The past two decades have seen an expansion of early childhood services in Ireland and an increasing awareness of the educational and training needs of the growing profession of early childhood practitioners.

The BA (Honours) in Early Childhood Education and Care is an applied course where the emphasis is on developing high standards of academic attainment in conjunction with work-based learning in supervised practice placements as well as providing students with the necessary managerial skills to set up and run a service. This approach is intended to assist students in obtaining the knowledge, values and skills required to generate high standards of fieldwork performance or engage in research or manage a facility.

Both courses are delivered through a blend of lectures, workshops, practicals, tutorials and online support. Work placements are an integral part of the programmes. All of our students participate in a supervised work placement in one of a variety of settings in Ireland or abroad for two consecutive semesters.

In the final year of the Level 8 honours programme, you study research methods, specialise in chosen areas and complete a dissertation on a topic of your choice.

The suite of programmes in Early Childhood Education and Care at MTU have received formal recognition from NARIC UK and the NCTL (UK teaching council).  UK NARIC is the UK’s National Agency responsible for providing information and opinion on academic, vocational and professional qualifications from across the world. As the national agency, managed on behalf of the UK Government, UK NARIC provide the only official source of information on international education and training systems and qualifications and skills attained outside the UK.

Our graduates often comment on the extremely enjoyable yet challenging nature of the programme, the high level of networking between staff and students and the peer support and camaraderie of fellow students. We promote current best practise in early childhood studies, and our department has Erasmus links with a range of partner EU institutions. All of our students are encouraged to develop their own learning styles and professional pathways. To that end, staff teaching on these programmes are supported by a range of professionals, guest lecturers, therapists and specialists who offer workshops and seminars to deliver a highly interactive learning environment.

Students have an opportunity to study Irish as part of their BA (Level 7 and Level 8) degree at MTU. In the second, third and fourth years of the programme students can build on the skills and competences acquired at Leaving Certificate level or equivalent by enrolling in four modules:

Gaeilge don Chumarsáid (Irish for Communication).The purpose of this module is to enable learners to function in everyday, basic communicative situations in the Irish language Gaeilge don Ghairm (Irish for Professional life) The main objective of this module is to enable students to function competently in the workplace through the medium of the Irish language Pobal agus Cultúr na Gaeilge (Irish Language Culture and Community) Students enrich their language skills and gain an understanding of the importance of the Irish language culture and community. Úinéireacht Teanga (Owning the Language) Students come to understand that they are independent language users rather than language learners.

With an increasing demand for practitioners with proficiency in Irish in early education contexts, (naoínraí and réamhscoileanna)  studying Irish as part of the ECEC BA degree is considered to be a professionally enabling step in the ECEC sector. A successful completion of these modules also enables students to apply for the PME (Primary Masters in Education) to pursue a career in primary teaching.

There are increasing demands for qualified graduates in early childhood education in both the private and public sectors. Our graduates take up roles such as centre leader/manager and curriculum developer. They work in community outreach, in special education and as early intervention specialists. Because this award is internationally recognised, you also have the opportunity to work abroad.