A supportive and ambitious research culture

There are so many reasons to choose UL. Between our stunning location, fantastic facilities, student supports, research skills workshops and postgraduate community, UL is a perfect place to choose to do your research degree. We hold an annual postgraduate research conference, which gives you a chance to highlight your research in a friendly, supportive environment, and our postgraduate students also organise their own workshops with handy skills such as PhD life hacks.

We have an active research community, with a variety of research centres and clusters which you could join.

Why choose AHSS for your PhD?

The Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences (AHSS) Graduate Research Centre is the primary point of contact for new AHSS postgraduate research students. The Graduate Research Centre is located in the Foundation Building where an appropriate study environment is provided for AHSS research postgraduates. The Research Administrator, Dr Niamh Lenahan, is also located in the Foundation Building, on the Ground Floor. Through this office, students are introduced to the facilities of the centre. Each student is given access to:

  • A dedicated desk
  • A computer
  • Printing

Students of journalism have access to a new state-of-the-art television news studio facility, and researchers in music and dance practice have access to our excellent studio facilities and practice areas.

Library facilities

The Glucksman Library, Archives and Special Collections provide important research support through its physical and digital collections, but also through its collections of primary sources, manuscripts and rare book collections. The relocation of the extraordinarily rich and valuable Bolton Library collections to the Glucksman Library at the University of Limerick represents a particularly exciting opportunity for researchers working here.

Research in the community

We work closely with our neighbouring cultural institutions such as Dance Limerick, the Hunt Museum, Limerick City Gallery of Art, Music Generation Limerick City, the University Concert Hall, the Irish Chamber Orchestra, and the Limerick City Museum. Students can also engage with our rich art collections on campus, including the National Self-Portrait Collection. 

Enhancing your research skills 

The Faculty regularly organises training events in order to support postgraduates and early career researchers develop their professional skills. These include our funding clinics, research brown-bag seminars and Professional Development workshops. Past workshops have included: IT skills, Building an Online Research Profile, E-Learning, and careers.

In addition to this, our postgraduate student community regularly organise a series of seminars on PhD life hacks. These have included talks on writing, time-keeping, staying motivated, study/life balance, networking and speaking at conferences, and more.

The Graduate School at UL also offers Training and Professional Development for Postgraduate Research Students, including the Certificate in Generic and Transferable Research Skills which supports researchers undertaking structured PhD programmes at the University of Limerick. The programme aims to provide researchers with a range of generic and transferable skills that serve them, both in the completion of their research and in the career path that they may follow after their graduation. The programme consists of six 3-credit ECTS modules and is delivered via blended learning. 

The AHSS Faculty Research Support Scheme annually invites applications to support research activities in the form of conference presentations; fieldwork and the organisation of conferences/workshops/symposia. Our postgraduate students are entitled to apply for this funding, which is based on a competitive basis each year. 

Fee waivers and scholarships

The Faculty annually offers a number of Fee Waivers and Scholarships to PhD candidates on a competitive basis.

AHSS Funded Research Projects 2022

Research students within the Faculty of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences can apply annually to the AHSS Postgraduate Research Committee for research funding to support their activities such as conference attendance and fieldwork. A selection of these activities can be found below. 

Name

Department/School

Supervisor(s)

Funding

Gaëlle Clion

 

EIC

Dr. Gordon Ó Riain, Dr. Carrie Griffin

 

In July 2022, I attended the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies Summer School at the School of Celtic Studies. 

Cliodhna Condon

 

EIC

Dr. Carrie Griffin

Visit Westminster Abbey Muniments and the Houses of Parliament Archives.

Brian Hurley

EIC

Dr. Henry Silke

Presented at the Annual Sociological Association of Ireland Conference in Technological University of the Shannon

Sandrine Uwaswe Ndahiro

 

EIC

Dr. Yianna Liatsos

Presented a paper at Delta Futures ( In) Visibilities in Audiovisual Culture Conference at Durham University in March 2022.  

Abdelhalim Chouli

EIC/MLAL

Dr. Carrie Griffin/Dr. Elaine Vaughan

Presented a paper at the Poetic & Linguistics Association conference, July 2022 in Aix en Provence, Marseille.

Olufunmilayo Jinadu

EIC/MLAL

Dr. Fergal Quinn/Dr. Elaine Vaughan

Presented at The European Communication Research and Education Association ECREA, Aarhus University, Denmark, 2022

Saoirse Enright

 

Law

Dr. Laura Cahillane

Presented a paper at the 2022 ICON.S Annual Conference in Wrocław, Poland.

Blaithin OShea

 

Law

Dr. Alan Cusack/Dr. Susan Leahy

Presented a paper at the Howard League of Penal Reform International Annual Conference in Keble College, Oxford, September 2022.

Ahlem Bounechada

 

MLAL

Dr. Barrie Wharton

Presented a paper at the International Conference on Gender Studies “Gender and Power” was held in February 2022 in London.  The conference took place online. 

Rym Derdous

 

MLAL

Dr. Barrie Wharton

Presented a paper at the Poetic and Linguistics Association Conference, July 2022: Style and Sense(s) at the university Aix-En-Provence, France

Najla Lilya Jaballah

 

MLAL

 

Prof. Helen Kelly-Holmes

Presented a paper at the British Association of Applied Linguistics conference at Queen’s University, Belfast in September 2022

Catherine Jeanneau

 

MLAL

Prof Jean Conacher (UL) and Prof Christian Ollivier (University of La Réunion, France)

Presented a paper at the CercleS conference
held in Porto, Portugal from the 15-17 September 2022

Sofia Nemouchi

.

MLAL

Prof. Helen Kelly Holmes

Presented a paper at the Multidisciplinary Approaches in Language Policy and Planning Conference, hosted by McGill University’s in  Montreal, Canada, August 2022.

Marc Ayoub

PPA

Dr. Conor Little

Presented a paper at the Political Studies Association of Ireland’s (PSAI) Annual conference,, Waterford, October 2022

Anna Filipp

PPA

Dr.  Conor Little/Dr. Frank Haege

Presented a paper at the Political Studies Association of Ireland (PSAI) Annual Conference, Waterford,  October 2022 and attended the European Consortium of Political Research (ECPR) Summer School on Political Parties in Aarhus University in August 2022.

Find out what it's really like to be a postgraduate researcher in AHSS by reading our students' blogs and profiles

List of current and recently graduated research students in AHSS

Further information

If you are interested in pursuing an MA or PhD by research or a Structured PhD, please visit the UL Graduate School website or contact:

AHSS Graduate Research Centre
University of Limerick
Email: ahssgradresearch@ul.ie