SETU First Honorary Doctorate

South East Technological University (SETU) bestowed its first ever honorary doctorate on Irish academic and politician, Dr Maurice Manning, at its Carlow campus conferring ceremonies.

A native of Bagenalstown, Co Carlow, Dr Manning maintains strong links to the town to this day. He began his career in academia in 1966 as a lecturer at University College Dublin (UCD).

Cherishing his teaching days, he spoke of the excellent research and writing opportunities that he had while at UCD. While there, he specialised in history of the early Irish state, a controversial topic at the time with memories of Civil War Ireland very much to the fore in society.

Dr Manning recalls that he entered politics by accident in 1981, when he was asked to stand for election at short notice and won a seat in Dáil Éireann. “It was a complete new life with a sharp learning curve,” remembers Dr Manning. It was at Dáil Éireann that he learned the hard differences between the theories of academic life and the realities of political life.

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