School Leadership - Postgraduate Diploma

During this programme, you will:   

• Strengthen your leadership skills and confidence, preparing for senior roles in education while deepening your understanding of school leadership frameworks and practices.  

• Learn from experienced educational leaders, gaining insights and mentorship from lecturers and tutors with extensive expertise in Irish education.  
   
• Grow through a blend of academic and practical learning, including two situated leadership visits that allow you to observe leadership in action and reflect on your own leadership style.  
   
• Enhance your personal and professional development, through engaging, thought-provoking content that challenges your thinking and equips you to lead with purpose, empathy and impact. 

Key information:  

• Complete part-time over 18 months  
   
• Designed for aspiring school leaders. All modules and course activities will be scheduled during out-of-school hours i.e. evenings & weekends. 
   
• Time each week should be allocated for engaging with module content and class interaction as well as independent study.  
   
• Modules taught during autumn and spring semesters  
   
• Blended delivery –  
• Online Content: Released weekly each semester, to be completed at your own pace. It includes readings, short videos, podcasts, and other media related to that week’s topic.  
   
• Tutorials: Each module includes 12 tutorials—approximately 50% are in person, and 50% are delivered online.  
   
• Sraith Gaeilge: This strand is delivered online.  
   
• Webinars: Each semester includes a leadership webinar from an educational leadership expert 
   
• You will also attend an in-person induction day at University of Limerick before starting Year One of the programme.  
   
• In-Person teaching will take place at the following Education centres*; 
• During your application you will be asked to identify your top two preferences.  Once allocated to a centre, changes cannot be made after selection
• Athlone Education Support Centre
• Cork Education Support Centre 
• Dublin North (TU Dublin Blanchardstown) 
• Dublin South (Blackrock Education Centre) 
• Laois Education Support Centre 
• Tralee Education Support Centre 
• University of Galway (Programme Partner) 
• University College Dublin (Programme Partner) 
• Limerick Education Support Centre  

*Centre locations may be subject to change 

• Fully online options are available, but specific criteria apply. See entry requirements below.   

You will learn through a blend of:  

• Lectures, workshops, and learning activities 
   
• Reflective practice and guided research  
   
• Group and tutor discussions  

Year 1 

Autumn Semester  

• Leading Learning and Teaching in the Irish Context (EN5211) focuses on preferred perspectives on learning vis-à-vis schooling in the 21st century. 

• Professional Growth and Development (EN5221) critically engages with different dimensions of leadership to enable student to develop their sense of themselves as a leader. 

• Leadership Webinar with leading international expert in leadership. 

Spring Semester 

• Leading School Development (EN5292) emphasises evidence informed decision making at the level of the school, what constitutes evidence, and the decision-making processes to identify priorities. 

• Mentoring and Coaching (EN5332) explores current theory, policy and practice of mentoring in the Irish system and examines international best practice models. 

• Leadership Visit – School Based 

• Leadership Webinar with leading international expert in leadership. 

Year 2 

Autumn Semester 

• Managing the Organisation (EN5261) builds on the learning outcomes of Mentoring & Coaching and is foundational for further capacity building. 

• Developing Leadership Capacity (EN5251) focuses on understanding the dynamic relationship between leadership, school culture and change. 

• Leadership Visit – Non-Educational Setting 

• Leadership Webinar with leading international expert in Leadership. 

Books and journal articles needed for the course will be available online through the UL Glucksman Library.  

For more information on each module, you can search the faculty, school and module code on UL’s Book of Modules 

Your lecturers and leaders: 

Patricia Mannix McNamara Course Director, Professor of Education (Leadership), University of Limerick 

Niamh Hickey Co-course Director, Assistant Professor in Education with Mentoring, University of Limerick 

Gerry Mac Ruairc Professor of Education, University of Galway 

Paul Conway Professor of Teacher Education and Head of School of Education, University of Limerick 

Manuela Heinz Lecturer in Education, University of Galway 

Mary Cunneen Assistant Professor in Educational Leadership, School of Education, University College Dublin 

• Applicants should hold a bachelor’s degree (NFQ Level 8) with at least a second-class honour, grade 2 (2:2) in any discipline. 

• Be a qualified teacher and fully registered with the Teaching Council under the appropriate Teaching Council Registration Regulation. 
• Regulation 2 or 4 of the Teaching Council (Registration) regulations 2009 up to 25th July 2016 or Route 1 or 2 of the Teaching Council (Registration) Regulations 2016 and The Teaching Council (Registration) (Amendment) Regulations 2016 thereafter. 

• Have at least 5 years of relevant work experience as a teacher.  

• Be teaching in a primary or post-primary school funded by the Department of Education and Youth. 

International students:   

• Please note that this programme is restricted to registered teachers working in Department of Education and Youth approved schools in the Republic of Ireland. 

Checklist of documents:  

• *Academic transcripts and certificates – Translated if needed
• UL graduates only need to provide their student ID number
• Copy of your birth certificate or passport
• Certificate of your Teaching Council Registration
• Completed declaration letter.
• Evidence in writing from the principal of your school confirming that (at the time of application) you hold a teaching position in the school and are not on secondment.
• If you are a teacher, your principal can complete the form. Principals applying to the programme will require the Chairperson of the school complete.  

Additional information request 

• Once application is received, a form will be issued to you requesting specific information to process your application. This includes your selection of in-person Education centre preferences.
• Applicants will be asked to specify their 1st & 2nd preference. 
• Specific criteria apply to the online centre. These include the applicant's school must be at least 80 mins (one way) travel time by car. 
• Changes cannot be made to the centre you have been allocated. Therefore, applicants are advised to consider carefully when choosing their centre preferences.    

English Language: 

• English Language Competency certificate
• For details on accepted language qualifications visit English Language Requirements  

Guidelines on Completing your Application   

• To make sure we can review your application quickly, please:  
• Upload all documents. Your application can’t be reviewed until we have all the documents on the checklist. 
• Title the documents you are uploading. For example, "Personal Statement", "Undergraduate Transcript", "Postgraduate Transcript", "English Language Certificate" etc. 
• *If you are waiting to graduate, submit your application with the documents you have to date, you don’t need to have finished final exams before applying.

EU - TBC

Annual fees are billed by semester. Once registered, students may be eligible to apply for a monthly payment plan.  

Further information on fees and payment of fees is available from the Student Fees Office  website. All fee related queries should be directed to the Student Fees Office (Phone: +353 61 213 007 or email student.fees.office@ul.ie).  

Funding 

This course is part-funded by the Department of Education and Youth (DEY) and OIDE.  

Each participant contributes €2,000 towards the total course cost, with the remainder funded by the DEY/OIDE. 

To secure a place on the programme, successful applicants must pay a non-refundable acceptance fee of €250. This fee will be deducted from the total €2,000 student contribution. 

If a participant is accepted onto the programme based on the stated eligibility criteria and is later found to be ineligible for part-funding, they may continue on the course only if they agree to cover the full course fee themselves. 

Please note: If a participant withdraws after the first two months of the course, fees will not be refunded and they will not be eligible to reapply, except under exceptional circumstances. 

Find further information on funding and scholarships..

This course can lead to the following sectors and careers:  

• Senior school leadership, (School Principal, Deputy Principal)
• Middle school leadership (Assistant Principal I, Assistant Principal II)
• Teacher leadership 

PDSL Graduate 2025 and Senior School Leader 

“I chose this programme because I was interested in school leadership and in understanding how change is managed and led within schools. I wanted to contribute to the future direction of my own school while also learning what distinguishes effective leadership from ineffective practice, so that my approach would have real impact. While the workload and time commitment were demanding, the support of tutors and the stimulating weekly discussions made the experience hugely rewarding. 

Engaging with research and comparing it to real-world practice helped me align my own leadership with evidence-based best practice, while also learning from the knowledge and expertise of my peers. 

The programme significantly strengthened my confidence in leading change, encouraged me to reflect on and critically evaluate my past experiences, and equipped me with strategies to overcome challenges in practice. The situated learning visits broadened my perspective on leadership within and beyond education, and I gained an invaluable network of like-minded professionals. Ultimately, the programme provided me with the skills, confidence, and professional credibility to progress to my current role as Deputy Principal.” 

PDSL Graduate now Senior School Leader 

The PDSL programme is an engaging, thought-provoking, accessible, challenging and applicable educational leadership programme, designed for those who are leading and those who want to lead in educational settings. It has been one of the most professionally rewarding experiences in my career to date and I look forward to living out the leadership ideals and principles, in my work now as a senior leader, for many years to come because of it." 

PDSL Graduate now Senior School Leader 

"This course was a huge milestone in my professional development because it allowed me to see an umbrella perspective of how the school works focusing on the development of relationships with staff, students and parents alike as well as always questioning why things are done the way they are." 

Still Curious?  

The team regularly host and take part in webinars to support future students. If you would like to learn more or ask questions at an online information session, click below.     

Online Information Sessions