News

Library and Information Management is ranked number 23 in the QS World University Rankings 2023.

UCD School of Information and Communication Studies has ranked in the world top 50 by subject, Library & Information Management, in the latest QS World University Rankings.
We are in the top 50 for a fourth year in a row and we are now the highest ranking subject in UCD and now the highest ranking subject in Ireland.
Up one place since last year.

To apply to our MLIS or any of our masters: www.ucd.ie/ics/study/mastersanddiplomaprogrammes

Graduate Virtual Webinar - 12pm Wednesday 29th March.

The webinar will include course presentations and Q&A’s with course leaders, current students / Alumni. Learn more about careers in your chosen field, and find out what it’s like to study at graduate level at UCD School of Information & Communication Studies. Registration is required.
This is an excellent opportunity to talk to staff and students/ Alumni about our range of postgraduate master's programmes in:
- MLIS Library & Information Studies
- MSc Communication and Media
- MSc Human Computer Interaction

Hikvision surveillance technology in the Oireachtas: Dr Elizabeth Farries discusses rights concerns on Newstalk Breakfast.

Asst Prof Elizabeth Farries spoke about Hikvision surveillance technology in the Oireachtas and rights concerns on Newstalk Radio Breakfast Show. The Digital Policy Programmes Director & Co-Director of UCD’s Centre for Digital Policy, spoke regarding the human rights, security, and historical concerns of the Hikvision surveillance cameras used by the Irish government.

Listen back to the full conversation by clicking on the link above.

Competition winner announced for a new Library and Information Studies (LIS) logo.

The Library and Information Studies (LIS) Team ran a competition, from September to December 2022, which encouraged students to design a new logo for our LIS programmes. The winning entry was created by Andrew Enright, one of our MLIS students, whose logo now represents our programmes. Congratulations Andrew!

To view the logo and our LIS programmes, click on the link above and scroll down to Library and Information Studies.

Professor Kalpana Shankar promoted to full professor.

We are delighted to congratulate Professor Kalpana Shankar on her promotion to full professor. So very well deserved.

Need help with some aspect of your media planning - why not consider taking on a student from the MSc in Communication & Media, for their summer media management project?

For their major project, our students are tasked with working with an organisation for 150 hours in a Communications related task or role. Our students have worked with organisations on:
* websites
* social media campaigns
* data analysis
* producing content for your group or
* any kind of Communication & Media role 


If you are a charity, NGO, community group or volunteer organisation that needs help with some aspect of your media planning, then please get in touch with us: paraic.kerrigan@ucd.ie or marguerite.barry@ucd.ie

Digital Policy Professional Certificate - December 12-16 - Online.

The course will run online as a one week intensive module 12th - 16th December 2022. Students will be provided with readings in advance with assessments due afterwards.
Suitable for anyone who works with digital technologies & particularly relevant for those developing it. Apply Now.

UCD Centre for Digital Policy Workshop: Radical Platform Governance, November 1st

The UCD Centre for Digital Policy organises a workshop on Radical Platform Governance. The workshop will take place on Tuesday, November 1st, from 8.30 am to 5.00 pm, at the Museum of Literature, Ireland. The event is open to any person who wishes to attend, academic or non-academic.

Research Seminar: Auditing Facebook Algorithms: The Elapsed Effects of Facebook News Feed to Engagement with Guardian Articles

Join speakers Naoise McNally and Dr Marco Bastos as they present their research study on Auditing Facebook Algorithms.
Date/Time: Thursday 10 November 11:00-11:50. Venue: D101, Newman Building UCD.

UCD Centre for Digital Policy Seminar by Professor Hamid R. Ekbia on 11 July in room D101, Newman Building, UCD.

The Topic: AI Summers and Human Winters: The Crisis of Modernist Projects.
The recent rise of AI seems to defy an old pattern commonly known as “AI winters,” where cycles of hyped-up boom were followed by periods of decline and disappointment. This time, it seems, AI is here to stay, drawing attention and investment from a whole gamut of contemporary institutions (academia, corporations, governments, international bodies, etc.). How can we explain this state of affairs? I propose to approach this question from the perspective of longue durée, thinking of AI as a project that expresses the underlying predicaments of modernity.

Dr Susan Leavy discussed Artificial Intelligence Ethics in studio on The Ray D'Arcy Show and the risks involved when AI algorithms are designed to imitate human communication.

Artificial Intelligence and consciousness was in the news this week due to the suspension of a Google engineer who had become convinced a chatbot that he was working on became sentient. He believed the algorithm was thinking like a child of about 8 years old. Given his role as an AI Ethicist within Google, this case highlights the risks involved when AI algorithms are designed to mirror or imitate human communication. Dr. Susan Leavy joined Ray D'Arcy Show this week to discuss these issues.

‘Our story with the state’: Birth certificates, data structures and gay and lesbian families.

This article will explore the significance of the birth certificate for LGBTQ Irish families, particularly in light of the varying inequalities that emerge from the data gaps they create for both parent and child. In exploring these facets, this article draws upon qualitative semi-structured interviews with LGBTQ parents, exploring how they see the data gaps that emerge on birth certificates and the effects these gaps have on them as an LGBTQ family.

Dr Lai Ma is co-editing a special issue, Impact of Open Research: Challenges and Opportunities in the Scientific Periphery for Online Information Review. See call for Abstracts.

They invite contributions to address the impact of the open research agenda on research and scholarship in the scientific periphery, including topics such as epistemic injustice, epistemic diversity, multilingualism, decolonisation, knowledge practices, publication practices, research infrastructure and scholarly communication.

Our Library and Information Management is ranked number 24 in the QS World University Rankings 2022. We are in the top 50 for a third year in a row and we are now the highest ranking subject in UCD.

UCD School of Information and Communication Studies has ranked in the world top 50 by subject, Library & Information Management, in the latest QS World University Rankings.
“Eight subjects improved their positions from last year, with Library & Information Management now the University's highest performing subject at 24th, an increase of 21 places.”

To apply to our MLIS or any of our masters: www.ucd.ie/ics/study/mastersanddiplomaprogrammes

UCD iSchool has one PhD scholarship and three funded PhD positions.

Our PhD scholarship is with Dr Páraic Kerrigan, a full four year scholarship, in gender, sexuality, media and tech. Deadline April 2nd.

Three PhD funded positions with Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) Centre for Research Training in Digitally-Enhanced Reality (d-real):
1. Title: Imagining and Designing the Metaverse. Supervisor: Prof Eugenia Siapera.
2. Title: Data Aware Design: A framework for understanding human-data interaction in HCI and AI. Supervisor: Dr Marguerite Barry.
3. Title: Ethical AI: Developing principles and methods for ethical and trustworthy recommender systems. Supervisor: Dr Susan Leavy.

Digital Policy Professional Certificate, Online, One Week Course: 13-17 December, 2021.

A Microsoft-UCD Digital Policy Programme with the goal of building digital policy training in Ireland & Europe. Learn about some of the core policy issues that are arising with the prevalence of digital & data technology in all dimensions of life.
This is Ireland's first digital-policy programme at UCD School of Information & Communication Studies in partnership with Microsoft Ireland and in Brussels. The Professional Certificate in Digital Policy is online, one week full-time course and starts December 13th to17th. Apply now.

Professor Eugenia Siapera, Head of UCD School of Information and Communication Studies, has been awarded funding under the Irish Research Council’s COALESCE programme to confront national and global societal challenges.

The grant is for her research project: ‘Platforming Harm: Alt-Tech platforms and COVID-19 health narratives’. Each project is led by a Principal Investigator in Social Sciences or Humanities in collaboration with a co-applicant in STEM.
A total of seven UCD researchers have been awarded funding out of twenty one awards granted. UCD received the highest number of awards in the scheme.

Leveraging the Virtual Learning Environment to Develop Metacognition Skills in Students. Research has demonstrated a clear link between metacognitive skills and academic achievement.

The work of a UCD Fellowship in Teaching and Academic Development, “Designing for learning in the virtual learning environment,” brought together Associate Professors Crystal Fulton, Emma O’Neill, James Matthews & Carmel Hensey to explore learning supported by the VLE from a pedagogical perspective. Their research was performed using Brightspace, the VLE designed by D2L. Dr Fulton explains the benefits when it came to incorporating metacognitive principles into her module on digital citizenry: “We wanted to deepen the students’ learning, so it wasn’t about retooling the entire module so much as it was about finessing it in a way that would heighten that learning experience. We were able to do this by incorporating some of the really clever tools in Brightspace, such as peer feedback, checklists, and gradual release of information.”

Congratulations to Associate Professor Benjamin Cowan, UCD School of Information and Communication Studies, for receiving the Dean's Award for Excellence in Doctoral Supervision.

The UCD Dean of Graduate Studies Award for Excellence in Doctoral Supervision is an award which recognises excellence in research supervisory practice by a UCD academic faculty member. A doctoral supervisor must be nominated by two of their current research students and the winner of the Award for Excellence in Doctoral Supervision will receive a prize to the value of €3,000 which must be used strictly for research associated expenses. This is a great achievement and recognition of his supervision.

Wikipedia and Academic Libraries: A Global Project, contains 19 chapters by 52 authors. Chapter 4: Learning Design to Embed Digital Citizenship Skills in the Undergraduate Classroom by Assoc Prof Crystal Fulton, Rebecca O’Neill and Marta Bustillo.

A collaboration among an instructor, librarian, and Wikipedia was initiated to help second-year undergraduate students at UCD to increase their digital citizenship skills through publishing in Wikipedia. The collaboration brought together diverse relevant expertise to design and deliver an effective learning experience. Integrating Wikipedia into the classroom experience gave students firsthand involvement with the research and scholarly communication process. Chapter 4 is divided among three perspectives, reflecting academic, library, and Wikipedia perspectives on the implementation of the collaborative authorship project.

Welcome Address and Teaching Arrangements 2021-22 for incoming and current students.

Our Head of School, Professor Eugenia Siapera's Welcome Address, with informatiom on teaching arrangements and modules for our undergraduate and postgraduate as well as timetables for our masters programmes.

Launch of website for the new UCD Centre for Digital Policy, established in collaboration with Microsoft, in the School of Information & Communication Studies.

Our newly created Centre engages forward thinking research about the regulation of digital technologies that underpin all areas of society. The Centre for Digital Policy website will showcase research deliverables and insights from the Centre including high quality academic publications, white papers, parliamentary submissions, media articles, workshops and meetings. 
To celebrate the launch, we are pleased to highlight the recent blog by Dr Marco T Bastos, Ad Astra Fellow at UCD: Data Access and Disinformation: How the Politics of Deletion Benefits Influence.

UCD Centre for Digital Policy and Microsoft Workshop: Digital Sovereignty and Digital Citizenship: Towards Participatory Policy. Monday 28th June 1pm Ireland (+1 Brussels).

While digital sovereignty is often described in market terms, reflecting priorities including competition and self determination, digital citizenship has a community focus, emphasising infrastructure, access, and education for all, particularly those of us who have been historically excluded. How each concept overlaps, opposes, or functions together is the workshop's focus.

Two of our academics Dr Marguerite Barry & Dr Benjamin Cowan have secured funding for a total of €476,570 from the Science Foundation Ireland funded ADAPT Centre, a leading centre in AI-driven Digital Content Technology Research.

This will fund Dr Barry's conducting cutting edge research on digital content ethics (€167,250) and Dr Cowan's research on speech interface interaction (€309,320). The extension also sees Dr Cowan taking on a leadership role within the Centre, leading the Interaction & Control Research Challenge and Non-Exchequer Non Commercial funding lead for the Digitally Enhanced Engagement strand.

New article by Dr Paraic Kerrigan on systemic institutional racism, in both media and monarchy.

Dr Paraic Kerrigan's new article on systemic institutional racism, in both media and monarchy: 'Brand Royal: Meghan Markle, feuding families, and disruptive duchessing in Brexit era Britain'. Focusing on mainstream and tabloid news reporting and ancillary texts, this article analyses the media presentation of Meghan Markle’s intersectional identities through a rhetoric of the feuding famous family.

UCD iSchool Alumni Chat | Librarians At Work series

Join host Dr Lai Ma as she chats with some of our alumni who work in Libraries, over the next few weeks. She will be finding out about the many types of libraries and librarians and the skill sets and expertise required for working in the profession.
Starting Friday 26th March, 12:00pm, these 20 minute chats, with time for Q&A at the end, are a great way to learn more about where a Masters in Library & Information Studies (MLIS) can take you.

Masters Students seeking to interview someone from an information organisation.

As part of their module, 'Outreach and Communication in Digital Information Management' which involves a portfolio assignment where students are asked to interview someone from an information organisation such as a library, archives, museum, heritage site/service to create a plan for their portfolio components based on the organisation.
If you would be willing to participate in a short phone/zoom interview with one of our students, please click link for further details. Thank you.

Book Launch 5th March, 7-8:30pm - LGBTQ VIsibility, Media and Sexuality in Ireland by Dr Páraic Kerrigan

Join Host & Author Dr Páraic Kerrigan in a virtual panel discussion of the overview of his book: LGBTQ VIsibility, Media and Sexuality in Ireland, that traces the turbulent history of queer visibility in the Irish media to explore the processes by which a regionally based media system shaped queer identities within a highly conservative and religious population.

Congratulations to Dr Claire McGuinness on her new book 'The Academic Teaching Librarian’s Handbook'.

The Academic Teaching Librarian's Handbook is an indispensable reference, suitable for early career professionals at the start of their teaching journey, as well as mid- or late-career librarians who may have moved into leadership and managerial roles and who wish to advance their teaching role to the next level. Available through Facet Publishing.

PhD funded application open for project on:- Data Aware Design: A Human-Data Interaction Framework to Promote User Agency

This PhD project will investigate how application designers understand and design for passive data use across different services. It will explore human-data interaction (HDI) and human-computer interaction (HCI) methods for transforming, visualizing and mapping data interactions where people can understand, track and potentially negotiate use of their data. The aim is to develop participatory design processes and a framework for ‘data aware’ design. Dr Marguerite Barry is the Primary Supervisor.

PhD funded position with Dr Amber Cushing for a project on: Customising AI for digital curation work that utilises controlled vocabularies.

This project will explore the ethical and social context of digital curation work to inform customisation of an AI model for use in the sector. The project will utilise Microsoft Azure Cognitive Services to customise and refine a computer vision (CV) model for use with the Library of Congress subject heading classification system. Deadline 18th March.

Assistant Professor in Digital Policy Elizabeth Ferris, spoke to the Dublin Inquirer on AI and predictive policing for an article about ‘An Garda Síochána is Considering Using Artificial Intelligence for Policing’.

Elizabeth Farries recently joined UCD as an Assistant Professor in Digital Policy. Elizabeth publishes, advises, and lectures at the intersection of tech, policy and human rights. She also consults on digital matters for the International Network of Civil Liberties Organisations and the Irish Council for Civil Liberties.

Dr Marguerite Barry’s chapter on Ethics and Computing is part of the very first Leaving Certificate textbook on Computer Science

Computer Science is a new subject for the Leaving Certificate, which was recently added to the Leaving Cert option list, beginning with 40 phase one schools and now the subject is available to all secondary schools. “Computer Science for Leaving Certificate” textbook is available from goldenkey.ie and a free sample chapter of the book is available in a preview (Python) chapter.

THREE colleagues win Teaching Excellence Awards.

We are very proud of our three colleagues chosen for Teaching Excellence Awards:
Prof Kalpana Shankar, Dr Páraic Kerrigan and Dr Bahareh Heravi.


What an achievement to have THREE Awardees from our school! It is also a great accomplishment for our school, being one of the smallest in the College of Social Science and Law, to have 3 out of 11 awards awarded to our colleagues!

Head of School Prof Eugenia Siapera, moderated a webinar: ‘The next chapter for ML: AI, Data and Ethics’.

Media Literacy Ireland Monday Webinar speakers, included colleagues from our school: Dr Marguerite Barry, Dr Susan Leavy and Dr Elizabeth Farries.
Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, such as machine learning (ML), are embedded in everyday communication services. But what is AI? What new MIL skills might be required by citizens in order to make fully informed choices in relation to digital products and services? This webinar explored these and other questions and considered what future role MLI might have in supporting the development of MIL skills around AI.

Brand New Masters - MSc Human Computer Interaction (HCI).

The MSc in Human Computer Interaction combines core elements and skills to prepare you to work within user experience and human computer interaction. The programme is unique in Ireland, harnessing the world-class expertise in the School of Information & Communication Studies to explore the discipline of human-computer interaction (HCI), from a social science perspective.
The programme focuses on giving students the knowledge and skills to use social scientific approaches and theory to inform
1) the design of user-centred technology interactions and to
2) understand the effect that design and technology interaction has on people's behaviours, perceptions and emotions encapsulating both at an individual and a societal level.

Minister Harris Joins UCD and Microsoft for Commencement of Ireland’s First Digital Policy Programme

The Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science Simon Harris, joined UCD and Microsoft in a special virtual event to officially mark the commencement of Ireland’s first Digital Policy Academic Programme.
Welcoming the programme, Minister Simon Harris highlighted the importance of digital policy education and research: “Technology has been given the opportunity in recent months to prove it’s transformational capabilities. In addition to impacting every part of society it’s transformed how Governments across the globe have had to conduct business. We understandably need our policies to adapt to this changing environment. I’m delighted to see UCD and Microsoft launch this programme at such a timely juncture for many policy makers working across the public and private sector. I look forward to seeing the impact the programme over the comings months.”

HEA free Higher Education Postgraduate places awarded to two of our programmes.

We are delighted to announce we have fully funded postgraduate places for two of our programmes, as part of the HEA additional postgraduate places initiative:
- MSc in Information Systems
- GradDip in Digital Information Management

All Programmes will commence in January 2021. Further details and to Apply are in the headline link.

PhD Position – 'Fair NLP: Mitigating bias and discrimination in datasets and machine learning models for natural language processing.'

Fully funded PhD working at the intersection of AI, Data, Society and Language to ensure fairness in natural language processing (NLP) with UCD School of Information & Communication Studies and The Insight Centre. Supervisor Dr Susan Leavy.
To apply email: CV, cover letter, & scanned copies of academic transcripts to susan.leavy@ucd.ie by 5pm on December 4th, 2020.

Note on ICS plans for the Autumn Trimester

For prospective postgraduate students, please click the above heading for the School's plan for teaching, learning and assessment during the Autumn Trimester.

Huge congratulations to our Dr Páraic Kerrigan on his first book.

Titled: LGBTQ Visibility, Media and Sexuality in Ireland.
The book details the emergence of an LGBTQ rights movement in Ireland and charts how this burgeoning movement utilized media systems for the liberatory potential of advancing LGBTQ rights.

We are pleased to announce the Microsoft Newman Fellowship in Digital Policy. This Newman Fellowship is established with the generous support of Microsoft Ireland and will be based in the School of Information and Communication Studies.

This project is seeking a postdoctoral fellow with experience and expertise in digital policy and/or related areas. The project revolves around the following question: How do we begin thinking about developing an approach to digital policy that refuses the bipolarity between stringent regulation that stifles innovation and a free-for-all that affords few if any protections to end users? To this end, the project will advance the development of the field of digital policy in Europe and in Ireland by developing a three-pronged approach: mapping the terrain, identifying omissions and priorities, and suggesting approaches. Closing date: 30th July.

The Professional Certificate in Digital Information Management (100% online cert) is now available as a Springboard course.

We are delighted to announce that our Professional Certificate in Digital Information Management, a 100% online certificate, is now available as a Springboard course. Springboard+ is co-funded by the Government of Ireland and the European Social Fund as part of the ESF programme for employability, inclusion and learning 2014-2020. The Springboard+ upskilling initiative in higher education offers free and subsidised courses at certificate, degree and masters level leading to qualifications in areas where there are employment opportunities in the economy. Details available on the Springboard page.

Professor Kalpana Shankar is part of an international study on the impact of COVID-19 on academics & students around the world.

Prof Kalpana Shankar is part of an international study that has received World University Network funding for: 'The impact of COVID-19 on the mental health & wellbeing of academics & students around the world'

Data protection experts publish framework for contact tracing apps.

“Without the public’s trust and buy-in, this app will not be effective.”- Professor Eugenia Siapera, Head of UCD Information & Communications Studies

Speak to us about our Masters at UCD Postgraduate Virtual Open Day, Wed 17th June at 1pm.
- Digital Policy - Library & Information Studies - Digital Information Management - Communication & Media - Information Systems.

Are you considering postgraduate study at UCD? Meet our lecturers and ask questions to find out all you need to know about your preferred masters. Talk to our current students and alumni to hear their stories and find out what it is like to study at UCD.

Microsoft-UCD Digital Policy Programmes Launched.

With support from Microsoft Ireland, UCD has established the Microsoft-UCD Digital Policy Programme at UCD with the goal of building a digital policy capability in Ireland and Europe. The programme aims to fulfil the demand for digital policy knowledge and skills in the policy ecosystem, including the public service in Ireland and the wider European Union, with features that will fill this need in the short term, while also building a sustainable pipeline of skills for long-term impact. It will build on existing expertise and curriculum already offered at UCD, while also recruiting fresh talent to develop and oversee its success.

Research Data Management module, will be offered to practitioners as an LAI-accredited CPD online course from June to August 2020

The School of Information & Communication Studies is pleased to announce that IS40760 “Research Data Management”, will be offered to practitioners as an LAI-accredited CPD course from June 2020 to August 2020 through the UCD Learning Management System, Brightspace. The module will be online and asynchronous will run. The cost of taking this module is €400 (€200 unwaged). Certificates will be issued by the LAI for course attendance/participation online.

This module will survey practices, services, technologies, & policy involved in managing research data: data management practices; national & international data policy, the role & nature of data in diverse disciplines & institutions (in particular open science & open data).
Contact: kalpana.shankar@ucd.ie

UCD Undergraduate Virtual Summer School

INFORMATION & COMMUNICATION STUDIES is on Friday June 5th 1pm-2:30.

Prospective students, parents, guidance counsellors and international students are invited to join us online for an information packed, interactive webinar. Chat to our lecturers, ask questions and find out what it takes to study Information & Communication Studies at UCD.
Please register: www.ucdsummerschool.ie

Dr Marguerite Barry explains why human-centred design is essential for effective and trustworthy digital public health strategies, such as contact tracing.

We are moving into a new phase of communication around Covid-19 which will focus on more long-term supports for living with the virus. These are likely to involve a mix of digital technologies used in tracking, tracing and sharing personal data to maintain public health.
While the first phase of communication has focused on building public support for health and public policy – a crucial factor in navigating our way through pandemic times – the next phase must build on this support by ensuring that these technologies place people at the centre of their design.

What is Information & Communication Studies and how can I study it as part of an undergraduate degree?

Information & Communication Studies will help you to make sense of a world that is suffused with digital technology and information in all formats – what are the societal, cultural, political and economic effects of the digital revolution? What does it mean for your life?

Information & Communication Studies is part of two undergraduate programmes
- DN700 BSc Social Sciences (4 years): two-subject combination, Joint Major or Major-Minor
- DN520BA Arts Joint Honours (3 years): ICS can be taken as a Joint Major with either English or Linguistics

Ad Astra PhD Scholarship in the School of Information and Communications Studies, University College Dublin.

The School of Information and Communications Studies is offering one fully funded PhD scholarship under the supervision of Dr Marco Bastos. The PhD student will work on quantifying offline phenomena through online data and/or new theories, methods, and objectives to the study of problematic content and misinformation online. We also welcome candidates interested in the social implications of technology, including the dynamics of social influence and contagion, computational communication science, ethics of computational research on human behaviour, and the forecasting of social phenomena with digital trace data.

COVID-19 FAQs and guidelines for students and staff.

Students, you will find answers to your frequently asked questions here relating to support, travel and accommodation.
Staff, answers to your frequently asked questions around research, teaching and learning.
There is also some general advice that may be helpful.

We are one of four subjects in UCD in the top 50 QS World Rankings.

We have retained our world top 50 status in Library and Information Management in the QS World Univeristy Rankings.
UCD ranked number 1 in Ireland in 15 subjects – up 2 from 13 in 2019

Dr Claire McGuinness and Assoc Prof Crystal Fulton are receiving funding under the Learning Enhancement Projects (LEP) scheme to support student development of video content for a new UG research skills module.

As part of the National Forum’s Strategic Alignment of Teaching and Learning Enhancement Funding in Higher Education 2019, UCD received funding of €170,000 to support small-scale Learning Enhancement Projects (LEPs). This was part of the €5m for teaching and learning capacity building announced in budget 2019.  The aim of the projects is to support local engagement with teaching and learning enhancement by individuals or small teams of faculty, staff and students.  A key feature of the scheme is the requirement for students to actively participate in the implementation projects.

Dr. Páraic Kerrigan comments on the social media infrastructures at the core of Ireland's gangland feuds in this recent VICE article.

"What we're seeing in many of us sharing these videos is that criminality has become part of an infotainment world that has been facilitated by social media," Dr Kerrigan adds. "I certainly think that celebrity culture and people wanting to acquire notoriety does play a role in this, and our attempt to understand what's happening here. Of course, the irony here is that the crime performers very often generate the evidence which leads to a conviction."

Dr Cowan appears at the Joint Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment

Dr Cowan was invited to the Joint Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment to discuss the use of data collected by digital assistants, including voice-operated assistants. He gave evidence from the user perspective, highlighting the need to consider data collection practices and the privacy implications of voice interfaces.

Dr Cowan to present his work at Microsoft Research Cambridge

Dr Cowan has been invited to present his work to leading researchers at Microsoft Research. His talk, entitled "Perspective Taking in Human-Machine Dialogue Human-likeness, Partner models and language production in voice user interface interaction" will discuss how people perceive what speech systems can do and whether the use of human-likeness is appropriate in speech interactions.

CUI 2019: UCD ICS's Benjamin Cowan & Leigh Clark organise the first ACM In-Cooperation International Conference in Conversational User Interfaces

Dr's Benjamin Cowan & Leigh Clark hosted the first CUI conference in Dublin. The conference aimed to develop a collaborative community around human-computer interaction issues in speech and language technology, with specific interest in theory based and applied scientific issues in the field of speech and text based conversational user interfaces. The event brought together leading speech and HCI researchers, who showcased their cutting edge research related to the field, debating the future of conversational interfaces. The event saw keynote presentations from Prof. Susan Brennan (Stony Brook) and Dr Cosmin Munteanu (University of Toronto, Mississauga) discussing the key challenges for conversations with machines.

Prof Eugenia Siapera will speak at the Irish Security Series #15: The rise of right wing extremism and what this may mean for Ireland.

The panel will speak about extremism and radicalisation from the right wing perspective, referencing specific examples that may have relevance in the Irish context, whilst also discussing whether there are trends and patterns that we should be aware of and monitor in the context of Ireland.
Takes place in the RIA on Friday 18th October, 9:30am - 12:30pm.

The Community of Practice for School Managers has now completed its first year of operation.

News from The Community of Practice for School Managers by our own School Manager, Claire Nolan, who writes about reflection on the year that has passed, and preparation for the year to come.

The 2019 Postgraduate Orientation will be on the 5th of September 10am -12pm, Theatre 1, Newman Building.

We would like to welcome our incoming postgraduate students and ask for you to attend the postgraduate orientation on the 5th of September, this is to help you settle into life at UCD. The orientation is divided into 5 sections; Programme Structure, Teaching Methods, Resources, Communication & Codes of Conduct. Our School Manager Claire Nolan will be running the orientation.
Graduate Checklist! - This page will provide you with important information regarding your registration at UCD.

Professor Eugenia Siapera, our Head of School, was interviewed for The Times UK, 'Call for help to combat online harassment'.

"It is clear that the self regulatory model is not working. I think we are placing too much power in the hands of private for-profit corporations who do not and cannot deal with important political problems."

Our MSc & MLIS students had their Thesis Poster Session on Thursday 8th Aug 2019.

There were some very interesting topics this year at our MSc & MLIS students Thesis Poster Session 2019.
Topics included human-machine dialogue, digital storytelling, data visualisation, data privacy and LGBTQ+ representation online and in libraries.

Fellows in Teaching and Academic Development Appointed 2018-20.

Two Fellowship research teams have been formed to focus on university-wide enhancement in teaching and learning through strategic policy and practice-based research over the next two years. Associate Professor Crystal Fulton, UCD School of Information and Communication Studies, has been appointed to an action research project and will focus on the transition to Brightspace from a pedagogical perspective, exploring key questions around how the VLE could be leveraged to support the achievement of priority actions in UCD Education Strategy.

An exciting journey begins for one of our Data Journalism Students.

Congratulations to Aoife Ryan-Christensen, who has been selected for a Google News Initiative Fellowship. Aoife is one of two fellows selected in Ireland and is one of 40 young journalists selected for the GNI fellowship Europe Program, out of a total of 800 applications. Aoife studies Data Journalism in UCD School of Information and Communication Studies and will be working with RTÉ for the duration of her fellowship.

We rank among the worlds best!

We are delighted & very proud to be listed amongst the global top 50 in the QS Library and Information Management Subject Ranking!
Congratulations to all our wonderful staff for this achievement.
There were 6 UCD subjects in the top 50 QS World University Rankings.

Congratulations to our Prof Kalpana Shankar and Christine Cullen on being shortlisted for Best Short Research Paper for iConference 2019

Along with Kristin Eschenfelder, & Laurie Bucholz their paper titled; Public-Private Partnerships in Data Services: Learning From Genealogy, has been selected as one of five finalists for the 2019 Best Short Research Paper at this years iConference.

UCD School of Information and Communication Studies students selected for traineeships in the EU Library.

We are delighted to announce that two of our students, Sophia Lynch and Eliska Komarkova have been selected for traineeships in the EU Library. Congratulations to them and good luck in their roles.

Digital Research Skills e-learning Project

Digital Research Skills e-learning project was launched on December the 6th.

Associate Professor Crystal Fulton has been selected as one of the UCD Teaching Fellows for 2019-2020

Crystal has been selected as one of the UCD Teaching Fellows for 2019-2020, and will be working with three other fellows on a research project which focuses on Designing for Learning in the VLE; the project will address the transition to Brightspace from a pedagogical perspective, exploring key questions around how the VLE could be leveraged to support the achievement of priority actions in UCD Education Strategy.

Dr. Bahareh Heravi has been appointed to Ireland's Open Data Governance Board.

The Open Data Governance Board was established in 2015. The Board provides srategic leadership and governance in line with international best practice in the area of Open Data. It is tasked with considering how to improve the capacity and capability of public bodies in implementing Open Data, and considering opportunities to maximise the value of public sector data and information for long-term economic, social and democratic benefits.

Associate Professor Crystal Fulton, UCD School of Information and Communication Studies, has been declared overall winner of the 2018 University College Dublin Research Impact Case Study Competition.

Assoc. Prof. Fulton won this competition for the first national study on the social impact of problem gambling in Ireland. Her study has helped to drive the conversation regarding an issue that negatively impacts many thousands of people in Ireland. The research is being used by the Department of Justice and Equality to inform new regulations around gambling, and also by service providers, such as addiction counsellors, in helping those affected by addiction.

Assoc Prof Crystal Fulton Wins Outstanding Information Science Award 2018

The Association for Information Science & Technology (ASIS&T) award is to recognize
the unique teaching contribution of an individual as a teacher of information science.

Slides from the Caring for digitised and born digital AV collections: Open source tools workshop.

On 21 June 2018 The School of Information and Communication Studies sponsored a workshop on caring for the use of open source tools in caring for digitised and born digital AV collections. The workshop was taught by Kieran O'Leary of the Irish Film Institute. Kieran has kindly made his files available for those who could not attend.

The iSchools Organisation establishes new governance structure.

The iSchools Organisation has unveiled a new governance structure that is expected to make the Organisation more responsive to the needs of its members.

UCD Data Journalism CPD course article, published by RTÉ Investigates.

Students and participants of UCD Data Journalism, a part-time CPD course, wrote an article that was published by RTÉ Investigates. The title of the article is: Accident Prone Nation: Personal Injury in Ireland.

The iConference 2019 is now accepting submissions.

The conference will take place March 31-April 3, 2019, in Washington, DC, under the theme “inform | include | inspire.” It will include peer-reviewed papers and posters, as well as workshops, interactive sessions, and other sessions geared toward faculty, researchers, graduate students and, starting this year, undergraduate students.

UCD School of Information and Communication Studies seek a Professor/Full Professor (Head of School) in Information and Communication Studies.

University College Dublin is seeking to fill a Professor/Full Professor role in Information and Communication Studies to offer leadership to the School in its goal to grow its research, teaching, and international engagement. This is a permanent full-time role in the UCD School of Information and Communication Studies.

UCD iSchool and School of Sociology Staff Receive €375K Science Foundation Ireland Grant.

Professor Kalpana Shankar has received a €375,000, four year grant from Science Foundation Ireland to study peer review process and outcomes at the agency.

MLIS student Mary Clare O'Brien, has been awarded the Thomas Dammann Junior Memorial Trust.

Congratulations to Mary Clare O'Brien, one of our MLIS students, who has been awarded the Thomas Dammann Junior Memorial Trust, to research and catalogue the Irish Sweepstakes graphic design and advertisement collection, for the National Irish Visual Arts Library.

A new one-year postgraduate cert in Digital Information Stewardship is being offered by Humboldt University and UCD School of Information and Communication Studies.

In coordination with Humboldt University (Berlin)'s School of Library and Information Science, UCD's School of Information and Communication Studies is offering a postgraduate certificate in Digital Information Stewardship. The certificate will be issued by Humboldt University but students will take modules online and in person in Dublin.

Waki Kamino, an undergraduate student, has been selected for a research fellowship.

Congratulations to Waki Kamino, one of our undergraduate students, who has been selected for an International Summer Research Fellowship at the School of Informatics, Computing & Engineering at Indiana University-Bloomington to work with Selma Sabanovic.

Graduate Kim Harte has been awarded The Alan Harrison Medal.

Graduate of The School of Information and Communication Studies, Kim Harte, has been awarded The Alan Harrison Medal. The medal is awarded to the student who achieves the highest grade in the BA degree examination who entered the degree as a mature student. Congratulations Kim from all at the school.

NUI Travelling Studentship in the Humanities and Social Sciences 2017

PhD student Diego Garaialde was awarded a NUI Travelling Studentship. He will visit the University of Birmingham and University College London in the UK and Cerego LLC in California, USA, as part of his Travelling Studentship.

Two UCD iSchool lecturers nominated for the Most Interesting Preliminary Results Paper Award at iConference 2018

The School of Information and Communication Studies at UCD is pleased to announce the nomination of two of our lecturers as the finalists for the “Most Interesting Preliminary Results Paper” award at the iConference 2018.
We would like to congratulate Dr. Amber Cushing and Dr. Bahareh Heravi on this achievement.

MSc Digital Curation shortlisted for GradIreland Higher Education Awards

We are delighted to announce that our MSc Digital Curation has been shortlisted for the Grad Ireland Higher Education Awards in the ‘Best New’ Course category!

The School's Digital Curation program was short listed as a finalist for a European Digital Skills Award 2017

Digital Curation program was short listed as a finalist for a European Digital Skills Award 2017 for ICT skills for professionals!

Dr Claire McGuinness was awarded a 'Teaching Excellence Award' for commitment to teaching excellence.

The award winners first had to be nominated by students or colleagues in order to be eligible to apply for an award. Within the College, 388 staff were nominated, in most cases by students.

New BSc Social Sciences degree launched by University College Dublin

In response to the needs of graduates to develop strong research skills, acquire real-world work experience and cultivate a global mindset, University College Dublin has launched a new four-year BSc Social Sciences degree

Professor Kalapana featured in research stories publication 'Towards the Good Society'.

UCD College of Social Sciences and Law launched a research stories publication 'Towards the Good Society'and a Researcher from each School in the College is profiled. Research stories by expert academics in the social sciences and related disciplines in University College Dublin.