The University of Galway is located on the banks of the river Corrib in Western Ireland. Galway is a modern urban center of 80,000 people that is known to many as a cultural center of Ireland. A Willamette professor teaches one course to the program students and accompanies the excursions with a local guide. Excursions may include Dublin, Northern Ireland, and Cork. Minimum GPA required by host program: 3.0 GPA, or 2.8 GPA with letter from faculty advisor.
Program Faculty Leaders:
The Spring 2027 Program Faculty Leader will be Kathryn Nyman,Mathematics.
Course: The Intersection of Mathematics with the Arts in Ireland –Arts and Crafts, Music and Dance, and Patterns and Non-Patterns in Nature.
This course helps students appreciate the world and culture around them by understanding underlying mathematical structures. Through inquiry-based explorations, students will keep a journal documenting mathematics they discover in Ireland—from patterns in castle architecture and dance to knots in art and fractals in coastlines.
The Spring 2028 Program Faculty Leader will be James Miley,Music.
Course: The Politics of Melodic Persuasion: Music as Protest.
This course explores folk, jazz, and popular music of the last seventy-five years as related to protest and activist movements across the histories of the U.S., Ireland, and the U.K. Discussions center on the cultural and social context of protest music, and its appeal as a vehicle for political engagement. Beyond its history and impact as protest, students will engage in close listening via recordings and concert videos, visit iconic music halls and clubs, and engage with professional musicians working in Ireland. No prior music experience required.
While at UG, students take an Irish Studies course (4.0 WU credit) that provides an introduction to Irish culture through four lenses: Literature in Irish, Irish Literature in English, Irish History, and Irish Society. Students take a second course (4.0 WU credit) taught by a WU professor and two or three additional courses from UG (credit varies).
The university has approximately 17,000 students and offers a large variety of courses to choose from. This program offers the best fit for humanities and social science majors due to course scheduling of UG classes with the WU program classes and excursion schedules. All participants should have a good deal of flexibility about the local classes they can take from UG.
Students live in nearby student housing, sharing a bedroom with American or Irish students. Bathrooms and kitchen facilities are shared with six or more students.
Available spring semester only. Early January start. Final exams conclude by mid-May. Students will have a specific arrival schedule to facilitate group pick up.
Please see the Willamette Sponsored Programs Cost Matrix for detailed explanation of the cost of each program. Students should plan on paying their police registration fee upon arrival to Galway - the registration fee is 300 Euros (2017). A sample budget for meals, books and transportation can be found on the International Affairs Office website.
Past Faculty Leaders for this program include Tabitha Knight (2024, Economics), Rebecca Dobkins, (2023, Anthropology and American Ethnic Studies), Robert Brewer-Wallin (2022, Theatre), Karen Arabas (2020, Environmental Science), Jonneke Koomen (2019, Sociology), Courtney Stevens (2018, Psychology), David Craig (2017, Biology), Scott Pike (2016, Environmental Science), Richard Ellis (2015, Politics), Ann Nicgorski (2014, Art History), David Gutterman (2013, Politics), Seth Cotlar (2012, History), Wendy Petersen Boring (2011, History), Todd Silverstein (Chemistry, 2010), Ortwin Knorr (Classical Studies, 2009), Mike Strelow (English, 2008), Mark Conliffe (Russian, 2007), Charlie Wallace (Religious Studies, 2006), Steve Hey (Sociology, 2005), Lane McGaughy (Religious Studies, 2004), Ken Nolley (English, 2003), Myles Jackson (Science Studies, 2002), James Thompson (Art, 2001), and Bill Braden (English, 2000).
To apply for the Galway program please contact the study abroad office at your university:
Studies Abroad
studyabroad@up.edu
(503) 943-7857
Office of International Education
(503) 375-5493
oieadvising@willamette.edu
Contact your study abroad office coordinator for information.