With more than 150 research students the Faculty of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences (AHSS) is enriched by a lively postgraduate community. Over the last few years, a number of structured PhDs have been developed which provide opportunities for students to develop research skills through a combination of coursework and thesis in a thematic area such as Criminal Justice, Politics, New Media and Film, Applied Language Studies, and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. All research students acquire expertise and research skills through taking relevant modules, as well as acquiring valuable generic and transferrable skills in a range of areas through intensive courses. Research students are encouraged to participate in national and international conferences and funding is available on an annual basis to enable them to travel to conferences and also to carry out research.
The Faculty is home to a number of research centres, including the Centre for Applied Language Studies, Centre for Peace and Development, Centre for Criminal Justice, Centre for Irish-German Studies, and the Ralahine Centre for Utopian Studies, and also houses the cross-faculty Institute for the Study of Knowledge in Society (ISKS). ISKS is a cross- faculty institute providing a range of research support services for researchers in the humanities and social sciences across the university. The Institute hosts two research hubs, one concerned with civic engagement, and the other with usable knowledge.
