Sir, – I have a suggestion in relation to the debate about the future of arts degrees. It should be made possible for students to take joint honours degrees that comprise one vocational subject and one humanities subject. There are some joint honours/dual degree options already in the CAO handbook, but the subject pairings tend to remain within either the vocational side or the humanities side rather than mixing one side with the other. Business with a language and law with a language are among the crossover exceptions of which I am aware. A system allowing for a wide selection of combined vocational and humanities degrees would reduce the need to make that difficult choice.

Source: The Irish Times March 11, 2026 16:31 UTC