Cork Specialty Courses – 2025 Summer
Studying abroad can be a more meaningful and invigorating learning experience than at home—both inside and outside of the classroom. You may be more curious and alert than you usually are so use this heightened energy to enhance your studies as well as your cultural and geographical explorations. You may also encounter different teaching styles and course processes; be prepared to adapt and to learn.
Courses
You may take three to seven credits during the summer session. At least one 3-credit course is required. Course availability is contingent upon and enrollment and is subject to change.
Click the course title to view course details, description, and availability.
- SummerAnthropology History 100-level 1 credit Taught in English
The ‘In Search of Irish Roots: Tracing your Family Genealogy’ syllabus takes place over five sessions, with a distinct topic for each session. This course is about far more than genealogical sources; it also facilitates an interdisciplinary understanding of the primary sources and principal events that have shaped Ireland over the past several hundred years. It will therefore provide an overview of social, cultural, and political change in Irish society, so as to lead to a further understanding of the shaping of modern Ireland. It draws on cultural, political, and historical geographies of Ireland and includes analysis of class, religion, place, patronage, politics and territorial organisation, the impact of landlordism and landscape transformation, the distribution of secular and religious institutions, nation-building, and state formation. All of the above topics are address and put into practice during two out-of-classroom fieldtrip tours (Cork North Inner and South Inner City).
- SummerManagement Political Science 400-level 3 credits Taught in English
This course is designed for students to develop a strong theoretical foundation in international conflict resolution. Students will develop the knowledge and the skills to evaluate conflict situations and analyze outcomes. This course will cover topics related to contemporary state-based conflicts, and students will learn and discuss the complexities and contradictions of specific events in history. Students will evaluate the nature of international conflict and how it has evolved over time and explore the various stages and strategies of conflict prevention, containment, and resolution.
- SummerAnthropology English 200-level 3 credits Taught in English
This course will provide students with a stimulating and enriching introduction to the academic discipline of folklore through learning about the material and intangible culture of Cork and Ireland. There will be a focus on the collection, archiving and dissemination of folklore and oral history in Cork and Ireland. The themes of social and sacred assembly as well as community culture will be outlined and discussed. Aspects of material culture such as housing, furniture, and food will also be considered. Students will put their ethnographic skills into practice on the class field trip to the Muskerry Gaeltacht (Irish-speaking area).
- SummerGaelic World Languages and Literatures 100-level 3 credits Taught in English
This course is a comprehensive introduction to daily language with emphasis on the spoken word. Participants will learn how to engage in basic conversation in Irish and will also focus on listening, reading, and writing skills. The classes are very interactive, and students will engage in group work and oral tasks in every class. Students will receive a brief overview of the syntax & phonology of the language and will have an opportunity to gain an insight into Irish culture.
- SummerMusic 400-level 3 credits Taught in English
Music-making in Ireland today encompasses a wide range of scenes, communities and sub-cultures, each performing slightly different versions of Irishness. This course examines the last 50 years of popular, classical and traditional music through the prism of national and regional identity, with special focus on the vibrant live music scene in Cork City. Taking in artists such as U2, Sinead O'Connor, Van Morrison and Hozier, students will examine how music reflects different ways of being Irish.
To request a course syllabus: syllabus@usac.edu