Courses
Admissions & Support
Social Enterprise and Community Development – Higher Certificate
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Location: Athlone / Blended
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years: 2.5
Course Overview
This programme has been jointly developed with our long-standing partner EQUAL Ireland. Because of its high-quality nationwide contacts with Community Organisations, Social Enterprises, and Social Partners, EQUAL Ireland actively assists TUS in achieving its targets in attracting nontraditional learners, especially those from under resourced communities across Ireland. It importantly plays a key role in supporting adult learners in their learning journey and in navigating the TUS RPL application route. The development of this programme arose from consultation with internal and external stakeholders representing employers, community organisations, graduates, and representatives of the target group, together with a review of national and EU policy developments in the areas of business, social enterprise and community development. There is a recognition of the skills gaps in these fields and a growing demand for expertise particularly in social enterprise and community development. The continued need to provide greater opportunities for learners to pursue flexible, relevant programmes in a learning environment committed to a pedagogy of care and ensuring a socially just, inclusive and enriching learning experience for all is deemed important and critical to the sector. In addition, this programme supports the TUS strategy of widening access to Higher Education for mature learners, particularly those from under-resourced communities across Ireland.
Contact Details
Faculty Office
Email: Businessathlone@tus.ie
Entry Requirements
Any person aged 23 or over on the 1 of January on the year of entry may apply for the programme. Graduates of the ATU Level 6 (60 Credit) programme in Enterprise and Community Development may apply for advanced entry into Year 2 of the programme. Applicants with other qualifications or/and relevant work experience are encouraged to apply for entry and will be considered in accordance with TUS Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) process. Such applicants will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Those working in the community, social enterprise, not-for-profit and voluntary sector are encouraged to apply. All applications must adhere to TUS Admissions Practices.
Non-native English speakers are required to have an IELTS level of 6.0 or higher, or a CEFR English level of at least B2 or equivalent.
Course Modules
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Critical Skills for Learning
Credits: 5
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Community Development
Credits: 10
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Computer Applications
Credits: 5
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Entrepreneurial Skills & Business Modelling
Credits: 10
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Marketing
Credits: 5
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Social Impact Strategies and Skills 1
Credits: 10
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Management and Leadership in the Community
Credits: 5
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Marketing Management in a Digital Age
Credits: 5
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Social Impact Strategies and Skills 2
Credits: 5
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Fundamentals of Research
Credits: 10
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Human Resource Management
Credits: 10
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Applied Sociology
Credits: 10
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Social Enterprise and Innovation
Credits: 10
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Operations Management
Credits: 5
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Integrated Learning Project
Credits: 15
What can you do after this course?
Graduates take up employment opportunities across the community in not-for-profit, public and private sectors, in a variety of different roles. Career options include administration, supervision, human resources, office and project management. Graduates from the Higher Certificate programme typically apply to entry level positions in the community, voluntary, not-for-profit and business sectors.
Successful graduates from this programme may progress to the Level 7 add-on Bachelor of Arts in Business, Social Enterprise and Community Development and then to the Level 8 add-on Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Business, Social Enterprise, Leadership and Management. Graduates may also apply for entry to Level 7 programmes in the areas of business, social enterprise and community development.
More Information
4 hours
In collaboration with our partners at EQUAL Ireland, our programme places a strong emphasis on engaging with employers. We foster positive interactions across various sectors, including community development, volunteering, business, and not-for-profit organisations. There is a widely acknowledged recognition of the skills gaps prevalent in these fields, coupled with a burgeoning demand for expertise, particularly in social enterprise and sustainability initiatives. During the consultation with industry representatives in the development phase of the programme, the importance of evaluating impact through the lens of Social Return on Investment (SROI) was underscored, emphasising the necessity of quantifying outcomes. This focus has been integrated into the programme syllabus. They particularly highlighted the significance of stakeholder and community engagement, including robust community consultation processes.