Diploma in Bees & Beekeeping - Apiculture

The University of Galway, also known as National University of Ireland Galway (NUIG), is a public research university located in Galway, Ireland. It was founded in 1845 as Queen's College, Galway, and became a constituent college of the National University of Ireland in 1908. The university offers a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate programs across various disciplines, including arts, business, law, medicine, engineering, and science. NUIG is known for its strengths in research, particularly in the areas of biomedicine, environmental science, and human rights.

The main aim of this course is to provide quality third level education on bees and beekeeping. This course may be of interest primarily to beekeepers or those considering becoming a beekeeper. It will also be of interest to anyone who has an interest in entomology, pollinators and the decline of bees and pollinators more generally. In this course students will learn about Entomology (the world of insects) including the diversity of insects, their structure and general biology and their importance to humans. Of course, a lot of focus will be placed on the honeybee. We will also study the complex behaviour of social insects (bees, wasps and ants) and how this is relevant to beekeeping. Honeybee health is of huge importance globally right now and one module will cover this in detail while another will investigate the evolution of the insect group that contains bees. In addition to these topics, practical modules will take students from the basics of learning how to be a beekeeper through to some advanced elements of this area including bee breeding, and the production of honey and other bee products.