Abusive Third Level UCD Students?

katarin

Hi

A quick story that made me think that UCD students are spoiled, abusive and superior. Im of course a student in UCD and I was queing at the post office the other day. A student went up with a letter and had a special request for it. The post office lady said it couldnt be done and gave a valid reason apparently. The student then went off and reported the post office lady to customer care for "not letting her do what she wanted". (I ask, why would the post office lady refuse a service). Anyway later the post office lady was upset and flustered and couldnt understand why someone she had tried to help her as best she could would go to the trouble of reporting her and jeprodising her job.
Anyway, it really makes you think about how obnoxious and self invloved UCD students are. Its a shame I am one.

Just a little story.

humbert

Now in all fairness that student was just one person and probably a member of several demographics, stereotyping any of them based on that one person's actions isn't very sensible.

generalmiaow

How does that prove UCD students are obnoxious and self involved?

Sangre

Considering you've showed us the scenario of one obnoxious student and one not (yourself). I hardly think your conclusion regarding all UCD students is a valid one.

katarin

ok, im sorry. Some UCD students, or this one in particular.

stolenwine

aw I like the post office lady but I have seen students behaving in a very courteous manner towards staff, nobody seems to start a thread about that.

elmyra

I think that particular story is appalling, but it demonstrates one thing- 'some' students are wenchtastic, and to be honest there's a flipside and some staff are too. The stinker of a letter that the library are getting from me once my exams are done being an example of it. It doesn't matter whether your status is staff, student or anything else, some people have no manners and no comprehension of how to deal with people in any sort of respectful or polite way.

pretty*monster

UCD Student Involved In Some-People-Are-Mean Shocker!

Give me a break.

Spectator#1

I saw a UCD student feeding oil to the swans. You can all expect a solicitors letter over this, every ****ing one of you little scumbags.

gubbie

Ya actually I too saw some UCD students being mean to the swans. Trying to feed them everything under the catagory of "Do not feed to swans"

Fremen

A friend of mine soaked some whiskey into bread and fed it to the ducks.

Is it wrong that I find that hilarious?

boneless

Fremen wrote:

A friend of mine soaked some whiskey into bread and fed it to the ducks.

Is it wrong that I find that hilarious?

Yes it is wrong and you are sick if you find it funny. I don't care if I get banned for this.

Het-Field

Start the Presses !

aequinoctium

stop the lights!
who says that the swans do or don't want alcohol???
we are in no position to judge...

gubbie

aequinoctium wrote:

stop the lights!
who says that the swans do or don't want alcohol???
we are in no position to judge...

Because alcohol doesn't do anyone good, let alone a swan. And although they have a liver to digest this kinda crap, they liver is made up completely differently to ours and at a insane guess, is smaller then ours too. Just cos we can handle whiskey, doesn't mean they can. Its sick

Fremen

And although they have a liver to digest this kinda crap, they liver is made up completely differently to ours and at a insane guess, is smaller then ours too.

Delicious too. Foie gras anyone?

Vainglory

Hi,

Thanks to whoever posted this for relating a story with no facts whatsoever and only one side of the issue(if even that). That student was me and for the sake of clarity I'll post the full details of what actually happened below.
As I've stated below I was nothing but polite and was in fact very badly treated by the woman involved, no matter how much she may have tried to pretend otherwise.

I went to the post office with the intention of sending two passports with two visa application forms and 140 euro to the Thai Consulate in Dublin 14. The application forms stated that a "self addressed stamped registered envelope" was to be included with the application in order for the passports to be returned to me. I have two friends who recently had to do the same procedure to acquire visas and they told me that what they received as an envelope for the Consulate to return their passports to them in was "white with blue and green stickers on it and somewhere to write your address and theirs."

When I reached the top of the queue I was told abruptly that it was not possible to get any sort of a pre-paid registered envelope to be included for return in the large envelope that I was registering. This is despite the fact that I pointed out the place on the registration form where it says "Have you enclosed a self-addressed stamped registered envelope? Pre-paid coupon stamps or franked envelopes will not be accepted." ( http://www.thaiconsulateireland.com/pdf/visaapplication.pdf)

Instead, I was given a normal brown envelope with a 5 euro stamp affixed and was told in no uncertain terms that this would suffice. I then left the Post Office having handed in the large registered post envelope with the brown envelope, passports, money order and visa applications inside.

However, once I had left I became worried and so contacted my two friends who had gone through the procedure recently. They assured me that they had indeed been able to obtain pre paid registered envelopes that looked nothing like the normal brown envelope with 5 euro regular stamp attached that I had received.

As I was extremely worried that this would not suffice (as the application form suggests) and that my passport would be returned to me by normal post instead of registered post (thus running the risk of being lost in the post - I can't risk it as I am leaving very soon) I decided to go back into the Post Office to inquire further, which I did.

Before, I phoned a personal friend who also works in the Post Office to ask what I should do. This is because I wanted to make sure that I was entitled to get what I was asking for and what I was being refused. This person then rang the UCD Post Office to advise them that I was coming back in and that they should look out for me to resolve the situation. They didn't give out in any way, but just said I was concerned and so was coming back in, but that it should be no problem. This was in no way "reporting someone" or "complaining", in either an official or unofficial way.

I was by this time standing quietly in the (very long) queue awaiting my turn in the Post Office. There were about 10 people in the queue and I was second from last. I had not attempted to skip the queue or to gain the attention of the woman involved before my turn was called. She then opened the glass double window used to put parcels through, pointed her finger at me and shouted "You wait your turn!!" in front of all the other people there.This was despite the fact that I had not attempted to do anything other than wait my turn in the first place.

A few minutes later I was then summoned as "The girl looking for the Thai Embassy" to the window at the front of the Post Office by the woman in question. Extremely loudly and in a manner that was audible to the rest of the people there, she shouted, "You've just reported me", to which I replied that I hadn't, and I was simply concerned as I did not want my passport to be returned to me by regular post. She then maintained that it was impossible to give me anything other than the brown envelope and stamp that I had first been provided with, but after some debate she then agreed to "bend the rules", she supposed, and provide me with another registered envelope to include in the large one that I had already successfully registered. She then gave me a white envelope with blue and green stickers attached (which fitted the description of the envelopes my friends had been given in other Post Offices) and told me to put my address in both the available sections on the envelope. Having since left the Post Office, I have discovered that I was supposed to put the Thai Consulate's address in one box, and my own in the other, but as I was advised incorrectly by this woman the letter has now been sent with my address in both boxes of the smaller registered envelope which will return the two passports to me.

I then completed the envelope as instructed, sealed the larger envelope again with everything inside, and returned to wait for it to be taken from me. It was 15:30 and the postman had arrived to collect the post and the registered post. As I was waiting, the postman asked me "Is that registered?" to which I replied that it was. He then said to give it to him and asked the woman in the Post Office if it was to be sent. She replied "No, absolutely not, that one's not going until tomorrow morning." I did not say anything even though I felt her decision to be personally motivated.

Again, extremely loudly, she began talking to the postman in front of me and the rest of the large queue. He asked her if it had been busy the previous day. She replied "Yes, very busy, but everyone was so nice yesterday" and looked pointedly at me. At this stage I was very embarrassed and upset. She then served another girl waiting in the queue and as she was leaving, called after her extremely loudly "Thankyou for your KINDNESS", again looking in my direction.

Following this experience I was very upset. I feel I was treated extremely rudely and that the woman involved had attempted to make a fool of me in front of the other customers. I was never rude to the woman involved but felt her attitude was unacceptable and that the treatment I got was entirely undeserved.

Since the incident I have found out officially from An Post that I was fully entitled to get what I was asking for and that the woman involved was wrong in her advice.

So like I said, the partial account above is completely inaccurate and paints me in a totally unfair light. If there's any possibility I'd like it removed.

dajaffa

Yeah have to say I've never been impressed with the service I've gotten in the UCD Post Office, though nothing like that. Now I always use the one in Larchfield, Goatstown. Loveliest Post Office people ever there

Vainglory

I think this thread is particularly ironic because I always make an effort to be nice to staff because I imagine that they do get a hard time off a lot of people.

Saying all the above though I don't bear any particular malice towards the woman involved and I'm sure there could have been mitigating factors that made her act like that - the place was very busy and she was the only person on so maybe that stressed her out. Because of this I didn't make any complaint even after she was so rude. Live and let live etc. But I had to correct the inaccuracies in the original post.

That's all really.

r3nu4l

Ha, I read this thread yesterday and wondered what the other side of the story might be

Great to hear it explained Vainglory and I sympathise with you. Good to have it clarified, perhaps the OP won't be so quick to judge in future!

I remember as a student at NUIM, the staff of a certain off-campus bank were particularly rude and difficult with students a few years ago until the management changed, whereupon attitudes changed dramatically. Myself and Mrs. r3nu4l still closed our accounts once we started earning significant salaries and cited the previous rudeness towards us as poor students as the reason why. Sometimes staff in certain institutions have a superiority attitude over their customers. This may or may not be fostered by management or it may be an individual thing but it does happen!

FionnMatthew

I don't think you should let live. I think you should copy your post into an email, attach a short introduction that qualifies it as an official complaint, and send it to the UCD PO. She should be chastised for behaving like that, whether or not she was "having a bad day". "Having a bad day" is an excuse for personal rudeness. To let it affect your work is thoroughly unprofessional.

Vorsprung

^ Damn straight.

This kind of crap goes unpunished far too often in Ireland.

Stepherunie

Agreed.

Now if only we could do the same for the arrogant rude asses who actually would be so unbelievably big headed and full of themselves to believe that they are above others.

I remember a particular incident in Bondi (yeah i know, but i was dragged) whereby a friend of mine was drunk and said something stupid to some Gonzaga boy. I being polite and embarrassed (and stone cold sober) by my friends actions went up to him and apologised for what she said even though it had merely been her turning him down. When I then turned him down this little eejit who was just out of school (he'd just graduated that day) had the nerve to turn around to me and tell me that I'd never get a guy as good as him and I should be thankful for the very idea that he'd even think of trying to score me.

Now I'm pretty sure that every guy I know is vastly superior in every way and didn't need a private school to make them that way. And before I get ranted at for dissing private schools; I have good friends who went to private schools and know people who are far more up themselves who went to public ones.

mloc

Wow... guys, chill out.

OP: there are dickheads in UCD just like everywhere else. I don't know Vainglory, but from his previous posts, i don't think he's a dickhead, somehow. Miscommunications, misunderstandings and unfortunate incidents happen. Staff don't get whats going on sometimes, just like consumers don't. Get over it.

Stepherunie, i don't know if you're being sarcastic or not, but i'm pretty sure every guy you know is NOT superior to you in every way. Guys just like to think that way, it saves them the hassle of working out why a girl isnt in to them.

This thread has seem to become very introverted very quickly.

Stepherunie

Mloc; I purely meant in relation to the guy I was speaking of, I'm not victorian, I give women equal status.

singingstranger

@ mloc: Vainglory's a girl.

@ FionnMatthew: Right on. That kind of crap isn't tolerable.

@ Everyone in general: the UCD PO is a load of corrupt balls anyway. I get care packages sent here with pretty much the exact same content every other month and the price being charged seems to be pretty much made up on the spot. Last time I heard, to send a single magazine to Germany from there was €10 (despite having been €6.50 for a much bigger package two months before). An enormous package being sent from down the country cost less than €8.

They're a shambles, in short.

passive

@ Everyone in general: the UCD PO is a load of corrupt balls anyway. I get care packages sent here with pretty much the exact same content every other month and the price being charged seems to be pretty much made up on the spot. Last time I heard, to send a single magazine to Germany from there was €10 (despite having been €6.50 for a much bigger package two months before). An enormous package being sent from down the country cost less than €8.

I'm confused... You pay to receive it in UCD? if not, isn't it wherever the package is being sent from that's coming up with arbitrary prices? Sorry if i'm way off..

gubbie

passive wrote:

I'm confused... You pay to receive it in UCD? if not, isn't it wherever the package is being sent from that's coming up with arbitrary prices? Sorry if i'm way off..

He's in Germany on erasmus so he means getting parcels sent from UCD to Germany

Sangre

lol@thisthread. what are the odds?

Tbh, I've found as a general rule that business that deal primarily with students or are on campus are usually woeful. They don't think they need to be at the general level of civility that other businesses would require. Obviously they've found students are less likely to complain.

griffdaddy

I'm not sure if it's the same woman, but the woman i talk to in the office office has always been nice and friendly, and helpful when I'm trying to send stuff to Holland. Having said that, the guy in my local post office is notoriously mental, and liable to go schizo at you for not knowing how much it costs to send a birthday card to New Zealand off the top of your head! Actually, come to think of it, don't people who work in post offices have a bit of a rep for being weirdos?

FionnMatthew

Weirdos? Not sure what you mean.

Vainglory

Sangre wrote:

lol@thisthread. what are the odds?

Haha, tell me about it...I think my face while I was reading it for the first time must have been priceless.

breadmonkey

1) OP, lol

2) Vainglory,

Did some travel company tell you that you needed to get a visa to enter Thailand? Some idiots in Trailfinders told me I needed but you actually don't. The immigration guy thought we were such idiots.

Vainglory

breadmonkey wrote:

1) OP, lol

2) Vainglory,

Did some travel company tell you that you needed to get a visa to enter Thailand? Some idiots in Trailfinders told me I needed but you actually don't. The immigration guy thought we were such idiots.

I think you don't need one for less than 30 days, but I'm going for over two months so I did need one.

lizzyvera

I think Katarin should apologise for tarring all UCD students with the same brush (because that's what starts stereotypes and stupid tribal mentalities) and for being so judgemental in the first place.

It was a very mean spirited, insulting post.

Vainglory

lizzyvera wrote:

I think Katarin should apologise for tarring all UCD students with the same brush (because that's what starts stereotypes and stupid tribal mentalities) and for being so judgemental in the first place.

It was a very mean spirited, insulting post.

No apology needed on my account, I was pretty enraged last night but have calmed down a lot, lol. I can see how someone would have taken it the wrong way alright.

breadmonkey

Vainglory wrote:

I think you don't need one for less than 30 days, but I'm going for over two months so I did need one.

Ah ok, well just in case you decide to stay longer, you can always do a visa run into Myanmar

stolenwine

katarin wrote:

The post office lady said it couldnt be done and gave a valid reason apparently.

yep on second reading sounds like they were standing in the Q and just got a few choice sound bites.

I would complain about the post office lady not on the basis of the mistake but because it sounds like she went out of her way to humiliate you.

katarin

stolenwine wrote:

yep on second reading sounds like they were standing in the Q and just got a few choice sound bites.

Yeah that's what it seemed like from where I stood. i wasnt trying to chastise Vainglory, i didnt even think she would be on this. everyones always complaining about the postoffice lady, though shes always been nice to me so when she was so upset after the whole thing i assumed she'd been wronged.

Stabshauptmann

fantastic logic

katarin

as i said, shes always been nice to me. and the story she told the man in front of me was ''a girl reported me because an post couldnt do something for her. and id tried to help her as best i could but she called customer service and told them i refused to help her''

panda100

People actually still use post offices?!Dont think ive been in one for years.

Generally I find most UCD students very pleasent but I have come across some extremely rude individuals in my time in UCD,no manners whatsoever with no respect for other people. I wouldn't put vainglory in this category at all though.Some of the UCD staff seem to have a god complex over us students,tis pretty annoying.

griffdaddy

Well ya can't send drugs/birthday cards/official documents/children through the internet, so you kinda need them sometimes!

Pythia

I was in the Post Office yesterday and the woman was being very unhelpful.
There was a foreign girl sending packages abroad. The post lady told her the heavier package was a letter and the lighter one was a parcel in terms of the pricing. The girl was confused but the post office lady explained it was due to dimensions, not weight. The girl was still confused so the post office lady weighed them again and then told the girl they were both packages. The girl asked why one had changed from a letter to a package. The post office woman basically denied she had ever said it had been a letter and told the girl she does this all day every day for x number of years so she had to be right.
Felt a bit sorry for the foreign girl but certainly wasn't going to butt in.

hullaballoo

How much job satisfaction do we think we're looking at here? A little bit of empathy might not go astray.

Stabshauptmann

Tbh, for all we know she likes her job. I remember in first year we were doing some class of motivational theory and it was generally assumed by everyone in the class that anyone in a low paid job or a non-professional hated their job or got minimal satisfaction.
From my experience thats far from the case. I dont think society would function if it was the case.

BMcG05

After spending the last 20 mins reading this entire post, I find it quite hilarious that the OPs original aim was to promote this women as a fair, nice worker.

However, now that the situation has become clear, this thread has only served to promote the inadequacies of this woman.

Good job

mloc

hullaball&#250 wrote:

job

Thats job, not prison sentence. She gets paid. It might not be the best job in the world, or the most thrilling, but the attitude of so many irish people in the service industry is abysmal compared to many other countries, in particular, the US.

Obviously there's good and bad in every industry in every country, but in my experience, the vast majority of lower-paid irish service industry people are about as professional as an alcoholic bus driver.

hullaballoo

What makes you think that the attitude of the worker isn't spawned from the attitude of those they are serving?

Your attitude appears to be that it's good enough for them to be working at all.

I've worked in the service industry in Ireland for about 7-8 years now, and some of the attitudes I've come across from customers would sicken you. Now, a lot of people will say to you that the customer's always right and that someone in the service industry should be happy to do the customer's will at every opportunity.

When they don't say please, thank you, or even frame their question in proper English - "pint there!" - how easy is it to turn around and say, "yes sir, no sir, three bags full, sir"? It's not.

I'm probably one of the lucky ones in that the place I have worked for longest values its staff enough to allow us to react naturally to these types of situation - so that if someone is rude to me, they will rightfully receive the same in return: "pint there", "pint of what where?"

mloc

I guess it is an attitude thing.

Personally, I favour the american model. After returning from Chicago where delays of more than 30 seconds on the subway are explained immeadiately, it was difficult to accept the attitudes of even the first service industry people I encountered arriving back here; the AirCoach drivers. Badly trained, rude and totally uninformed about what was going on with different bus routes etc. I had to ask 4 staff members before I was told where the unmarked bus in front of me was going. The driver seemed begrudged to have to open the luggage compartment for customers, which, as an AirCoach driver, is part of his remit.

It's these predominantly half-assed Irish attitudes that have make me want to emigrate, tbh.

Vainglory

I also worked in the service industry for over three years and I know that if I ever had kids, I'd make them work in the service industry at least once so they know not to treat people who do work there on a permanent basis like ****. I think everyone should work in that sector at least once, for that very reason.

I think this thread has gone a bit mad - whatever this woman may or may not be like, I don't think any public service employee really expects to have their pros and cons discussed by faceless strangers online - the only reason I posted was to clarify the OP's position and interpretation of what had happened.