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My college course... (A 3rd-level student's insight)

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    #152
    Jaafa
    Registered Users Posts: 2,621 ✭✭✭Jaafa


    Doing Biomedical health and life sciences in UCD. (basically medicine except more research based) PM any questions. Also I know a little and I stress a little about the computer science course here through friends, but could find out more maybe.


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    #153
    QueenOfLeon
    Closed Accounts Posts: 5,109 ✭✭✭QueenOfLeon


    brownstone wrote: »
    I'm hoping to study medicine come September, but recently I've looked into pharmacy and its swaying me a little. I've always had a huge interest in becoming a doctor but I'm becoming doubtful. Can anyone who is currently studying either of these courses, give me an insight? It would be much appreciated! :D

    I've moved this into the courses thread as you are asking more about courses than careers.

    In the last page alone, wayhey, partyatmygaff and revz have posted about medicine and pharmacy, and if you do a search of the thread you'll find a few more.

    In the Careers and Discussions forum the thread about doctors is here.


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    #154
    Poxyshamrock
    Registered Users Posts: 4,827 ✭✭✭Poxyshamrock


    If anyone needs any info about Mary Immaculate College in Limerick.

    Just PM me or come to the Mary I forum here on boards.

    Myself and others will only be delighted to help.


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    #155
    ._.
    Registered Users Posts: 334 ✭✭._.


    Doing Science in UCD, message me if you have any questions, etc.


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    #156
    HannahCos
    Registered Users Posts: 8 ✭HannahCos


    Hey guys, I'm a first year MINT student at DCU. If you want to know anything about my course or ask any specific questions i have started a thread. The link is below for anybody interested in doing MINT or thinking of going to DCU. Feel free to ask any questions. :)

    http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=77994874#post77994874


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    #157
    Aragneer
    Closed Accounts Posts: 747 ✭✭✭Aragneer


    Hey guys :)

    I'm a Languages - German and English literature - student in UL.
    I have a few friends in the science and business departments of the university and so if you'd like any questions answered on anything, I'd be happy to help out :)

    I live on campus also so if you want information about that or the facilities around us, just PM me :)


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    #158
    NeuroCat
    Registered Users Posts: 162 ✭✭NeuroCat


    Studying General science (Biochemistry with Cell Biology) in TCD. 3rd year PM me if you have any questions :)


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    #159
    Squeeonline
    Registered Users Posts: 2,551 ✭✭✭Squeeonline


    Slow Show wrote: »
    Anyone do Microbiology...anywhere? Heck, is anyone even doing a Microbiology module in Science? Any information would be appreciated. :)

    Microbiology was about half my biotech degree in NUIG. Please make your questions specific. i.e. I cant comment on how good the course is in general since I have never studied the exact same thing in other colleges to compare.


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    #160
    RoundBox11
    Registered Users Posts: 854 ✭✭✭RoundBox11


    I'm doing Physiology through general science in UCD so if anybody wants info feel free to PM me :)


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    #161
    nermal15
    Registered Users Posts: 324 ✭✭nermal15


    I'm just finishing 2nd year in Mater Dei Institute studying English, Religion and Education. Anyone interested in this college PM me, I have friends in the other three departments too so know a bit about them.


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    #162
    Palytoxin
    Registered Users Posts: 866 ✭✭✭Palytoxin


    Pharmacy in UCC, any pms welcome and encouraged! :D


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    #163
    shygal
    Registered Users Posts: 140 ✭✭shygal


    studying sport and exercise management at UCD.Im here to help you guys n gals if any of you have any questions;). pm me if your serious about this course


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    #164
    partyatmygaff
    Registered Users Posts: 10,992 ✭✭✭✭partyatmygaff


    Why do people use PMs in a thread like this? Surely it makes more sense for people to post up their experiences on the thread itself so that people looking in the thread next year e.t.c. won't have to ask again.


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    #165
    UndertheBridge
    Registered Users Posts: 40 ✭UndertheBridge


    Hey everyone,

    I study Diagnostic Radiography!

    Any questions, shoot! :)


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    #166
    daniel40392
    Registered Users Posts: 4 ✭daniel40392


    MartieG wrote: »
    Hey All,

    Hoping to go to UCD for Arts, maybe pick English, Geog and Unsure for third..Either Philosphy, Sociology..

    Anyone advise me on the course, the schedules during the day, other subjects I should be looking at.

    Websites and prespectives aren't really give me great details etc.

    Any help/advice please?

    I've just finished my UCD arts degree, doing Geography and Music. The 'schedules' vary every year - but in general there are very little hours involved. It all depends on how you decide to split your two subjects - major minor, joint major, single major. I did a joint major which just means you do equal amounts of modules/classes in your two subjects. Overall on average I had between 12-18 hour weeks! (very handy indeed) but on the downside there is a lot of 'independent study' required - which can involve a large amount of assignment work. Personally I found that the geography classes were daunting at first being in a lecture theater with 300-500 other students, but after a semester I started to settle in and make friends etc.

    As for the actual coursework there is a lot of options for you to choose what to study - there are a variety of physical geography modules including modules in rivers (fluvial morphology) and glaciers (glaciation). There's also a lot of regional style geography modules that focus in on regions such as the US, Latin America and Europe - these tend to focus on the economic/political side of things, but there are also individual political and economic modules. There is no lack of options there! The assessment has become a lot more 'group' orientated since I started, which has its ups and downs - but its a nice balance to have somebody else to blame when things dont go well!

    As for your choice in other subjects - only you can really decide. From some of my friends I've heard philosophy can be hard going but if you find it enjoyable its really rewarding (long-term career wise I'm not sure where it could take you). My friends who did English were constantly bogged down with reading - poetry and novels setting them back a small fortune: all that said though they seemed to enjoy their modules and again their was a great variety of choice available to them! They could focus on poetry, literature and writing styles. A friend of mine decided in 2nd year to change his degree in order to pick up sociology, and he loved it! Apparently the two subjects compliment each other very well in terms of course content. The great thing about Arts in UCD is that there is a LOT of flexibility - and in first year you can do three or more subjects to test the water! So you could technically do english and geography as your main subjects and then do a couple modules of philosophy and sociology to help you decide. And if after 2nd year you want to try swap around - they can try facilitate you, but of course these things vary on your circumstances!

    And the Arts program in ucd features an 'electives' section each year where you can choose 2 modules/classes outside of your primary degree subjects, so you always have the option to explore subjects your interested in!

    Hope that helps, any other questions feel free to ask!


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    #167
    EternalGeek
    Registered Users Posts: 236 ✭✭EternalGeek


    I completed a degree in general nursing in Trinity College. I am happy to answer any questions.
    The course divides its academic year between lectures, which in first year for my group was 9-5 mon-thurs and then Friday was spent in the learning centre in St. James' learning practical skills (which included an entertaining class on bed making....no really!) . The other half of the year was spent on clinical placement which was two blocks of six weeks (although I think the time allocated to placements has changed now). You will do a thirty five hour week which will be made up of three long days (I was attached to AMNCH, nurses in SJH had different hours). You have to submit a nursing portfolio for each placement and you have assessments you have to pass in order to pass the placements. You also have to have 100% attendance on placements or you will be haunting hospital halls in your holidays.
    During your second and third years you will do specialist placements in areas such as psychiatic nursing, intellectual disability nursing, paediatrics, theatre and accident and emergency. As the years go on you spend more time out on placement, culminating in your final years rostered placement in which you spend a nine month block out in the hospital on your 'internship'. You will be moved around a mixture of medical and surgical wards and will generally be expected to be at an independent level and as a result of same you are given your own patient load.
    In your third year you begin a research module and carry out a literature review. You build on this in fourth year when you complete a research proposal supposedly based on a gap you identified in the literature you studied during your review.
    For the first three years you also study Sociology and Psychology and in second or third year you can choose from a list of electives to study. I chose journalism and loved it. There is an option for students with excellent academic records to go to Finland for erasmus.
    This is all the info I can think of at the min, but please PM me or comment below if anyone has any questions and I'll answer as best I can!


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    #168
    paul4green
    Registered Users Posts: 92 ✭✭paul4green


    Just finished 1st year Biomedical Science DIT.

    If you want more info on the course or have any questions about it let me know.

    There are major differences between Biomedical Health and Life Science in UCD and Biomedical Science DIT.

    You cannot work in a hospital laboratory as a Medical Scientist with a degree from UCD. Only DIT/CIT and GMIT have accredited Biomedical Science Degrees.

    So immediately job prospects are much better. I've a few friends on facebook doing Biomedical Health and Life Science in UCD who put Biomedical Science as their course, which is inaccurate as they're completely different courses.


    Yes, it's an IoT but you will not get a better Biomedical Science degree on this Island. For example, in 4th year you can do your research project in the Karolinska Institute, a world renowned school of medical research.

    Great course, if you've any further questions let me know peeps :D


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    #169
    polkabunny
    Registered Users Posts: 304 ✭✭polkabunny


    kilianmanning wrote: »
    Anybody doing computing? This is all I have currently on my cao, have a big interest in computers and all...:P

    Just finished first year of Computer Applications in DCU. You have a great choice of places and courses in computing, here's what my course was like :)

    Points
    340 last year

    Class Size
    100-150

    Drop Out Rate
    20-50%

    Modules in First Year
    IT Mathematics - Year Long - 10 credits
    Digital Innovation, Creativity and Enterprise (basically an inflated Business module :p) - Year Long - 5 credits
    Computer Programming 1 (Java) - Semester 1 - 10 credits
    Computer Programming 2 (Java) - Semester 2 - 10 credits
    Web Design - Semester 1 - 5 credits
    Computer Systems Hardware - Semester 1 - 5 credits
    Introduction to Operating Systems - Semester 2 - 5 credits
    Problem Solving, Creativity and Critical Thinking - Semester 2 - 5 credits
    Networks and Internet - Semester 2 - 5 credits

    Hours
    18-26 per week

    Summary
    Personally, I enjoy the course. It can be difficult to grasp some aspects (which may explain the fairly high drop out rate).
    IT Maths brings you to just above Higher Level, but your lecturer in semester two isn't great. You have four class tests during the entire year for continuous assessment, and an exam at the end.
    DICE and Problem Solving are two new modules that were brought in this year. Both have great ideologies behind them, but were put in place poorly. DICE ended up with a fairly heavy workload at the end of semester two, and Problem Solving fired a report and presentation at you at the same time. DICE was 100% CA, and included participation in a management game, a project management exam, a report on the game, attendance at four seminars in the Helix, a presentation/YouTube video on an app you have designed, and a poster on this app. Problem Solving required lab attendance, a report, and an exam also.
    Programming 1 and 2 are fine. Labs are extremely important, you get most of your marks for continuous assessment in CP1, which includes lab work. Lectures are important, but as long as you are familiar with the work and notes, you will be fine. Continuous assessment is lab attendance (work done in labs), assignments based off the lectures and lab work, and an exam for both.
    Web Design got new lecturers this year, and they didn't seem very sure of what they were doing. We got directed to w3schools in the labs, and were directed to complete certain things. You have one group assignment and one other assignment as part of your continuous assessment and an exam.
    Computer Systems Hardware is one that people can struggle with, or just grasp immediately. (I have to repeat this exam in August :p). Introduction to Operating Systems is taught by the same lecturer, and both can be interesting, and probably quite important. Both have a small part of continuous assessment, CSH in class tests and OS in class tests and a report.
    Networks can be a tough module. There's a lot of information in the module, and it can be difficult to grasp. A lot of the class struggled with this, though I'm not sure if that was out of laziness or just finding it difficult. We did four or five assignments, mostly focused around using Wireshark in the computer labs in our free time.
    We'll see when we get our exam results. :rolleyes:


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    #170
    Muir
    Registered Users Posts: 948 ✭✭✭Muir


    Supermensch wrote: »
    I'm interested in both Engineering (specifically, Electronic Engineering) and Philosophy. As you can imagine there is not much cross over between these two fields. Does anyone have any advice or course suggestions, it would be a great help. Thanks!

    I'm studying Electronic Engineering in UCD. I was able to take some Philosophy modules as electives (although I think you can only do this in UCD as other colleges don't have electives). You can take 2 electives a year in UCD. So that could be an option for you maybe.


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    #171
    Fbjm
    Registered Users Posts: 1,086 ✭✭✭Fbjm


    AdamCee wrote: »
    Does anyone have any info on Music and French in either NUIM or TCD ?

    Thanks. :3

    Going into second year in NUIM in music now, the coursework is all fairly easy if you have a strong foundation in music theory already. It might not be a bad idea to go over the basics yourself over summer with a piano teacher or whatever as well, just to refresh. You're going to want to make sure that you're up to scratch in your chosen instrument before going in as well, once you qualify for the course there's the trap of stopping the practice because you're in and that's that, but in nearly the first week the auditions for ensembles etc are held and the people who have been at it over the summer are the ones who get into those. If you fail at that, you have to join the choral society - two hours of rehearsals every monday and thursday night, 12 hour days on mondays - not fun.

    As for French, I didn't take this as I am near fluent and would like to learn something in my second subject (since in BMus you take an extra subject for first year but drop it after). However, I've heard from people who did take French that it's a lot more real world based than the leaving cert, where they just hammered grammar into you all day without actually teaching you how to use it in a real world setting. There's an erasmus option which a lot of French students take between second and third year, as a year immersed in the language really helps them pick it up.

    So that's that, hope you found that helpful. If you've any extra questions feel free to PM me.


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    #172
    pfannkuchen
    Registered Users Posts: 231 ✭✭pfannkuchen


    ivanh wrote: »
    Dya ever have to do presentations? :/

    I'm starting third year Pharmacy in RCSI in October and we've had to do a fair few presentations so far. Terrifying at first but I really think it'll stand to us in the future. If you're absolutely horrified at the idea of it, I don't think you'd be forced though.

    I have a friend going into third year in TCD, and she definitely didn't have as many as we did. Think she mentioned one group thing in first year and I don't recall her saying anything about second year.


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    #173
    [Deleted User]
    Posts: 8,647 ✭ [Deleted User]


    ivanh wrote: »
    Dya ever have to do presentations? :/

    All the time in pharmacy.


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    #174
    Shikei
    Registered Users Posts: 21 ✭Shikei


    I've just finished my degree in primary teaching, and Froebel tends to be the college nobody's heard of so thought I'd give a bit of info :)

    Hours
    Any primary teaching course is pretty much 9-5, if you choose to go for teaching be prepared to work hard. There are a lot of assignments spread out through the year, and you're expected to attend every single lecture unless youhave a good reason (such as illness, with a doctor's note to back it up) to be missing. Froebel is now a four year full time degree, which means you'll be qualified to teach abroad in Australia/Dubai/wherever :)

    Location
    Currently Froebel is in Blackrock, south Dublin. It's a fairly expensive and upmarket area and can be tough to get student accomodation, but there's really good transport into the city (buses, trains, taxis). Starting from September 2013, though, the college is moving to NUI Maynooth's campus, which will be fantastic as Maynooth is a very student-orientated town; they're also hoping Froebel students will be able to take modules in other subjects offered in Maynooth, that aren't related to primary teaching.

    Class size
    Froebel is a small college, there were about 70 people in my year to start with that went down to about 65, and maybe 12 of those were boys. Lectures are either the whole year or broken down into smaller groups, usually of about 24. Because of this, all your lecturers will know you, you get to know your class really well, and generally theres a good sense of community.

    Content
    Course content is generally the same every year, in particular the core subjects. There are lectures for each of the subjects in the primary school curriculum, both to increase your own knowledge and to show you ways to teach the subject to children. Along with this you will study child psychology, educational philosophy, special education needs etc. In 2nd and 3rd year there are also optional modules to choose from which are great fun.


    Because Maynooth is a non-denominational university and Froebel is now partnered with it, they're really trying to welcome and celebrate diversity, so I think this college is a good choice if you're not religious/follow a religion other than Catholicism, or if you're LGBT. There's less focus on religion than some of the other teacher training colleges, but you'll still get your Religious Cert and be fully qualified to work in Catholic schools. Among the electives you can choose are a course about Educate Together schools, and one about diversity in the classroom (teaching and welcoming children from all different religions, countries and backgrounds).

    If I'm honest I picked Froebel mainly because it was closest to me, but having finished my degree and talked to people who went to other training colleges, I can definitely say I would choose Froebel again.


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    #175
    partyatmygaff
    Registered Users Posts: 10,992 ✭✭✭✭partyatmygaff


    ivanh wrote: »
    Dya ever have to do presentations? :/
    In JF year, there's just the one problem based learning presentation alongside a few occasions where lecturers give someone a mic and ask them to stand at the top of the class and present an assignment e.t.c.

    Some people find it daunting and never do it (You're not forced until fourth year). As for myself, I actually enjoy presenting. It's not as bad as people make it out to be.


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    #176
    XxMCRxBabyxX
    Moderators, Education Moderators Posts: 7,439 Mod ✭✭✭✭XxMCRxBabyxX


    Course: Law and Arts (History) in Maynooth

    Points: 460
    However I got into Law by doing Arts and taking Law as one of my subjects. Got a 2.1 (60) in Law and was able to transfer into the Law degree. Arts is 370.

    Website: http://law.nuim.ie/
    http://gomaynooth.ie/lecturers.html
    http://gomaynooth.ie/students.html
    www.nuim.ie/courses
    http://history.nuim.ie/

    Number of students: I think there is about 90 in my class although that has probably gone up

    Hours: About 14 hours of lectures/tutorials and plenty more with reading and assignments!

    Course Content:
    First Year: In first year you will study Law with two other Arts subjects (whether you're in Arts or the Law degree). In Law you will study Contract Law, Constitutional Law and Administrative Law. The first two are over both semesters while Admin is only in Sem 2. You may have a dreaded triple class on Fridays...
    I believe that the history course has changed but I think that they still have Practicing History 1 and 2 which are a bit like the basics of History that you studied in you JC
    I also did Sociology that year which I hated! And I can't actually remember what I studied that year other than Politics of the European Union.

    Second Year: I got into Law and Arts in 2nd year and so I dropped Sociology. In Law I studied EU Law, Criminal Law, Tort Law and Evidence Law. In History I studied Early Modern Europe in Sem 1 and Early Modern Ireland and England and Sem 2. In 2nd year History you also get to choose 30 credits of elective modules so I chose History of Medicine and an Art History module.

    Third Year: In third year you have three choices: Go on to final year, study abroad for a year or go on work placement for a year. I went for the work placement option in one of Ireland's top five law firms. It was an absolutely amazing experience and I even ended up having my contract extended by 2 months. I was also offered a training contract at the end of it which was brilliant to have.

    Fourth Year: I have yet to start fourth year but I will be studying Land Law, Company Law, Equity and Jurisprudence in Law and Ireland in the Modern World and Europe in the 19th and 20th Century as the compulsory modules in History. I haven't picked my electives yet.

    Assessment: About half of the modules will have some form of continuous assessment. All of the History compulsory modules both include a couple of assignments which will make up about two thirds of the final marks for that module with an exam making up the rest of the marks. The electives are nearly all marked entirely by continuous assessment. Some only have one big essay while others will include small tests, book reviews or presentations as well as the essay. There is no definite system for the CA in Law but some lecturers will give it. Often they will be case summaries or an assessment of a certain aspect of the Law.

    Summary: I LOVE the course and studying in Maynooth. For me it's a great college with great people and a brilliant atmosphere. I have really enjoyed everything I have studied and I have gotten some great opportunities through both the Law and History departments. The classes are small enough to get to know your lecturers so use it to your advantage!

    The Course structure nay have changed so don't take all this as definite!

    Any questions about Law or History (or both!), send a PM :)


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    #177
    p1akuw47h5r3it
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,001 ✭✭✭p1akuw47h5r3it


    To people who are writing anyone got info on such and such a course remember to search the thread!

    I wrote this as reply to someone in the DCU forum and I am just copying and pasting it here:

    I'm in first year, which is common so someone else will have to tell you about later years.

    Physics: Most people tend to hate it, though it's not THAT difficult, just boring (I like it however). I know this is a cliche but you just have to work at it really. It's started from a beginners level and built from there. Van Kampen is the lecturer we had fr the first twelve weeks. He goes fairly fast but is a good lecturer. Eilis McLoughlin is second and a decent enough lecturer, though I found these six weeks the most boring. The girl we have now is doing Electronics and she is a great lecturer. She writes out the maths for us so it's easy to follow.
    We had a bloke called Bert Ellingboe next. He did Optics and Electromagnetic Waves. This was slightly harder and he was a different kindof lecturer to Eilis. I thought he was fine and most were happy with him, though a lot complained that he gave us a lot of work (it's college though!!)

    For the first part of the module we had 3 CA's that went towards our CA worth 20%. This system was very unpopular so for this term we use Mastering Physics, meaning earning the full 20% is easier although you do tend to learn more using this. I dunno what systems will be used next year.

    Maths: As I do CES, I get to choose what science to do next year. I'm leaning towards Physics so work a bit at Mathsn (I chose Physics btw). It's fairly easy-ish (I also did Pass). Again a bit of work is required but it isn't too difficult. The lecturer we had for Semester 1 is terrible, but what she covers isn't very hard. It's pretty much just all differentiation. I personally studied for the CA's (you do 2 one in week 6 and one in week 12) using YouTube videos and Google. Her notes aren't great and she explains it using more maths which complicates things.

    The semester 2 lecturer (cant remember her name) is simply brilliant. She is probably the best lecturer we have. She breaks everything down and simplifies it so everything is easy to follow. It is all explained well. Imo she makes Maths fun, she is also bit nuts!! Approach Maths with an open mind and it should be fine, it's not too difficult.

    With Maths you do 4 CA's over the 2 semester as the module is a year long one (as opposed to Physics Chem and Bio which are split into 2 modules each).

    Chemistry: Our first lecturer was Conor Long. He's a great lecturer though I found what he taught to be hard to understand, probably because I focused mainly on Physics during the first six weeks. He did things like Molecular Orbitals and stuff. I didn't do Chemistry in school so I was a bit lost.
    Odilla Finlayson is the lecturer for the second six weeks of semester 1. She covers Physical Chemistry which is pretty much all based around the gas laws. This has been my favorite part of Chemistry so far, and is the reason I passed the exams in January! it's not too difficult, at least compared to Conor Long's part.

    The Chem we are doing now deals with Titrations, acid dissociation constants etc. it's not too hard. The labs for this part fit in with the lectures fairly well meaning it's a bit easier. The lecturer, well some ppl don't seem to like him. I think he's grand though and a good lecturer.
    The bloke we had for the second 6 weeks was also grand, the stuff he comes out with is gas aswell, even though he doesn't mean to be. He covers Organic Chem, again which I find hard (I prefer working with numbers)

    Talking to some people who did Chemistry, they say that having done it for the Leaving Cert hasn't helped all that much as it's a bit different. I don't know though as I didn't do it so maybe some one else can clear that up.

    The CA with Chemistry is done through Mastering Chemistry. I have found the MC's this term have been a lot harder than last terms ones so maybe this part is a bit harder than last terms.

    Biology:The lecturer in the first term was DREADFUL. She does labs aswell and is pretty sound, just a terrible lecturer. It's easy enough though, especially if you did Bio for the LC. I did my LC a few years ago but I still remebered the odd thing. The first term lectures are very laborious and are very easy to skip if I'm honest (and what you actually learn by going to them is very debatable!). I did a year and a bit in a different Uni before switching courses and going DCU. The Bio test in January was genuinely the first test I have ever crammed the night before for. I came out with 48% and only answered 7 of 10 questions so guess that shows how easy it is.

    Semester 2 so far has really bored me, I used to like Bio but since coming here have hated Bio (which is down to me not the Bio faculty or anything, in fact a lot f people I've talked to have changed their minds in regards to what they liked in school and now. This is why I think CES is a good choice for keeping your options open). We are currently doing Genetics. There is LOADS to know, a lot of information. The lecturer is quite good but lectures are very tiring as there is a lot to take in. I originally wanted to do Biotech but got CES in the CAO offers, and am delighted as I really hate Bio now and much prefer Chem and Physics.
    Studying for Bio exam at the moment. it's on Wednesday and I literally have to study EVERYTHING as I did nothing in this during the year as I hate. I concentrated on the other too. I'm hoping to just wing it! (And I did I passed, you can basically cram for this exam but obviously you should try not too)

    The CA in term one was done through Mastering Biology, and Semester 2 the exam is worth 100% which is a bit strange tbh.

    Chem Lab: These are grand enough. It isn't too hard (though some are harder then others) and are my favorite Lab. They are run by Pat O'Malley who is sound enough. They are strict enough about being on time though and take by far the most effort. You have to a pre-lab which can sometimes take up to 40 mins to do and a post lab where you are looking at an hour probably, on average anyway.

    You have to one lab report in the first semester and two in the second. We have done 2 of these so far and both times have taken me about 3hr 30mins, so they take ages! If you do Chemistry in year 2, you have to do these after every lab afaik, though I don't know how long they usually take it wouldn't surprise me if they took a similar amount of time.

    Bio Labs: Really easy, really boring imo. They are run once every two weeks which is a god send as couldn't see myself doing these every week. Not a lot of work goes into them.

    Physics Lab: These can be boring sometimes, and usually are. They are good laugh though and are very laid back. Fun enough I guess. Again not a lot of work involved before or after.

    Interdisciplinary Science: You only do this semester 2. Biggest ****ing waste of time, and it takes up a good bit of it too. Could really do without it tbh. You have to do reports and stuff, for example on home Brewing (maybe sounds interesting, trust me it's not). You get put into teams of four and have to do the projects together. it's really ****.

    Too sum up, Pass maths shouldn't be a huge problem and you should be fine with Physics with a bit of effort.

    Just to add that lecturers are always subject to change though this info should still be fairly helpful hopefully!

    Anyway I think that covers most of first year any questions just ask.


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    #178
    p1akuw47h5r3it
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,001 ✭✭✭p1akuw47h5r3it


    I did this course for a year and a half before leaving for various reasons and going to DCU as you see above.

    First Year: First year is fine enough. None of the modules are too hard, though I did have trouble with Maths and Stats I feel this was more down to a lack of effort. The Stats and Maths lecturers where very good at the time, though I don't know if they are still there (this was back in 2009/2010).

    I remember that I found all the lecturers to be quite nice, especially in the Russian department. Imo they are the nicest department in TCD. Very friendly and makes things easy for you for a bit so you can settle down. AFter I finish my current degree I am defo going back to finish learning Russian!

    Edit: Now that I think of it there was one horrible module, Russian area studies I think it was called. It was basically a history of how Russia came to be or something. It may sound interesting but it wasn't at all. The Lecs focused firstly on Poland and then Bulgaria. I remeber the exam being piss easy though.

    In the second year it was done through Russian, so I never had a breeze what was going on haha.

    The toughest part about first year was the hours, not the amount but the times you would be in. We could start at 12 one day and not be finished till 7 (in fact I remeber starting at 9 and finishing at 7 every second Tuesday), and in at 10 till 4 the next. I dont why but I just found this exhausting, the lack of routine. However this may have just been a maturity thing.


    Overall I enjoyed first year although I always just felt too young. The people in TCD where very nice however they all just seemed to me to be a lot more mature and older with many people being 19/20, to me at the time I just found them way older!

    Second Year: Again I mostly enjoyed second year. I had the same problem with the hours though with them being sort of all over the place. This was one reason I left, along with the fact that I knew the following year I had to go to Russia and I found this daunting (basically I felt to young and that I wasn't ready to go). I also realised that I wanted to do Science which made me want to leave aswell.

    The modules I did were Irish Economy (I found this very interesting), a management 2 module and Finance/Accounting.The IE guy was ok. Very nice but he was a bit old and at times it could be hard to stay awake. The material was very interesting, basically giving you the history of the Irish Economy from Independence right up to the present day.
    I found the accounting to be hard, and figured if I didn't like this or finance there was not much point on carrying on (I felt these are where the jobs were, and I didn't want to graduate with a generic managemt or marketing degree)

    Again I loved all aspcts of the Russian. We basically did more advanced Oral, aural and writing modules along with a Russian business module that was aimed spcifically at the BSR students. For the other modules you would be in with Arts students who chose Russian.

    Year 3: I didn't make it to third year. However the friends I still talk to from the course said it was the highlight of the year. Basically you go to St. Petersburg and go to college from AUgust to May or something, and them work during the summer doing an internship.

    I dunno much about 4th year, though you do have to do a dissertation in Russian based on a Russian company and your experiencesduring third year. With business you get to specilise is a managemtn finance etc. Just check the website.

    In terms of Lecture sizes, well all the Business ones would be around 200/300 ppl as you would be in with BESS and other BSL students. The Russian ones were usually group sizes of around 10.

    Just to add that with the Russian you are divided up into Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced based on your capabilities.

    To finish, the course was actually very good. I think at the time I was simply too young to do it, added to the fact that I was constantly exhausted (probs my fault in fairness) and realised I wanted to do Science caused me to leave. ANyway hope this helps.


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    #179
    off.the.walls
    Registered Users Posts: 1,298 ✭✭✭off.the.walls


    Thought i'd give a update on this.

    Going into the third year of my course now
    The past two years have shown me alot of new skills that i've used to do the odd nixer and pay my way through college.

    This year i'll be studying
    Advanced Audio
    Advanced video production
    Interactive media {web design}
    Screen studies
    Media writing

    then in semester two its off to helsinki i hope to do a erasmus.

    All I will say to anyone looking to do creative digital media in IT tallaght is do it, its a amazing course with amazing people and i've made some great friends and learned alot in my 2 years there so far.


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    #180
    Reventon93
    Registered Users Posts: 5,315 ✭✭✭Reventon93


    If anyone's considering doing law in NUIG, feel free to ask me any questions :D


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    #181
    Bears and Vodka
    Registered Users Posts: 2,249 ✭✭✭Bears and Vodka


    Doing BESS in TCD and although a guy above has a pretty detailed summary of the course, I can answer any questions you might have.

    I'm in First Year and what hits you the first week in BESS is numbers. There are about 300 in BESS but in lectures there tend to be about 400 because of other courses we share some lectures with. But I think thats a good thing, despite the numbers you start recognising faces and making friends, people are generally great.

    Academically, you have to do 6 modules; 5 compulsory and 1 optional module choices being something like Law, French, German, Social Policy, Russian Area Studies. I chose Central and Eastern European and Russian Area Studies simply because I'm Russian and have an interest in that area. It is a very easy module focusing mainly on geography, history and politics of the region. Lecturer (Ewa) is lovely and the material is very manageable and the lectures go at a nice slow pace (compared to a marathon that is Maths & Stats).

    Compulsory modules are Business, Economics, Maths & Stats, Sociology, Political Science.

    Business is alright, its quite a funny module. Despite being compulsory you only have like two lectures a month and a few tutorials. But the downside is the reading you're expected to do in the meanwhile and quite big essay each term. This is one module where independent learning is key and they say they do that on purpose.

    Economics is great (for me, cos I like Economics). They assume no prior knowledge and the lecturers are pretty good, it's pretty easy as well. There is an Economics tutorial every week as well where they cover homework and help you with anything if you have problems (same goes for other modules). You have homework for tutorials but its pretty much voluntary and theres no direct credit for going to tutotials.

    Maths & Stats is considered the most difficult of 1st Year BESS modules and it probably is. However if you're decent at Maths (like I got A1 in OL and I'm alright at it) then you will be fine as long as you keep on top of the material. The lecturer in first semester is Carol Newman and she's lovely even though she comes across as strict. She is a very good lecturer, explaining things very clearly and demonstrating examples of how to solve problems and so on. But she does go very fast through the material so you cannot lose concentration in her lectures. Every week we do Maths Quizzes online and they contribute up to 30% of our overall grade in the end of the year. You also get 10% for attending tutorials and handing up written homework which is also very handy. If you keep your wits about during the year you will be going in to the final exam with practically a pass on your hands.

    Sociology is taught by Daniel Faas in the first semester, an absolutely outstanding lecturer, very passionate about his field and very interesting lecturer. The subject however, comes across as quite boring to those students who came to BESS for Economics and Business. But if you don't mind learning about societies, immigration, multiculturalism, education and things like that then its a very enjoyable module. Remember, you dont have to keep it up in 2nd year. Its great that we have a chance to try the social sciences and more mathsy modules. You do an essay for Sociology in first semester which is 20% overall and I think you get a further 10% for attending tutorials. One thing with Sociology is that there is a lot of reading involved, my Sociology textbook is over 1000 pages long. I haven't read even a tiny fraction of that however and I'm doing fine. I would encourage you to read and study for this module though.

    Political Science is along the same vein as Sociology but with one exception: the lecturer is so boring and generally bad at lecturing. Because of that fact alone BESS students tend to hate the module, vowing to drop it as soon as they can and generally they do. But once you manage to stay awake and furthermore do a bit of independent studying for the module you will do fine. It's a very easy module to pass according to some past students. Again 20% essay in first semester.

    We have about 16/17 hours per week and sometimes times are very scattered, e.g. on Wednesday I have two lectures at 11 and 12 and then another one at 5. But there is always something fun or productive to do on campus and around the city. Trinity is excellent in that respect. Societies are a great thing altogether if you get involved in them. And go to course related debates; they widen your knowledge and viewpoints!


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