Hello, I’m Declan Fahy and I am Chair of the MSc in Science and Health Communication. I am a graduate of the programme, having been among one of the first cohorts of students to complete the Master’s degree, which was established in the mid 1990s as the first of its kind in Ireland. 

What drew me to the degree as a student is what continues to inspire me today – the way science and health communication engages with consequential issues central to our lives and societies, such as viral pandemics, climate change, health inequalities, and the social impacts of new technologies. Over the past two decades of working in the area, I have tried to contribute to our understanding of these significant issues in two connected ways. 

Firstly, I have undertaken original academic research, publishing a book on famous turn-of-the-century scientists who communicated about science to wider society, as well as scholarly papers, book chapters, commentaries, and reviews about topics including science and health journalism and science and popular culture. (You can read more about my research on my staff page.) 

Secondly, I have brought established and new ideas from the research world into the classroom, teaching modules on the programme including Science, Health, and Society and Science and Health in the Media, as well as supervising students each year on their fascinating independent research dissertations. In my teaching, I aim to equip students with the core ideas and distinct practices from the field that can help them address some of the greatest science-related challenges of our time.

DCU Prospectus - Back to MSc in Science and Health Communication