University College Cork
About
UCC's first students arrived in 1849 and, from 1850, the institution formed part of the Queen's University of Ireland. In the 1880s it became part of the Royal University of Ireland, and by 1908 joined the federal National University of Ireland (NUI), where it was a founding member. The landscaped gardens and surrounds of UCC are known as ‘the quad’ and superstition holds that students crossing the quad before graduation risk bad luck and failure in exams. Alongside the quad, the university is centred around its Aula Maxima – the Great Hall, which acts as the ceremonial and symbolic heart of the university. The Hall's design, inspired by the great universities of the Middle Ages, was the work of renowned Irish architects Thomas Deane and Benjamin Woodward. Since 1908, UCC has grown exponentially, offering a research-led curriculum across 120 degree programmes in Humanities, Business, Law, Architecture, Science, Medicine and more. With a student body of some 20,000, including 3,000 international students, UCC returned to being a university in its own right again in 1997, retaining its original name. UCC’s alumni includes the prominent mathematician Professor George Boole, who most famously invented Boolean logic, as well as the feminist and politician, Mary MacSwiney. Among UCC’s many historical collections and artefacts are the ancient Ogam stones, thought to be the earliest written source of the Irish language.
Features
- University College Cork (UCC) is an internationally competitive, research-led university that plays a key role in the development of Ireland’s knowledge-based economy. Our institutional research strategy focuses on creating and supporting world-leading clusters of researchers, building on the research strengths of the University.
Quick Facts
Rich History of Ireland and Heritage
The history of Ireland is marked by early settlements, Celtic culture, Christianisation, Viking raids, Norman invasion, centuries of English and later British rule, famine, struggles for independence, and partition.
Human settlement in Ireland dates back to the Mesolithic period, around 10,000 years ago. The arrival of Celtic peoples from mainland Europe between 500 and 150 BC profoundly shaped the island's language, culture, and social structure, dividing it into various kingdoms. Christianity was introduced in the 5th century AD, famously associated with Saint Patrick, leading to the flourishing of monasteries as centres of learning and art. From the late 8th century, Viking raids disrupted Irish society, although Viking settlements eventually grew into important towns like Dublin, Cork, and Limerick. In the 12th century, a Norman invasion initiated centuries of increasing English involvement and control, gradually marginalizing the native Gaelic order. The 16th and 17th centuries saw further conquest and colonization ("plantations") by English and Scottish settlers, particularly in Ulster, leading to deep sectarian divisions. Ireland was formally incorporated into the United Kingdom in 1801. The 19th century was marked by poverty, agrarian unrest, and the devastating Great Irish Famine (1845-1852), which resulted in over a million deaths and mass emigration, significantly reducing the population.
Rising Irish nationalism and calls for self-governance gained momentum in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Easter Rising in 1916, though militarily unsuccessful, galvanized support for independence. This was followed by the Irish War of Independence (1919-1921), which led to the Anglo-Irish Treaty. The treaty resulted in the creation of the Irish Free State, a dominion within the British Empire encompassing 26 southern counties, while the six counties of Northern Ireland remained part of the United Kingdom. The treaty sparked a civil war in the south (1922-1923). The Irish Free State gradually asserted more independence, adopting a new constitution in 1937 that declared the state of "Éire" (Ireland). In 1949, the Republic of Ireland was formally declared, severing its last ties with the British monarchy. The division of the island led to decades of conflict in Northern Ireland, known as 'The Troubles', which largely ended with the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. The Republic of Ireland has since developed into a prosperous modern nation and an active member of the European Union.
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Available Programs
Anthropology
Bachelor of Science (Honours) - Accounting
Bachelor of Agricultural Science (Honours) - Agricultural Science
Bachelor of Arts (Honours) - Anthropology
Bachelor of Science (Honours) - Architecture
Bachelor of Science (Honours) - Mathematical Sciences
Bachelor of Science - Economics and Mathematics
Postgraduate Diploma - Law
Master of Science - Biotechnology
Master of Science - Data Science and Analytics
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