Congratulations to the School of Education as they celebrate the 20th anniversary of their innovative and highly regarded DEd.
This year saw the 20th anniversary of the School of Education’s innovative and highly regarded Professional Doctorate in Education (the DEd). The DEd is distinctive for being one of the first professional doctorates in the Republic and is still one of the small number of similar programmes offered by Irish universities.
To mark this a celebratory event was held in College with Christmas Commons followed by a reception in the Senior Common Room. The occasion was attended by many graduates of the programme ranging from the first in 2009 to the most recent in 2025. Joining the graduates were the academics and administrative staff who also had a long relationship with the DEd as supervisors, lecturers and administrators. Informal words were offered by Prof Ann Devitt (Head of School), Dr Aidan Seery (long time lecturer & co-founder of the DEd) and Prof Andrew Loxley (also co-founder). Mentioned in memoriam were Prof Collette Murphy a much-missed member of the DEd team and Dr Declan McDaid one of the first DEd graduates. Many thanks were also given to Professor Mona O’Moore who was instrumental in initiating the DEd and making sure it came to fruition. The graduates were also invited to speak about the programme, of which many did remarking on how it impacted on and affected their professional lives as educators.