz,

I read the thread on Heritage Studies in GMIT and am contacting you to see if you found any additional information on the add-on year. I will be applying to the add-on year for Sept 2011.

I have a Level 7 in Business and Tourism but, like yourself, want to go down the route of Cultural Tourism etc. I would be delighted if you would let me know if you have come across any additional info on course modules etc.

Thanks!!!

perfectisthe

Hey JGEP,

Not hsharz, but, as I said, I graduated from the course last year and can give you any information you need.

I don't know what type of subjects you did for your ordinary degree, but there's no significant tourism element to the honours degree year in Heritage Studies, that's all pretty much finished in year three.

Broadly speaking the subjects break down like this: Environment and Planning, History/Geography, Literature, Archaeology, Dissertation and a choice between a language or a business subject.

It's not particularly hard, but there are some subjects - such as Archaeology, where no previous experience would be a distinct disadvantage. I'm not sure what the policy on admitting non-heritage graduates is, but in our year everyone was a heritage graduate.

The Dissertation was both the most difficult and rewarding part, don't expect to have much of a Christmas that year! Anyway, if there's anything else you want to know just ask.

JGEP

Thanks so much for getting back to me!

For my ordinary degree the modules I studied were: Literary, Cultural and Heritage Studies, Tourism Profiling, Italian, a completed Dissertation, Strategic Management, Human Resource Management, Financial Management, Advanced Communications.

Hmmm..... I figured I'd have to put some serious work in for Archaeology, that would be no problem, truthfully I'm relishing the idea of getting stuck back into studying and the dissertation. I'm just hoping they will admit me on the strength of subjects already studied even if half were business oriented. I emailed a Dr. Mark McCarthy just there so fingers crossed he gets back to me with good news! You would have had him last year yeah? What's he like?

When you say 'a choice between language and business subject', is that a language you can pick up from scratch, or a follow on from what you've done?

Sooooo many questions!!! :P

perfectisthe

No bother at all

Archaeology might be ok for you, I think it really depends on the person, I hated it and always struggled with it a bit, except for in my final year when I pulled my socks up.

Mark is absolutely lovely, he was my dissertation supervisor last year and he was such a help. Like I said I really don't know what the policy is on non-heritage admissions (and the lack of a history/geography element to your last course may count against you), but, I know for a fact that if you show some enthusiasm for the course, Mark will treat you fairly.

The language module is a continuation from the ordinary degree, so unless you're already quite good at one, it may be best to skip it. I gave up my language last year and did a business module instead - Project and Financial Management. It's a stand-alone module so it might suit you, particularly given your business background. I found it fairly tough but ended up getting a good mark.

If you get into correspondence with Mark, I'd forward him a copy of your dissertation, even if he only has a quick glance it'll stand in your favor - he loves that kind of stuff!

If you get accepted I do think that you'll be able to keep up, it'll just require more work than others have to put in - particularly in Geography and Archaeology. All the staff are sound and really approachable, if you have any problems they'll look after you. I have to say I really miss the personal atmosphere of the course, I'm in another college now and it's totally different.

JGEP

Right! I've emailed him and had a reply already to say my educational background sounds interesting and that GMIT would welcome an application from me. School of Humanities will review and get back to me in due course. Didn't seem keen to enter into dialogue but I'd imagine he's a busy man!

I may enclose a personal statement with my application. (possibly completely unnecessary but sure what harm can it do!) I have secured a few wks unpaid work placement with the Heritage Officer in City Council so I might throw that in there, might show my eagerness.

Have heard nothing but great things about the lecturers from people who attended GMIT, really looking forward to (hopefully:) ) going there.

How're you enjoying the History in Maynooth? Did you find it hard to choose your post grad?

perfectisthe

That's great, it sounds like you should be able to get a place so. I have to say, you're getting the best part of the course too, I learned more in my final year than the other three combined.

Mark would be fairly busy now alright, what with exams to correct and the dissertation first-draft deadline looming!

Maynooth's alright, but I can honestly say I far preferred GMIT. Choosing was hard because I love history, but I also want to get a practical qualification cause I'll need a job at some point! I'm looking at doing Archival and Records management for next year, but it's a damn competitive course, I have the grades but I need some archival work experience.

What about you? Postgrad or the real world after the honours degree?

JGEP

Archival sounds so interesting, saw that the National Museum were giving internships in that area not so long ago. You're most of the way there if you have the grades surely, is the work experience hard to come by?

Would be looking to do a Postgrad, thinking of Arts and Heritage Management in WIT but sure nervous of getting too far ahead of myself, just want to get into this add-on, then look further Had the real world for a while after the initial ordinary degree, the key is more education though!!

Poor Mark eh, I must've been melting his brain with my long winded emails, oh well sure, at least he might remember me come selection time, fingers crossed.

Thanks a million, really appreciate all your help!

Marvel80

Hi Guys,

just came across these posts, I graduated from the Degree in 2002, 9 years ago now. I went on to NUIGalway and completed the Arts Admin HDip. I loved the Degree but haven't gone into that field of work at all, you have to really know what you want to get into and be willing to look and push for the job.

I am now actually looking to go back to do Midwifery which is a far throw from history but I feel its where my passion lies and I would advise anyone who is passionate about Irish History and issues to do the Heritage course.

Any questions feel free to ask.

hsharz

hi,

great to see some action here. gave me more encouragement on the course.
unfortunatly the gmit website does not have specific information about the course. I find it hard to see the difference between the Galway and Castlebar course. However e-mailed and talked to Mark and he encouraged me to apply although I come from a business background with little academic background in heritage/history.

That said I'm still unsure whether I apply for September or apply directly for master course. Don't know how beneficial the extra year would be as people say career prospectives are quite small.

However just wanted to thank you for all the information.

perfectisthe

hsharz wrote: »

I find it hard to see the difference between the Galway and Castlebar course. .

The main difference is that the Castlebar course will qualify you to teach geography, while the Galway course will qualify you to teach history. There's a fair bit of difference in the subjects taught, and the Castlebar course is tiny. Last I heard the Castlebar honours degree year was abolished, we had 5 or 6 from castlebar in our honours degree year.

lollygmit1

hsharz wrote: »

I would like to get further info on the programme and specific modules as the homepage is quite vage.

I am only looking at the 1 year Honours Add-on as I already study on Bachelor level. I am currently enrolled in Tourims Management (so havily business related) and would like to take an the Add-on to progress towards the field of Heritage & Culture Tourism.
Would you reckon it's managable to do the course if you have little previous experience in archeology, etc. I am intrested and willing to work on it but just wondering if it's too big a hassle.

Would appreciate any feedback so I have a personal opinion from a someone who's already there.

PS: English is not my mother tongue, so that's an additional disadvantage but I am more or less fluent.

PPS: Is there a big difference between the Castlebar and Galway programme?

to this person stating there is a big difference between castlebar and galway, this is true and the major differences are in the areas of heritage that students sepecalise. in castlebar there is a major emphasise on geography whereas there is more archaeology and history in the course in galway with modules such as genealogy which aren't even mentioned in castlebar. also the 4th year in castlebar seems to only run every 2 years since 2011 as many of the students opt to go to galway for 4th year, which i'll be doing in september 2013

lollygmit1

Lord ButterSlip wrote: »

Anybody here that is doing/done this course?

i have done the three year b.a ordinary in castlebar and now have to do the 4th year in galway. this tends to happen every two years as there has been a serve decline in the numbers applying for 4th year in castlebar;)

Buster10

the 4th year in castlebar seems to only run every 2 years since 2011 as many of the students opt to go to galway for 4th year

Hmm, I'm not sure where this is coming from...
As far as I'm aware, there has only been one year when 4th year hasn't gone ahead in Castlebar. I'm in third year in Castlebar at the moment, we have all just registered for 4th year in Castlebar, and there's a fourth year running now.

in castlebar there is a major emphasise on geography whereas there is more archaeology and history in the course in galway with modules such as genealogy which aren't even mentioned in castlebar.

It's tru that there are some differences, however, in Castlebar archaeology is offered from 2nd to 4th year, and we also do 3 years of History as a 10-credit module.
Genealogy is part of the course from first year in 2013.

HTH

lollygmit1

Buster10 wrote: »

Hmm, I'm not sure where this is coming from...
As far as I'm aware, there has only been one year when 4th year hasn't gone ahead in Castlebar. I'm in third year in Castlebar at the moment, we have all just registered for 4th year in Castlebar, and there's a fourth year running now.



It's tru that there are some differences, however, in Castlebar archaeology is offered from 2nd to 4th year, and we also do 3 years of History as a 10-credit module.
Genealogy is part of the course from first year in 2013.

HTH

the acedemic office in galway told me that it was nly running in galway in september 2013, that was last august... i could be wrong and things could have changed. the heritage course has been reviewed since i started back in 2008 so i cant tell you for sure

Buster10

No, like I said, they're currently accepting applications for 4th year from current and past Heritage Studies students. We've been told that 4th year didn't go ahead on one occasion due to insufficient applications. Otherwise, as long as the demand is there, 4th year is always offered.

MayoArsehole

Graduated 2008, no chance of a job out of it! Handy course, dont know why people struggle with it.

lollygmit1

its okay if you do the right stream of it. for instance the person who would get on fantastic with the geography elements in castlebar (where the course focuses) could struggle =with archaeology (where the galway course focuses). iv seen people transferring mid stream eg 2nd and 3rd year from galway to castlebar as they wanted the focus of geography and not history

lollygmit1

MayoArsehole wrote: »

Graduated 2008, no chance of a job out of it! Handy course, dont know why people struggle with it.

did you ever do anything in the area of heritage studies after graduation

MayoArsehole

Read what I wrote. it's Heritage Studies, you're not meant to get a job out of it. Anyways it's not worth debating.

perfectisthe

MayoArsehole wrote: »

Read what I wrote. it's Heritage Studies, you're not meant to get a job out of it. Anyways it's not worth debating.

That's not strictly true though. Graduates of most disciplines have been struggling to find work since 2008.

Previous to this, there was a certain amount of work for Heritage Studies graduates in visitor centres, as tour guides etc. I personally know some people who graduated circa 2004-05 who gained employment in these areas.

Either way, Heritage Studies is a broad arts degree. The issues faced by Heritage Studies graduates are the same as those faced by virtually all humanities graduates across the globe.

If you do an arts degree you have to be prepared to do a postgrad, so you can specialise in your chosen area and make yourself more employable.

I still can't get over the amount of people who don't get this and expect to walk into a job after their undergrad.

I graduated in 2010, have done two postgrads since, and now work in the heritage industry.

lollygmit1

perfectisthe wrote: »

That's not strictly true though. Graduates of most disciplines have been struggling to find work since 2008.

Previous to this, there was a certain amount of work for Heritage Studies graduates in visitor centres, as tour guides etc. I personally know some people who graduated circa 2004-05 who gained employment in these areas.

Either way, Heritage Studies is a broad arts degree. The issues faced by Heritage Studies graduates are the same as those faced by virtually all humanities graduates across the globe.

If you do an arts degree you have to be prepared to do a postgrad, so you can specialise in your chosen area and make yourself more employable.

I still can't get over the amount of people who don't get this and expect to walk into a job after their undergrad.

I graduated in 2010, have done two postgrads since, and now work in the heritage industry.

exactly, its been described as a stating point, not the end result. work is there if your willing to look for it

lollygmit1

Buster10 wrote: »

No, like I said, they're currently accepting applications for 4th year from current and past Heritage Studies students. We've been told that 4th year didn't go ahead on one occasion due to insufficient applications. Otherwise, as long as the demand is there, 4th year is always offered.

offered is not the same as running

MayoArsehole

Well that's alright for the small minority who are prepared to spend 6 maybe even 7 years in college just to work in the Heritage industry! or as Perfectisthe has had to do 2 post grads! what kind of job do you have Perfectisthe? is it fulltime and decently paid? Personally i'd prefer a real job than to graduate from a course that requires a post grad to have any chance of employment. Some people seem to prefer being an eternal student being always told that they just need another post grad and spend their working lives in college instead! there are no Heritage jobs out there for people with a B.A in Heritage, which does make Heritage graduates unlike graduates of any other course. Perfectisthe it is a degree in Humanities and not "Arts" by the way is it not?.

Buster10

offered is not the same as running

You seem quite determined to suggest that there isn't an option of fourth year in Castlebar... if people want to do it, it's available, simple as that...

MayoArsehole

Buster10 wrote: »

You seem quite determined to suggest that there isn't an option of fourth year in Castlebar... if people want to do it, it's available, simple as that...

Spot on Buster, they take anybody that passes 3rd year, as if Heritage studies was somehow exclusive!

perfectisthe

Personally i'd prefer a real job than to graduate from a course that requires a post grad to have any chance of employment

Why did you do a degree in the humanities so? Even during good economic times, humanities graduates face problems with employment. If you wanted to walk into a job after college, why didn't you do I.T or something similar?

Some people seem to prefer being an eternal student being always told that they just need another post grad and spend their working lives in college instead

No-one told me that I needed another postgrad, I chose to do it because I recognised that it would benefit me. I'd hardly call two years spending my 'working life(s) in college'.

what kind of job do you have Perfectisthe?

I'm not trying to be evasive, but I really don't want to post what I do on a public forum - I value my anonymity. If you really want to know, I'll PM you.

there are no Heritage jobs out there for people with a B.A in Heritage, which does make Heritage graduates unlike graduates of any other course

Really? There are no jobs for graduates of history, English, philosophy, anthropology, archaeology or celtic studies degrees either. Thing is though, there are hardly any jobs out there for graduates of any discipline at the moment. Even STEM graduates are having a hard time. This problem is absolutely not unique to Heritage Studies.

Perfectisthe it is a degree in Humanities and not "Arts" by the way is it not?

Of course it is. If you re-read my post you'll see it referred to as both. I was using the term 'arts degree' as a comparison, and point of reference. If this was unclear I apologise (as a pedant myself, I do enjoy a good bit of pedantry though!).

Look, employment prospects for Heritage Studies students are seriously grim right now. They have been for the past five years, and it's a lousy situation. There are things you can do to improve your position though. You really need to work hard, be motivated, be imaginative and need to be prepared to go the extra mile to get any kind of job these days (I'm not in any way implying that you haven't done these things by the way).

I have two questions for you now.

Firstly, do you still live in Mayo?

Secondly, when you were doing your degree, did you genuinely want to enter the heritage industry when you finished?

I ask this because, including me, in my class there were about 3-4 people out of 35-40 who really wanted to work in the heritage industry. The rest just saw it as getting a degree, it was a box that need to be ticked before they moved on to the next stage of their life.

MayoArsehole

Well 7 years of your life altogether, I'd consider that a waste of time if you are only doing an internship now or something similar as I suspect you are. I entered in to it with no expectations, I thought it would be a handy B.A but as I got in to it I wanted to know more about Archaeology and ended up working for the commercial Archaeology companies during the boom. I graduated top 3 in my year but consider the whole thing a complete waste of time now, it was also a burden to learning the things of value and importance that are unfortunately of no value or importance to academia or employers. Most of the other students copied and pasted their way to the B.A, I worked hard and put in the effort but my reward was 5 years on the dole! hence the cynicism.

I have no faith in formal education and would not put myself through any form of post grad after my experience with Heritage. I still like Archaeology but as Champollion said "a beautiful mistress who brings a poor dowry".

I live in Galway, and by the way you did refer to Humanities as an arts degree.

P.S only reason I mentioned graduating top 3 in my year is that it is a poor inditement of a course that people like me can do so well in it :-)

Diabhal Beag

Calm it down guys.

lollygmit1

Lord ButterSlip wrote: »

In Castlebar??

Castlebar looses alot of its heritage students in the 1st year. 9 dropped out of my class back in 08

Buster10

9 dropped out of my class back in 08

9 out of how many? And how does that compare to Heritage Studies in Galway? Or to any other Arts course anywhere in the country for that matter? It's not a very useful or informative statistic on its own...

Mike747

MayoArsehole wrote: »

Well that's alright for the small minority who are prepared to spend 6 maybe even 7 years in college just to work in the Heritage industry! or as Perfectisthe has had to do 2 post grads! what kind of job do you have Perfectisthe? is it fulltime and decently paid? Personally i'd prefer a real job than to graduate from a course that requires a post grad to have any chance of employment. Some people seem to prefer being an eternal student being always told that they just need another post grad and spend their working lives in college instead! there are no Heritage jobs out there for people with a B.A in Heritage, which does make Heritage graduates unlike graduates of any other course. Perfectisthe it is a degree in Humanities and not "Arts" by the way is it not?.

So what exactly is a real job?

I think its a shame that you're so bitter about Heritage Studies. Personally I think its good course. I've learned new skills from it. I'm finishing fourth year and will more than likely do an MA in history next autumn. Yes it will be tough finding a job but that is the reality for many graduates, no matter what the discipline. I may end up working in a shop for awhile but who knows what will happen in the future. And lets be realistic 6 or 7 years is not a long time in persons life.

MayoArsehole

Buster10 wrote: »

9 out of how many? And how does that compare to Heritage Studies in Galway? Or to any other Arts course anywhere in the country for that matter? It's not a very useful or informative statistic on its own...

Was about 5 out of 30 in my 1st yr in Galway but to drop out of Heritage you would have to be not in the least intrested. it's not a hard course to stick at and pass. Wednesdays off!

MayoArsehole

Mike747 wrote: »

So what exactly is a real job?

I think its a shame that you're so bitter about Heritage Studies. Personally I think its good course. I've learned new skills from it. I'm finishing fourth year and will more than likely do an MA in history next autumn. Yes it will be tough finding a job but that is the reality for many graduates, no matter what the discipline. I may end up working in a shop for awhile but who knows what will happen in the future. And lets be realistic 6 or 7 years is not a long time in persons life.

Yup it's a shame but I can't but help being realistic after the 5 years on the dole I got in return for my degree. Funnily enough I was once quite dedicated but I don't think it done my understanding of Heritage any justice. Most students just saw it as a piece of paper. I disagree that 6 or 7 years is not a long time in a life, at my age (32) it seems it at least.

Mike747

MayoArsehole wrote: »

Yup it's a shame but I can't but help being realistic after the 5 years on the dole I got in return for my degree. Funnily enough I was once quite dedicated but I don't think it done my understanding of Heritage any justice. Most students just saw it as a piece of paper. I disagree that 6 or 7 years is not a long time in a life, at my age (32) it seems it at least.

Well including the BETA I've been on the dole for 2 and a half years. I don't think its something to ashamed of in this day and age, as long you keep striving to improve yourself anyway.

I believe education is never wasted, and I know heritage studies will stand to me no matter what road I go down. I would recommend the course to anyone who has an interest in history, archaeology, geography etc, but you should view it as a steeping stone to further education and decide if its for you or not.