Which is the best University in Ireland?

respectyourbus

XxMCRxBabyxX wrote: »

It's not as unknown as you think! It's a good university with a good reputation! I've never come accross anyone having an issue with me or anyone I know being an NUIM student other than the fact that the law degree I'm doing is only 2 years old.

I'm doing History myself and loving it. The study options are wide and interesting and the staff are always available to help students.

Website is just nuim.ie It should work!

There's too much elitism amongst the Universities which gives people the impression that one is better than the other which is ridiculous. If a TCD student with an average of a 2:2 and a NUIM student with an average of a 1:1 were up against each other a prospective employer would hardly pick the TCD student just because his university is more 'well-known.'

As one poster said, different people suit different places. I have friends in UCD who absolutely hate it yet other friends in DIT doing the same course and loving it. Personbally i don't think I would've likes UCD which was my first choice. it's too big and you can be far to anonymous whereas in Maynooth this just isn't possible. NUIM is like a small village in itself, you know everyone and eveyone is so friendly and nice. There's no cliquing like that seen in most of the Dublin colleges and Universities

Tried the website with your link there but it just isnt working, everything else is, dunno...

I certainly agree with you that an employer is going to take the hypothetical TCD student with worse grades over the higher achiever from another college. Not as a slant on NUIM or any other college, but I just wonder what would happen between these two hypothetical students if they both had 1:1. Dont want to offend saying these things, but when I have my degree this could be very important.

I think the issue of what institution (YAY, an alternative to universities/colleges) to choose can be split into two categories. How well any particular institution will help you to get a good degree (assuming your already well motivated yourself), aand secondly, how good a time you'll have at the institution while obtaining your degree.

I do like the idea of the close-knit, smaller college as opposed to being thrown into lecture theatres where your unlikly to sit next to the same person twice.

Also, can I ask about the facilities (on and near campus) and the lecturers. You say they're good, but could I end up with one especially useless lecturer? Thanks for a good general evaluation by the way.

respectyourbus

Tristram wrote: »

NUIM's history department is very well regarded. I don't mean this as a slight but I would wonder how much research you have done if you were not aware of this.

Not offended, thanks for commenting.

Its good to get this info. I think im about as well researched as any prospective student. Ive read the prospectus' and heard the presentations but these are all going to say the same thing. The colleges tell me that all their History departments are well respected. This may be true, but some must be better than others. I may seem ignorant, but this sort of info is only available, direct from students. Which is who im trying to hear from.

respectyourbus

Im not especially pro-TCD. Its as good as anywhere to begin discussing. If anyone wants to stir this it towards other colleges id love to hear about them. I hope to get info on everywhere.

Tristram

respectyourbus wrote: »

Not offended, thanks for commenting.

Its good to get this info. I think im about as well researched as any prospective student. Ive read the prospectus' and heard the presentations but these are all going to say the same thing. The colleges tell me that all their History departments are well respected. This may be true, but some must be better than others. I may seem ignorant, but this sort of info is only available, direct from students. Which is who im trying to hear from.

This may not be as applicable for you as a prospective undergraduate but might prove a useful exercise anyway. Research faculty publication record. Research departments track record attracting funding. Don't rely on a prospectus. It is nothing more than an shiny printed advertisement.

XxMCRxBabyxX

respectyourbus wrote: »

Tried the website with your link there but it just isnt working, everything else is, dunno...

I certainly agree with you that an employer is going to take the hypothetical TCD student with worse grades over the higher achiever from another college. Not as a slant on NUIM or any other college, but I just wonder what would happen between these two hypothetical students if they both had 1:1. Dont want to offend saying these things, but when I have my degree this could be very important.

I think the issue of what institution (YAY, an alternative to universities/colleges) to choose can be split into two categories. How well any particular institution will help you to get a good degree (assuming your already well motivated yourself), aand secondly, how good a time you'll have at the institution while obtaining your degree.

I do like the idea of the close-knit, smaller college as opposed to being thrown into lecture theatres where your unlikly to sit next to the same person twice.

Also, can I ask about the facilities (on and near campus) and the lecturers. You say they're good, but could I end up with one especially useless lecturer? Thanks for a good general evaluation by the way.

Link is working for me fine. Any better?

Look I've had that worry. I'm doing Law at NUIM, Most people didn't even know they had a law degree but I really don't think that where you studied undergrad is the most important thing for an employer, they would be more concerned with your abilities and approach to work.

the facilities in Maynooth are brilliant. Only thing we don't have is a canteen since in burned down last year but they are already in the process of getting started on building a new one - there is also still Pugin hall which serves food and has seating, and the common room for seating. Maynooth had
s a 24 hour Tesco which is the biggest in Ireland, Dunnes is two mins away form campus, There is a shop on campus, SU bar, book shop. The accommodation is really handy. Literally at the lecture halls door unlike those in Dublin where student accommodation can be a bit away.

There is also a free doctors service which is really handy. The gym is also free. The Nightlife is brilliant with Mantra the nightclub and all the pubs - O'Neills, Roost, Caulfields, Bradys, the SU. there are plenty of places to go with the only place charging in being mantra after 10.30. Getting into Dublin is easy with the train only taking 40mins for €3.30 and there is also Liffey Valley down the road €2.20 on the 66.

Every college poses the risk of having a crap lecturer and each person finds different lecturers a problem. Personally I haven't had any issues with any of my lecturers so far and i don't believe any of my classmates have either.

It's 10 to 4am now so ! need to get some sleep but if you want to know anything else fire ahead. I will repeat that the History dept is well renowned and gives a wide range of study options and i have friends studying English who love it. My only warning would be don't expect the same kind of stuff as you did in Leaving Cert, and that counts for all colleges. Same with History. I got a D1 in the Leaving and haven't gotten less than 2:1 in NUIM (average was about 67%) and that's not a bad thing! It's a different approach that suits me anyway!

For the record I am studying Law, History and Sociology through with the aim of getting 60% in Law to be able to move into Law and Arts (BCL) next year with history/

questionmark?

alexthomas163 wrote: »

Most ppl can only dream of going to TCD. So if you get a chance, take it! You will not regret it!

I'm sorry but i just LMFAO at the above statement

What makes you believe that this is true?

respectyourbus

XxMCRxBabyxX wrote: »

Link is working for me fine. Any better?

Look I've had that worry. I'm doing Law at NUIM, Most people didn't even know they had a law degree but I really don't think that where you studied undergrad is the most important thing for an employer, they would be more concerned with your abilities and approach to work.

the facilities in Maynooth are brilliant. Only thing we don't have is a canteen since in burned down last year but they are already in the process of getting started on building a new one - there is also still Pugin hall which serves food and has seating, and the common room for seating. Maynooth had
s a 24 hour Tesco which is the biggest in Ireland, Dunnes is two mins away form campus, There is a shop on campus, SU bar, book shop. The accommodation is really handy. Literally at the lecture halls door unlike those in Dublin where student accommodation can be a bit away.

There is also a free doctors service which is really handy. The gym is also free. The Nightlife is brilliant with Mantra the nightclub and all the pubs - O'Neills, Roost, Caulfields, Bradys, the SU. there are plenty of places to go with the only place charging in being mantra after 10.30. Getting into Dublin is easy with the train only taking 40mins for €3.30 and there is also Liffey Valley down the road €2.20 on the 66.

Every college poses the risk of having a crap lecturer and each person finds different lecturers a problem. Personally I haven't had any issues with any of my lecturers so far and i don't believe any of my classmates have either.

It's 10 to 4am now so ! need to get some sleep but if you want to know anything else fire ahead. I will repeat that the History dept is well renowned and gives a wide range of study options and i have friends studying English who love it. My only warning would be don't expect the same kind of stuff as you did in Leaving Cert, and that counts for all colleges. Same with History. I got a D1 in the Leaving and haven't gotten less than 2:1 in NUIM (average was about 67%) and that's not a bad thing! It's a different approach that suits me anyway!

For the record I am studying Law, History and Sociology through with the aim of getting 60% in Law to be able to move into Law and Arts (BCL) next year with history/

Link still not working, every other site is, I dunno whats wrong with it. tried getting onto it through goolge, thats not working either.

I think your right that where I do my BA isnt going to be very important, Maynooth sounds all good, no reason to reject it, I suppose it really is a question of ones own preference, and the size is a big advantage over say UCD (which is where I thought I was going).

cafe burnt down..... Im just thinking, if its anything like the cafes I know in UL, which are inside the main buildings of the university. How did that work out???

Regarding history, You said to expect something different to the Leaving cert course. I a guy who did history in UL, he went in intending to make a career out of it but gave it up two months later. He told me that rather than the relativly fast-paced and interesting course you do for LC history, third level was really boring. He cracked when he had to research Portugese Wheat exportation. However, im still not dissuaded, whats the NUIM history course like?

One other thing and this question is open to anybody really, you said that theres always a danger of being stuck with a Lecturer you dont like, im just wondering how bad this can be. At leaving cert anyway there are some catastrophically bad teachers who dont even trry to teach the students. Can they ever be that bad at third level, im expecting that theyre all dedicated people who will have had to fight to hold onto their positions, but then again I dont know what can happen. Any thoughts?

respectyourbus

Maybe the person who said this was turning into a debate on TCD was kinda right. If you have something relevant to say about it or why you think your college is more desirable could you say so, these sweeping 'TCD is crap' or 'TCD is great' statements are unhelpful.

somethingwitty

Im studying in NUIM at the moment and the college had a great reputation for Arts. Unlike a lot of others, the arts faculties are made a priority and it is fast becoming the place for things like English and History.

I find that there is a really peaceful atmosphere in Maynooth and there is more of a studious atmosphere about the place than other unis I've been to like UCD and Galway. Im glad I came here cause this rubbed off on me, I would have been spending my days in the pub if I went anywhere else!

I do English, Sociology, and Anthropology: the lecturers are brilliant and the courses are very well put together. My brother and a few others I know are doing English in UCD and they don't think they are enjoying it quite as much as me. They didn't even know the names of their lecturers, and I think this highlights an impersonal atmosphere that you don't find in Maynooth.

Maynooth is a friendly college but I think the social life is its downfall. For RAG week I ended up spending my time in DKIT and UCD because it can be very quite in NUIM...:o

XxMCRxBabyxX

respectyourbus wrote: »

cafe burnt down..... Im just thinking, if its anything like the cafes I know in UL, which are inside the main buildings of the university. How did that work out???

Regarding history, You said to expect something different to the Leaving cert course. I a guy who did history in UL, he went in intending to make a career out of it but gave it up two months later. He told me that rather than the relativly fast-paced and interesting course you do for LC history, third level was really boring. He cracked when he had to research Portugese Wheat exportation. However, im still not dissuaded, whats the NUIM history course like?

One other thing and this question is open to anybody really, you said that theres always a danger of being stuck with a Lecturer you dont like, im just wondering how bad this can be. At leaving cert anyway there are some catastrophically bad teachers who dont even trry to teach the students. Can they ever be that bad at third level, im expecting that theyre all dedicated people who will have had to fight to hold onto their positions, but then again I dont know what can happen. Any thoughts?

The canteen was it's own building and it was just that that burned down. there's still plenty of other places on campus and in the town to get food and eat.

History is absolutely fascinating in NUIM as far as I'm concerned. No Portugese wheat exportation with me. Last semester was 16th Century Ireland which was a lot more interesting than I was expecting along with Practicing History 1 which was really an introduction to studying History and writing essays well. This semester is even better with a module on the theory of revolutions including a study on the French and Russian Revolutions and Practicing history 2 which involves using sources via the internet and visual sources. Different to leaving in that it's all one subject and not 4 different times to deal with but just as interesting, if not better.

The standard of a lecturer is different to the standard of a teacher. In University the readings you do hold as much importance as your lectures. In secondary your teacher is there to tell you what you need to know, in Uni your lecturer is backing up and embellishing on what you've already read so the standard isn't as important as is is for a teacher. and also these lecturers have put a lot of work to get to the position they have, they have to love what they are talking about and have a genuine interest in it.

somethingwitty wrote: »

Maynooth is a friendly college but I think the social life is its downfall. For RAG week I ended up spending my time in DKIT and UCD because it can be very quite in NUIM...:o

Quiet?! Really? SU and O'Neills Monday, Brady's Wednesday, Roost Thursday?! Maynooth is always packed. My social life is better than ever, I have friends who come down to Maynooth for the social life! Everyone I know is crazy! I prefer Maynooth to Dublin tbh

RichTea

respectyourbus wrote: »

I certainly agree with you that an employer is going to take the hypothetical TCD student with worse grades over the higher achiever from another college. Not as a slant on NUIM or any other college, but I just wonder what would happen between these two hypothetical students if they both had 1:1. Dont want to offend saying these things, but when I have my degree this could be very important.

Do you know how ludicrous and false that is? You've clearly made your decision already.

Miss Lockhart

I really think it is very subject specific. TCD is obviously a very well respected university, but it is definitely not the most respected for every subject. The same, I'm sure, can be said about most of the universities, in relation to different courses.

For example, NUIM might be a "proper" university but, as was disucssed on the NUIM forum recently, Ballyfermot might have a better reputation for its media course than the one in NUIM.

This time last year I had an offer from TCD and an offer from NUIM for the PGDE. At the time I was subbing in a few different schools and I asked the principals in these schools for advice on which to choose. All three said to choose Maynooth, no contest and said in a "between me and you" sort of way that they didn't rate the TCD PGDE at all. Now, I'm sure the TCD PGDE is of a very good standard and TCD is a well respected university, but the perception was that Trinity was not the best option in this case.

paved_paradise

This poll has pretty much stuck to the eastern side of things. I'd like to start off by saying I am an NUIG student in Arts (History & English). NUIG is a perfect sized college for students who may be bogged down in having to meet thousands of new faces. It's very orientated around learning through experience and your opinions are valued which ( and I have asked around on this) is hard to come by in the 'bigger' colleges/universities. As far as social life, Galway is hard to beat but then again that is my opinion. This whole Trinners opinion is quite absurd as you can find those Abercromibe D4 wannabes in Galway too (G4's now I do believe!) Educational and making friends is the most important factior in your decision, not some rant about how one person got on and their results because I doubt you are a carbon copy able to achieve and attain all his/her successes simply because of the lecturers. At the end of the day your grade reflects YOUR work! You know which college will be best suited for you ; for me NUIG was the best decision I made. The friends I've made here will be my friends for life simple as. x Good luck!:D

LutherBlissett

Oh when will you all grow up?

Firstly. It is, regardless of the surveys you cite (tactically excluding I note conflicting surveys/methodology used to gather info), impossible to make a simple determination of which university is best. The issue is so much more nuanced than many of you seem to realise. A college might be a leader in one area (Engineering/ History etc.), and well down the pecking order in another.

Secondly. Guys. I'm reasonably sure most who have posted in this thread have experienced the CAO system. Doing Eng/Hist in TCD only demonstrates one thing - that you could get the points. And to be honest? Even people of moderate intelligence can surpass the 500 mark with a bit of elbow grease. If TCD had an elite choice system like Oxbridge or an American College, whereby an interview is conducted, aptitude tests must be completed, entrance essays composed etc., then we might say it is an exclusive atmosphere. But because of the points system, it's really not. In any case, college attendance in Ireland is generally not predicated on people with the highest points flocking to the one university - it is for the majority based on living costs. Why on earth would you travel to Dublin when a local univ can confer upon you exactly the same degree?

Thirdly. To clarify: employers don't actually hire people blind. Nowadays, I believe the phenomenon of the "interview" is quite in vogue. This means your employment will never be a question solely of the college you attended. Other factors, such as social skills and the like may just be relevant.

Fourthly. Very few if any worthwile careers can begin immediately after an undergraduate degree. There are generally postgraduate/professional qualifications to undertake. Take the Bar in Law for example. You could have gone to Carlow IT, and obtained a BCL from there, or have a 1:1 from UCC, TCD or UCD. But you know what? When you both do the Inns; if the Carlow ITer passes, and you fail, you ain't going to be a barrister, regardless of what has come before.

Bit of maturity pleasethankyou.

melekalikimaka

RichTea wrote: »

Do you know how ludicrous and false that is? You've clearly made your decision already.

I dont think he is to far off IMO, this has been debated many times before, look over the threads, its a fact in many fields that this is practiced

fearanpost

Theres a serious BA course in St.Pat's, one of the most sought after in the country I believe, its mainly people that dont have enough points for teaching that are in it with the hope of gettin preference into the postgrad because they went to pats, but not all.. its a great course it would be worth looking into also.. St.Pat's is a great spot, I have a mature in my class, im doing the B.Ed by the way, who used to go to trinity and he says he far rathers Pat's because its more of a tight knit college and its so easy to make friends! just thought id throw in my 2 cents, but really have a look at Pats' BA course!!

Chewbacca.

fearanpost wrote: »

I have a mature in my class, im doing the B.Ed by the way, who used to go to trinity and he says he far rathers Pat's because its more of a tight knit college and its so easy to make friends!!

Pat's is an excellent college, especially for the B.Ed , But Trinity is the best in Ireland full stop .That mature guy would rather be there than trinity because he didn't fit in.

But the majority of people knowTrinners is for winners ,its the most prestigious and has beautiful girls attending, actually the largest % of students in TCD are girls . Only UCD is 2nd on the league of good looking girls.

laoishibee

Throw IT Carlow, carlows one of the best places for student life. Can't stand dublin colleges but thats my opinion!

Your missing a good few colleges in there man!

Chewbacca.

laoishibee wrote: »

Throw IT Carlow, carlows one of the best places for student life. Can't stand dublin colleges but thats my opinion!

Your missing a good few colleges in there man!

Hahaha Carlow IT is full of barn dancers, they all dance around to cotton eye joe the mad culchies

Byron85

Well it's pretty obvious that the best four are NUIG, UCC, UCD and Trinity. I don't think that any of them are better than the other but they each have strengths in certain departments that the others don't.

For example, UCC has an extremely well renowned History department and the Religious Studies department is the only one of it's kind in the country. It's also a hub for research and it got a research contract over MIT. Nuff said.

UCD would be well known for Economics and Law.

Trinity for Economics and Law too but also Classical Studies etc.

Kinski

T.W.H Byron wrote: »

Well it's pretty obvious that the best four are NUIG, UCC, UCD and Trinity.

What are you basing that on?

T.W.H Byron wrote: »

It's also a hub for research and it got a research contract over MIT. Nuff said.

All unis are hubs for research. And NUIM also brag about winning a research contract over MIT - that doesn't prove anything, other than that those awarding such contracts don't necessarily always give them to the biggest name institution to throw its hat in the ring.

T.W.H Byron wrote: »

UCD would be well known for Economics and Law.

Trinity for Economics and Law too but also Classical Studies etc.

Do you know who has the best economics dept in the country? Or the best classics dept? Or if there even is one which could be described as the 'best'?

LutherBlissett's post has it spot on. Irish colleges are much of a muchness - some may be better than others in certain respects or in particular disciplines, but there is no 'best' one.

Byron85

Kinski wrote: »

What are you basing that on?

World rankings and the following quote.

US MULTINATIONAL companies are reluctant to recruit graduates from many Irish third-level colleges because of concern about declining standards, Minister for Education Batt O’Keeffe was told at a recent meeting with representatives of Google, Intel and other major companies.

The meeting was told that while some companies were delighted with the calibre of graduates from UCD, TCD and UCC, they had concerns about other colleges.

NTMK

Each university has their strong points and weak points so overall they're pretty much the same as each other.

the gap is between IT's and university is probably down to the caliber of lecturers at them as Universities can pay more and as the previous two posters said have research contracts with other top universities

Kinski

T.W.H Byron wrote: »

World rankings and the following quote.

The arguments over the various world rankings are so well-rehearsed at this stage it hardly seems worth going through them again - suffice to say that I don't think any LC candidates filling out their CAO applications need worry too much about them. And just because the university a person attends is highly-rated it doesn't mean they will be - a first from UCC is most definitely better than a third from Oxbridge.

The reports around the concerns of multinationals raise a couple of questions for me. What fields are these graduates drawn from? In what respects are they not up to scratch?

Actually, the research contract I referred to in my previous post also provides a relevant example here, since it is Intel who are the research partner. So Intel may have been one of the companies who were 'concerned' about the quality of graduates, other than those from UCD, Trinity and UCC, but were still content to form such partnerships with other institutions?

Byron85

Kinski wrote: »

The arguments over the various world rankings are so well-rehearsed at this stage it hardly seems worth going through them again - suffice to say that I don't think any LC candidates filling out their CAO applications need worry too much about them. And just because the university a person attends is highly-rated it doesn't mean they will be - a first from UCC is most definitely better than a third from Oxbridge.

The reports around the concerns of multinationals raise a couple of questions for me. What fields are these graduates drawn from? In what respects are they not up to scratch?

Actually, the research contract I referred to in my previous post also provides a relevant example here, since it is Intel who are the research partner. So Intel may have been one of the companies who were 'concerned' about the quality of graduates, other than those from UCD, Trinity and UCC, but were still content to form such partnerships with other institutions?

Just to add, don't get me wrong. I've argued in other threads about grade inflation and the state of Irish Universities that a degree is meaningless if the person who has it is a moron. A degree is only as good as the person that earned it.

NTMK

Kinski wrote: »

So Intel may have been one of the companies who were 'concerned' about the quality of graduates, other than those from UCD, Trinity and UCC, but were still content to form such partnerships with other institutions?

yep intel were one of them
heres the link to the story
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2010/0303/1224265501148.html

Intresting to seen on this that trinity has the lowest Employment rate of all Universities