The part-time Certificate in Citizenship, Identity and Belonging aims to provide learners with an introduction to citizenship, which has become one of the most political ideas of our time. This course explores the process of politics and active citizenship, and creative involvement in political life whether at a community, national or global level.  The course will also critically engage with the politics of citizenship, including the issues of membership, inclusion, and exclusion with reference to theoretical perspectives on nationalism, identity, and cultural conflict.

The course is broken into 4 sections:

• The Macro Level
• Citizenship and the Dimensions of Nationalism, Globalisation and Identity
• Applying Concepts to Case Studies
• From Knowledge to Action.

Credits: 10 ECTS

Course Practicalities

Course will be delivered on Thursday evenings from 6.30pm – 9.30pm online online for 12 weeks.  Scheduled day may be subject to change.

Next course will run from September 2025.

The course will cover the following key areas:

The Macro Level:

• Relationship between institutional power, policy, and active citizenship
• Defining Active Citizenship
• Defining Civil Society
• The State-community relationship
• Does civic engagement pose a challenge or opportunity for representative democracy, is there a need to reshape traditional power structures?
• The Sociological Imagination – Connecting the Individual and Society
• Structure, Agency, and Social Change

Citizenship and the Dimensions of Nationalism, Globalisation and Identity:

• The Social Construction of National Identity

• The Social Construction of the West:
• Membership: Globalisation and Cosmopolitanism:

 Applying Concepts to Case Studies:

• Using a sociological lens, critically analyse how this translates at the micro-level of the individual, with reference to a chosen case study at the local, national, or international level.

The Micro-Level – From Knowledge to Action:

• Identifying Initiatives
• Identifying Interest Groups: NGOs, Civil Society Organisations and Community Groups
• Identifying Initiatives: Types of Actions: Lobbying, Campaigns, Protests
• Management and Leadership: Team Building, Public Speaking, Collaboration, Networking
• Representation, Inclusivity, and Accessibility in Campaigns, Minority Representation, Civic Engagement, Youth Participation, Inclusive and Accessible Campaign Design
• Designing the Research: Using Quantitative and Qualitative Methods in the Citizenship Project
• Report Writing: Communicating the Research Findings

Assessment

Learners will be assessed via an Action Project Plan (30%), Action Project Report (30%) and a 2,000 word Reflective Essay (40%).

Applications are assessed on a case by case basis in accordance with Carlow College Admission Guidelines and Procedures for Part-Time Learners

Applicants must be residents of Ireland.

Fees

Course fees are €350 and payable at registration.

The next intake of this course commences in September 2025. Applications open in May.

To join a waitlist to be notified when the next intake opens, please email marketing@carlowcollege.ie

Please note payment in full is required at time of booking.