(i) 'Immersive Audio Production' – introduces participants to a range of recording and mixing workflows for creation of audio content in immersive audio formats. Teaching will take place in the Sonic Laboratory - a unique concert hall featuring a 56 channel loudspeaker array designed specifically for 'immersive' audio projection. Topics covered will include spatial soundscape recording, ambisonic encoding and decoding, surround sound music mixing, surround sound audio post production, and Dolby Atmos immersive audio presentation. Delivery methods will include lectures, workshops and Sonic Lab listening sessions to critique commercial music and film mixes and participant work-in-progress. Participants will gain practical experience of recording, editing and mixing soundscapes, speech and music for immersive audio presentation. The strand will conclude with Sonic Lab performances of the work created throughout the summer school. 

(ii) ’Writing’ – offers participants the opportunity to work on a piece of their own prose writing across the two weeks, introducing students to the skills required in terms of craft, technique, editing, and rewriting. Whether you are new to the processes of writing or plan to work on an already existing piece of your own composition, you will form part of a supportive and engaged writing workshop (maximum size 12-14 per workshop) led by experienced members of the Seamus Heaney Centre teaching team. Across the two weeks you will produce a number of 200-300-word pieces of writing that will be workshopped by your peers, so your openness to receiving feedback and your readiness to redrafting your work in light of it will be a key aspect of the learning process. You may also opt to work with students on either the Immersive Audio or the 3D Real Time Interactive Design strands to produce an individual recording or a hybrid collaborative version of your work as part of the closing performance event for the summer school. 

(iii) ‘3D Real Time Interactive Design’ – delivered by Queen’s MediaLab, this strand combines creative and engineering expertise in the development of digital, virtual and immersive  technologies. In the first week, our Technical Workshop will equip you with the techniques needed for generating 3D interactive settings, while in the second week, you will take the techniques learned from week one and work on your own project ideas. Collaborating with students on the other strands within Story is also an option for you as you work on a final output as part of your experiential learning here at Queen’s. 

Intended Learning Outcomes

• Identify a creative field and topic, and formulate the appropriate mode for its realisation

• Produce a piece of creative content, whether in digital, musical, visual or written form

• Work independently or as part of a production team in the completion of your creative project

• Demonstrate self-editing skills whether on an independent or on a team creative project

• Identify primary and secondary sources where appropriate

• Undertake independent library-based research where appropriate

The region’s history is placed in the wider contexts of Irish economic development, famine, gender relations, mass emigration and the rise of an overseas diaspora, alongside the specific forms of nationalism and unionism. The causes and consequences of the partition of Ireland will be followed through to the experience of the Troubles of 1969-97 and their aftermaths, and how the ‘difficult’ past of Ireland is remembered and represented today. A visit to the Ulster-American Folk Park will focus on how migration has and continues to mould Irish society and identity.  

In week two we will focus on the cultural expressions of Irish identity, looking first at the decline and revival of the Irish language. We will discuss the contribution to Irish culture and identities of some of the country’s leading writers from the 18th century to the present, and look particularly at how contemporary Northern Ireland has been represented on screen and stage, in poetry and in novels. The week includes a field trip to Nobel Prize winning poet Seamus Heaney’s ‘Homeplace’ at Bellaghy and a plantation ‘big house’. 

Intended Learning Outcome

• Develop a more rounded understanding of the culture and history of the north of Ireland, and its relations with the rest of the island and overseas
• Identify and analyse primary and secondary sources and texts where appropriate
• Undertake independent library-based research where appropriate

Intended Learning Outcomes

• Understand how identity can be both a cause and consequence of conflict
• Examine processes that can contribute to social division and polarization
• Explore identity-based interventions designed to enhance social cohesion
• Assess how experiences from a divided society like Northern Ireland can be applied to other contexts
• Gain an understanding of the legacies of conflict and political division

Following from the maxim that before you lead others you need to know how to lead yourself, specific sessions throughout the programme will allow you to discover your own leadership styles and approaches and explore how you might demonstrate leadership in a range of different scenarios. 

The course is very interactive in nature and will draw on a mixture of short lecture sessions, problem-solving and case-based workshops, guest speakers, and site visits.  Several senior leaders from across the public, private and third sectors in N. Ireland will offer their insights into their leadership journeys and the challenges and opportunities they encountered along the way. There will also be opportunities for you to discuss how you might have addressed some of the situations that these leaders encountered. 

Intended Learning Outcomes

• Understand the evolution of leadership theory and practice. 
• Examine the relationships between leaders and leadership, culture, and power and influence. 
• Explore the role of leaders and leadership in driving individual, group, organisational and societal change. 
• Develop a clear understanding of your own leadership styles and capabilities. 

You will have your own ensuite bedroom, and share a kitchen and communal living area with 9 or 10 other summer school participants. There is also a self-service laundry facility located within the accommodation (equipped with washing machines, dryers, irons and ironing boards).

If you select the accommodation option, your booking will include:

- 20 nights at Queen’s student accommodation
- Private room
- Private ensuite bathroom
- Utility bills
- WiFi Internet
- Bed linen and towels
- Communal kitchen and common room with a TV and kitchen equipment
- 24-hour safety staff
- Reception (8am - 8pm, 7 days a week)