MA in Data Protection and Privacy Law

DCU is currently finalising plans for a phased and incremental return to campus, with a view to welcoming all students to the DCU campuses in September. Students should plan to attend face-to face classes in Semester 1 2021-2022. Please see https://www.dcu.ie/attendingdcu-students-studying-at-dcu for more information.

Introduction

The growth of the digital economy has resulted in personal data processing becoming a global industry of enormous value. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which came into effect in May 2018, aims to protect EU privacy rights and harmonise data protection law across the EU. The GDPR changes the way in which personal data must be collected, stored and processed. Given that personal data is used so widely, the GDPR impacts upon a vast number of sectors and data privacy has become an important concern for businesses, internet users, lawyers and public bodies.

The MA in Data Protection and Privacy Law is an interdisciplinary degree run jointly by the School of Law and Government and the School of Computing. The aim of the programme is to combine the University’s expertise in law and computing to provide students with advanced expertise in the technological and legal aspects of data protection and privacy law.

"The MA programme on Data Protection and  Privacy Law is very topical. EU regulations and an increasing awareness of privacy issues and data protection, with the digitalisation of operations and practices in the private and public sectors sets urgent needs for experts who can understand, apply, analyse and develop the law and different information systems and software programs. Those experts must understand technical details and the impact of the requirements by the law. For this need, the MA programme provides an excellent and unique chances to develop ones’ skills and competences, and later build a successful career in law, computer industry or consultancy."