Media Production & Digital ArtsLéiriú Meán agus Ealaíona Digiteacha

Are you interested in working in the dynamic and fast-paced media world? Do you want to tell stories across a multitude of different platforms including short dramas, animations, radio documentaries, photography, and many more? This four year course (formerly Creative Digital Media) will help you develop the necessary skills to do exactly this.

Working in a studio-based environment, our hands-on production modules and specialist workshops focus on digital content creation and will have you thinking, designing and creating right from the start. This degree is designed to be fluid, responding to both your interests and the ever-changing industry landscape. With a complementary suite of practical and theoretical modules, all aspects of the course inform and are informed by each other.

As you develop your understanding of the technologies and their storytelling potential, you choose which paths to follow in your final two years. Project work includes filmmaking, music videos, 2D and 3D animations, motion design, graphic design and photographic portfolios.

Our course will also introduce you to emerging media practices such as interactive video, augmented and virtual reality, and creative coding so you’ll get the skillset needed to work with the latest media and storytelling technologies. You’ll also be studying the role of the media in society, keeping an eye on 21st century social and technological trends.

Study Abroad Opportunities

We have Erasmus links with several European Institutions across Finland, France, Germany and Spain in addition to international opportunities to study in Canada for a semester. These exchange opportunities are offered in year 3 for one semester.

Further Information

• http://futuremakerscollective.ie/
• TU982 Media Production and Digital Arts, (aka CDM) Tallaght * Media Production Degree Tallaght (mpda.ie)

Leaving Certificate Requirements

QQI/FET Requirements

In addition to the QQI minimum entry requirements, QQI quotas and QQI points apply. The max QQI points awarded is 390. Further details at www.tudublin.ie/qqi

Mature Applicants

Applications from mature students (23+) are welcome. Further details at www.tudublin.ie/mature

English Language Requirements

If English is not your first language you will need to provide evidence of your English language proficiency as detailed on our website. Applicants for this course should have a minimum IELTS (Academic Version) English Proficiency of 6.0 overall (or equivalent).

Click on the link below to view an indicative timetable for this course. Timetables are subject to change and up to date timetables will be provided to students on commencement.

View Sample Timetable

Graduate Job Titles:

• Director
• Script-writer
• Camera-person
• Studio Director
• Photo-journalist
• Visual Effects Compositor
• Graphic Designer
• Animator
• Social Media Manager
• Digital Image Technician
• Media Presenter (Radio/Television)
• Media Producer (Radio/Television)

Graduate Employers:

• RTE
• BBC
• Virgin Media
• TG4
• Industrial Light and Magic
• Windmill Lane
• Ardmore Studios
• Google
• Facebook
• Gallery of Photography
• National Library of Ireland
• Shutterstock
• Kavaleer Productions
• Content creators and managers across a range of organisations.

We are currently closed for Advanced Entry Applications. The courses that will be open for advanced entry will be listed on the CAO website in January 2025. For information on how to make an Advanced Entry application, please visit our CAO Hub. 

If this course opens for advanced entry, the following will apply:

To qualify for Advanced Entry applicants must be currently studying, completing, or have successfully completed, studies at Level 6, 7 or 8 in a Higher Education Institution (HEI) or an equivalent, in a related area. You must demonstrate by providing transcripts of results that you have achieved the learning outcomes for each stage you wish to advance past, for example:

• To enter Year 2 via Advanced Entry, you must demonstrate that you have met the learning outcomes for Year 1.
• For entry to Year 3, you must demonstrate that you have met the learning outcomes for Years 1 and 2.
• For entry to Year 4, you must demonstrate that you have met the learning outcomes for Years 1, 2, and 3.

If English is not your first language you will need to provide evidence of your English language proficiency as detailed on our website.

I cannot speak highly enough about my time in Tallaght. I studied for four years and it was the perfect mix of practice and theory. We were given the opportunity to express ourselves creatively through various projects in Interactive Design, Multimedia, Video and Professional Photography. We also studied many theory subjects including digital marketing, film studies, cultural studies and enterprise development. Before I went to Tallaght I didn't really know what I wanted to do and it was perfect because the course allowed you to explore loads of different options. From directing your own film, designing your own website, creating your own CGI effects project, curating your own photography exhibition to pitching mock presentations for clients, it has all been one exciting journey of self exploration. 

I am currently working for Google Dublin as an Account Manager. I provide small and medium businesses with a digital marketing strategy to help improve their return on investments. I highly recommend this course if you have a creative spark within you but aren't completely sure about what you want to do. It will lead you down the right path.  

Aisling Durcan, Google

It was only when I went out into the workforce that I really felt the benefit of the broad set of skills I had learned as part of this course. Having trained in video shooting, editing, audio recording and editing, along with a whole host of other skillsets, it meant that I could confidently walk into a job interview knowing that I had the experience and the know how to make me a highly versatile candidate for any potential employer. Since I’ve left college, it’s still something that stands to me to this day, and my broad range of skills is something a number of people in my job have commented on very positively.

I now work for RTÉ Radio doing a whole host of different things. Day to day I work as a Studio Co-Ordinator for our digital Alternative Music Station RTÉ 2XM. My job entails things like evaluating and selecting music for our playlists, coordinating content from producers in Ireland and around the world to ensure it’s delivered on time and loaded in to our systems in time for broadcast, and in general ensuring that our station remains on air.

As part of my work in RTÉ Radio I also work closely with RTÉ 2FM on air. I’m a regular contributor to The Nicky Byrne Show with Jenny Greene, and I also work as a standby/cover presenter throughout the year. Having such a broad practical skillset has given me a great advantage over other in what is a very competitive workplace. There have been a number of occasions over the past 4 years when I’ve been sent on weekends away with work and been able to do what traditionally would have been the work of 3 people. This versatility is highly practical for many employers. I have also maintained contact with some former lecturers who have always been very obliging to offer support and advice on anything I might come to them with. I also feel it’s important to mention the experience and skills I learned as part of the Tallaght Radio Society. Both on air and off air on TU Dublin FM, I learned invaluable lessons that are still a big part of what I do today.

Carl Mullan, RTE

On graduation, you may continue to postgraduate study at TU Dublin or elsewhere.