Need some honesty here

kowloon

So im going back to college as a full time mature student.

Based on my location i will be going to either TCD or DIT, ive applied to both.
I would prefer TCD as a few friends of mine are staff there and the facilities are excellent.
Im looking for an honest students perspective, whats the place like to study in?
Is the reputatation of snobby students actually deserved or is it just a few delusional kids giving the place a bad name?
I ask this as i gather undergrad mature students arent too common and I dont want to add the problem of the regular students looking down their noses at me for not being one of them, im going to find going back to education hard enough as it is.
(im not trying to stir the $hit here, just looking for some honest opinions on being a mature student in TCD)

hunnymonster

There are quite a few mature students in the arts and business courses. I would guess 5-10% of these classes. Less in the Scientific, engineering and medical fields. You're in luck there is a meeting next week

http://www.tcd.ie/Admissions/admissions_info/info_day.html

that you are welcome to in order to ask any questions you might have and to get a feel for the place.


Yes there are the snobby kids in TCD but they are very much in the minority and there is such a diverse community in College (it's equivalent to a town the size of Clonmel!) you'll find loads of people to have fun with and to work hard with.

Both of my flat mates are mature students. They have a great time and fit in well with their courses (Engineering and Classics).

In BESS there are quite a few mature students and again most of them fit in well and get on with everyone.

Crash

You don't have flatmates OP - you got hallmates :P

as for the original question - all I know is we Have a fairly diverse range of mature students in my course - ranging from 24 year olds coming back to college to 35 year old bikers to 40 year old japanese businessmen changing tack - I've never come across anyone who's been at all pissy about mature students, PROVIDED (and this happens) you're not one of those people that has a chip on their shoulder about being a mature student. which some do, they come into college without having gotten any answer to the questions you asked, convinced trinity is snobby and that they'll be looked down on, and just have a major chip over it.

and thats just plain not worth it now is it?

Andrew 83

What course are you planning on doing? There were plenty of mature students in my Sociology and Politics courses.

PHB

If you are in the Arts courses, there is an element of looking down on some mature students, but it's mostly because of experience with them, not because of some sort of inate hatred.
In my course, there were 2 fantastic post-grad students, who were really great smart people.

However BESS as a whole, there are a lot of mature students who are perhaps the most annoying people in existance, who sit at the front of the class, constantly interupt the lecturer with questions (most of which the lecturer is about to get to), are generally silly commies, and just kinda annoying.

But it's not because they are mature students that they are disliked, it's because they act like this. That said, I find mature students are more prone to it, probably because they aren't as stuck into an educational mode that we've been stuck in for our entire lives.

That said, the mature students in my class are just fantastic, and I'm fairly sure it's just a few mature students who give the majority of mature students a bad name, just like it's a few of the non-mature students who give them a bad name.

TBH, it really depends on what courses you are applying for

ApeXaviour

The snobbish stereotype is so unrealistic in my opinion as to be bordering on ridiculous at this stage. It must be a throwback from when trinity was (emphasis on past tense) primarily an english/protestant school. Obviously there will always be a very minor element of these idiots (snobs not protestants ), no less than in any other large gathering of people. However, as someone with a relatively heavy dublin accent I can safely say I've never encountered any resulting snobbery.

Mature students are nothing out of the ordinary either... Any in science I know nobody who has had any issues with, they come drinking with us and all

kowloon

I had already decided on TCD like i said, but an ex-mature student warned me off it saying theres a bad anti-oldie sentiment among the regulars.

Think im coming to realise theyre just trying to put the $hits up me as they dropped out and theyre looking for an excuse!

Any hot postgrads?:D

kowloon

kowloon wrote:

Any hot postgrads?:D

With that attitude.. you'll fit right in!!

The only mature students who aren't liked (who I know of) are the PolSci / Sociology ones who 'know it all' and 'where there when it happened'.

As long as you don't join that gang, you'll be fine!

Saying that, that crowd do enjoy themselves here quite well

ApeXaviour

kowloon wrote:

Any hot postgrads?:D

Many there are... oh yes

Aye as original_psycho said once you don't be all "know-it-all cos I'm older" you'll fit in splendidly I'm sure

Pet

Once you're not one of those total licks who do ALLLL the extra reading and take all the copies of Skelton's Evolution from the library and sit up the front and ask "Look at me, I know everything about gastrulation in frog embryos and will now ask really complicated questions about organogenesis because I'm a big sap and will now hold up this actually otherwise interesting lecture for 15 minutes" questions, you'll get on fine.

John

Do you want a lend of Skelton Pet? I've got it in my own personal library.

paperclip

Everyone hears about the snobby thing and to be fair you do come across the odd one. Here's what you do. You hang out with the culchies. They're alright. I went to NCAD before and there were far more affected people there. You get them anywhere.

But to be honest, no one is going to force you to spend time with those people. You're here for your 'edjication' anyway!
(I'm a mayowoman myself)

Nietzschean

lol at the culchie reference, though we are great n all...

grimloch

PHB wrote:

However BESS as a whole, there are a lot of mature students who are perhaps the most annoying people in existance, who sit at the front of the class, constantly interupt the lecturer with questions (most of which the lecturer is about to get to), are generally silly commies, and just kinda annoying.

Yeah, some of the biggest douches ever live in that course. Kowloon, don't be like these people. You'll get on fine.

paperclip

Join a society or two. There are a lot of nice people in the sign language society fyi.