M.Phil. in Children’s Literature
1 Year Full-Time or 2 Year Part-Time
This taught master's programme encompasses everything from picturebooks through to Young Adult fiction and runs on a full-time (one year) or part-time (two years) basis. This is a wonderful opportunity to spend a whole year (or two!) reading, researching, and debating children’s literature while living in Dublin, a UNESCO City of Literature.
The programme explores multiple genres, readerships, publishing trends and modes of criticism; pays particular attention to issues of diversity and inclusion; and covers a huge body of English-language literature from around the world – from four-hundred-year-old texts to the latest publications. The core module offers both breadth and depth and provides students with a thorough grounding in the field. Option modules enable students to specialise in particular areas and to forge their own path of study. Completing a dissertation, under expert supervision, allows students to pursue and develop their own research interests. While the focus is on literary analysis, this taught master’s is unique in that it is one of the only children’s literature programmes in the world to offer an option module in creative writing for children.
Taught within a world-leading School of English, where the faculty are recognized nationally and internationally as experts in the field, the programme is uniquely supported by Trinity Library’s Pollard Collection of Children’s Books – a historical collection of over 12,000 children’s books and one of the most significant of its kind. Staff and students also regularly collaborate with cultural organisations in Dublin such as The Ark, International Literature Festival Dublin, Swords Literary Festival, and Children’s Books Ireland – check out our wonderful exhibition Story Spinners: Irish Women and Children’s Books!
The extensive range of texts and topics covered in the M.Phil in Children’s Literature provided rich avenues for learning, perfectly expanding on what I had been introduced to at undergraduate level. The outstanding support from the course’s expert lecturers also gave me the confidence to pursue my own research interests when undertaking my dissertation
I applied for the M.Phil in Children’s Literature because I was curious to learn about the subject through an academic lens. I thoroughly enjoyed the lectures, which challenged me to think about the role of children’s literature in nation building, identity construction, socialisation, and more. I also benefited immensely from the Creative Writing module I took as part of my studies, where the seeds of my now-published first novel for teenagers were sown. After completing my dissertation, for which I won an award, I realised my journey in Children’s Literature studies was only beginning, and I am now three years into my PhD studies on the subject. For anyone looking to stretch themselves intellectually and creatively, I cannot recommend this course highly enough
Course Structure
The centrepiece of the course is the core ‘Perspectives and Case Studies in Children’s Literature’ module, which runs across two semesters. Covering a wide range of texts and genres, engaging with key authors and critics, it addresses some of the major trends in the writing and reception of children’s literature from across the centuries. This survey module will introduce students to diverse topics such as histories, theory and criticism, collections and archives, myth, Irish children’s literature, theatre, fairytales, visual narratives, genders and sexualities, young adult literature, fantasy, postcolonialism, race and ethnicity, abilities, materialism, eco-criticism, school stories, film, and so on. Students will have the opportunity to engage in the close analysis of English-language texts from around the world in a way which offers both breadth and depth of research. The topics of the core module are presented in a two-hour seminar each week.
Students also take four specialist option modules (two per semester; at least one per semester must be an option from the ‘Children’s Literature’ list of options), reflecting our commitment to cutting-edge research-led teaching. The programme offers option modules specific to children’s literature, option modules from across the School of English (such as those connected to the MPhil in Modern and Contemporary Literary Studies and the MPhil in Irish Writing), as well as a range of option modules from across the Faculty of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences. In recent years, the children’s literature options have included: ‘The Victorian Child’, ‘The City and Children’s Literature’, ‘Global Children’s Fantasy’, ‘Death and Trauma in Children’s Literature’ and ‘Creative Writing for Children’. The topics of each option module are presented in a two-hour seminar each week.
In the final phase of the course, students complete a dissertation project. This allows students to pursue in-depth research on a subject of their choice under expert supervision and to draw on Trinity’s fantastic library and archival holdings. Full-time students will have approximately six contact hours per week, with the remaining hours made up of reading, writing, and researching. Students taking the course part-time complete the core module and two option modules in their first year of study. In their second year, they complete two option modules and their dissertation.
Teaching and Assessment
Teaching for the course is primarily delivered through small group seminar teaching. Current staff teaching on the programme include Dr Pádraic Whyte (programme Director), Dr Jane Carroll, Dr Sinéad Moriarty, Dr Jarlath Killeen, and the acclaimed author for young people Dr Sheena Wilkinson, all of whom are recognised internationally for their publications and expertise in the area of children’s literature studies. Modules are assessed by essay or other written coursework. The final phase of the course sees student’s undertake independent research and write a 15-16,000-word dissertation.
Students also have the opportunity to attend additional lectures and workshops offered by guest speakers and visiting academics. In recent years, many experts and authors in children's literature have spoken at Trinity, including Sarah Crossan, John Grogan, Jerry Griswold, Peter Hunt, Donna Jo Napoli, Perry Nodelman, Kimberley Reynolds, Katie Trumpener, Louise O’Neill, Emer O’Sullivan, Siobhán Parkinson, and Timothy Young.
Admissions Information
Students of many different nationalities and from diverse backgrounds and disciplines have successfully completed the programme. Applicants should have a good honours degree (at least an upper second or a GPA of at least 3.3). Applicants must also submit a single critical writing sample of 3,000-5,000 words as part of their application. An application without a critical writing sample will be treated as incomplete. A writing sample should demonstrate the ability to critically analyse a text or texts (this may or may not be a text written for children). The writing sample can be a new essay, or an essay you have already submitted as part of your undergraduate degree.
Applications for admission in 2025/26 open in November 2024. Candidates are encouraged to submit applications as soon as possible, as applications are reviewed on a rolling basis as they arrive. If an offer is made, candidates wishing to secure a place (and to be considered for any funding opportunities that may be available) should confirm the acceptance of the offer as soon as possible.
Classes will begin in early September 2025.
Funding
The Peter Irons Taught Postgraduate Studentships
The studentships will contribute towards M.Phil. tuition fees (EU or Non-EU) for any School of English taught postgraduate programme. They are generously funded in memory of Peter Irons. Two studentships will be awarded for the academic year: one for an EU student, and one for a non-EU student. For further information, please open this PDF link.
European Excellence Awards
The €1,000 awards are open to applicants with EU fee-status who hold an offer letter for a Postgraduate Taught programme in Trinity College Dublin. Further information can be found here.
Details of further funding opportunities from TCD can be found here.
Yale-TCD Bursary for Research in Children's Literature
Postgraduate students researching any aspect of children's literature are eligible to apply for the annual Yale-TCD Bursary for Research in Children's Literature. Approximately €3,500 will be made available to facilitate travel to work on the Betsy Beinecke Shirley Collection of American Children's Literature at Yale University. This covers costs for a four-week stay (approximately) in the USA. This bursary is jointly funded by the School of English (TCD) and the Beinecke Library (Yale).
Brontë Prize
This prize was founded in 1921 by a bequest from Miss A.G. Woolson of Portland, U.S.A. It is awarded triennially by the Board on the recommendation of a committee for the best essay on either (a) an English author of Irish descent, or (b) the seats of learning in Ireland prior to 900 A.D. or (b) the seats of learning in Ireland prior to 900 a.d. The committee consists of the Regius Professor of Greek and the Professors of Latin and English Literature. A candidate must be of Irish birth or have been domiciled in Ireland for at least ten years. The candidate must also be an undergraduate of Trinity College Dublin or a graduate of not more than five years’ standing. The next award will be made in 2025 and essays must reach the Registrar before 1 October 2025. Value, €1,905.
Dublin Cost of Living
Whether you're moving to Dublin from within Ireland or from abroad, one of the challenges you're likely to face is just getting set-up in the city. Below, you'll find web links providing advice on getting accommodation, placing deposits, household utilities, looking after your finances, and general tenancy agreements.
https://www.tcd.ie/students/living-dublin/
https://www.internationalstudents.ie/info-and-advice/practical-information/cost-of-living