Disappointed with open day

_Bella_

I went to the Trinity open day expecting to have it first on my cao form however I was really disappointed by it. Firstly they kept saying you should go to Trinity because it is the best. They did not give any reasons as to why, and felt that this sufficed as a reason to go to it. I went to four different talks where they just said that. I felt the lecturers made very little effort to try and convince you to do the course. I was very disappointed by the law talk, the speaker did not explain anything about the modules but instead said that she thought commercial law was a waste of time and really boring, hardly convincing me to do this degree.

I wanted to know if any of you had similar experiences and if so when you got to Trinity did you end up liking it. I'm still considering putting it as number 1 but I am unsure now due to the disappointment of today.

blubloblu

Open day played a very small part in my decision

Lawliet

I think those talks are a waste of time in general; a half an hour outlining stuff you can find in the prospectus isn't really what should be influencing your decision to go here. Talks for the popular courses are repeated several times a day, so I'm not surprised the speaker wasn't too enthusiastic...

Really you'd be better off having a look around campus and talking to some of the students at the stands.

theyearof2010

Hi OP,

I remember when I went to the higher options seminar afew years ago I felt the exact same way! I went from the DCU stand where they were so friendly and enthusiastic to the TCD stand with uninformed, disinterested people. It definately had an impact on me.

I had a more positive experience of the open day however. I agree with the previous poster that you should use the day more to get a feel for the place and the opinions of the people.

I stuck with TCD on the CAO and I'm delighted I did so. It's just one of those things where they leave the reputation speak for itself - don't let it overshadow your judgement!

Fo Real

I'm going to speak a few truths here so I hope I don't come across as harsh. Trinity doesn't really care if you choose the college as number one on your CAO form or not. You can be sure there are thousands of other students fighting for a place in Ireland's premier university who would love to take your place. In fact, the college would prefer to take in a foreign student from India or Malaysia who pay more in fees than than an Irish student who avails of free fees thanks to our decrepit socialist government.

Trinity doesn't need to set up flashy stands or pay for expensive advertisements to attract the best and brightest, because frankly its world renowned reputation speaks for itself. Did you expect the lecturers to beg you to attend Trinity? This isn't DKIT. In fact, I personally think Trinity should demand potential students fulfil certain criteria other than high CAO points to gain entry into the college, such as personality tests. There are too many culchie students who treat their first year of college as one big drinking session, disrupt lectures, and then drop out. They are easily identified by their GAA jersey uniform and tacky "class rep" hoody - most likely the only two items of clothing in their minuscule wardrobe.

kthnxbai

I don't entirely think you should choose whether or not to go to a college based solely on the open day.

First thing, Trinity is the best university in Ireland. You just have to look at any of the rankings. Out of all the Irish universities, Trinity has the best reputation. I assume this is what the lecturers meant by saying it's the best, rather than oh we have the best this or that etc etc...

Those rankings take a number of things into account really. You can look them up if you want more information on them. The rankings are here: http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2011-2012/top-400.html. We're 117, and UCD is the next closest to us at 159.

It's worth noting, that we were 43rd about two years ago. We've dropped so much due to things like budget cuts and the economic situation.

Secondly, research different courses and colleges and see what you like the look of best. Just because a lecturer didn't talk about what you wanted them to in an open day lecture does not mean you wouldn't like the actual course.

I've done my undergrad in Trinity, and I'm currently doing my masters there as well. I love it. I think it's fantastic. I did my degree in computer engineering and have found both the engineering department and the computer science department to be lovely. For the most part. I can't speak for the law or humanities departments at all.

Trinity has decent facilities for the most part. I personally think we're lacking a decent student centre, but the campus is lovely. There's lots of computer rooms. We have the best library in the country, as Trinity is entitled to a copy of anything that is published in Ireland. There's a brand new sports centre with a new gym, pool and rock climbing wall.

Maybe_Memories

I didn't even go to the open day. I'm a second year maths student, and my decision was based purely on the guidance of an excellent mentor, inspiration and family friend and on comparing my course in the different universities in the country, this one was the one that didn't look like a total waste of time.

Haha, UCD not doing complex analysis until third year.. hilarious. :P

Ally7

I was there, I thought it was quite good! Especially the ones at the dentistry and radiation therapy stands!

languagenerd

Fo Real wrote: »

. In fact, the college would prefer to take in a foreign student from India or Malaysia who pay more in fees than than an Irish student who avails of free fees thanks to our decrepit socialist government.

In my 3 years at TCD, I have met one Indian person and no Malaysians. 80-90% of people I know in TCD are Irish or EU students (who also get free fees).

There are too many culchie students who treat their first year of college as one big drinking session, disrupt lectures, and then drop out. They are easily identified by their GAA jersey uniform and tacky "class rep" hoody - most likely the only two items of clothing in their minuscule wardrobe.

I have never met anyone like that here. What course are you doing?!



Just to point out, in my experience, I think TCD care more about their students than other universities in Ireland. Every student has a tutor, for one (which none of my friends in other colleges have) and the lecturers in my departments know most if not all of their students by name. So I'm not entirely sure where your points are coming from...

Sounds about right, thought the open day was woeful when I went! Trinity really don't need to try charm people into applying to their courses though, they do have that reputation. It gets tiring hearing them go on their ego trip all the time (especially after our recent dramatic fall in the world rankings ) but unfortunately there is some truth to the jokes about Trinity being stuck up. The open day should give students the right information about their courses so they make informed decisions and don't end up dropping out when they realise they didn't fully understand what the course entailed.

If you want some extra information about a course that you can't find in the prospectus or online or whatever your best bet is to email someone from the department running the course or ask here on boards as someone might be doing it!

kthnxbai

languagenerd wrote: »

In my 3 years at TCD, I have met one Indian person and no Malaysians. 80-90% of people I know in TCD are Irish or EU students (who also get free fees).



I have never met anyone like that here. What course are you doing?!



Just to point out, in my experience, I think TCD care more about their students than other universities in Ireland. Every student has a tutor, for one (which none of my friends in other colleges have) and the lecturers in my departments know most if not all of their students by name. So I'm not entirely sure where your points are coming from...

Ah now in fairness, a lot of students do get pissed all the time and don't turn up to lectures, or else turn up and talk through them.

I have found that this sorta depends on the class size. 1st and 2nd year engineering, with classes of over 150 often suffers from idiots talking through the entire lecture, or just generally arsing about.

But it's a pile of bull**** to say that it's only culchies that do this. Not to mention, that I'm certain it happens everywhere...

Also, piratequeen, Trinity is not stuck up. At all. Some people who go there are. But the same can be said about everywhere.

And languagenerd made a really good point about the tutors actually. I do tend to forget about that. Tutors are actually really helpful if you're struggling with college or if you have problems with exams or lecturers etc...

nommm

The Open Day at Trinity last year was actually what convinced me to go there. I was originally planning on UCD. The DCU one put me off the place completely.

I only started this year but I have to say that so far it seems to be a great University. Most of the lecturers seem to be good and there's loads of great societies to join. You get gym membership included in your fees which is another bonus! The only thing I think is better in other colleges is the library but the one we have is still good.

partyatmygaff

languagenerd wrote: »

In my 3 years at TCD, I have met one Indian person and no Malaysians. 80-90% of people I know in TCD are Irish or EU students (who also get free fees).

The Health Sciences courses (Medicine, Pharmacy, Dentistry) generally speaking have the most international students from what i've heard and experienced.

In any case, I never bothered with the open day. I knew I wanted to go to TCD from even before I did my JC. It just has a certain something that other colleges lack. Now that i'm in TCD i'm glad that I put it as No.1 on my CAO.

Chuchoter

Open days are always fairly crap. You're not supposed to be choosing courses based on the talks, its just to get a feel for the place and who is there. The half hour talks are bad at every open day.

Fo Real

languagenerd wrote: »

In my 3 years at TCD, I have met one Indian person and no Malaysians. 80-90% of people I know in TCD are Irish or EU students

As partyatmygaff has already said, the non-EU students who pay high fees are a much more common sight at the Hamilton end of the college (that's the science area in case you didn't know). Don't tell me you don't notice the gangs of Malaysian girls roaming around the college, wearing their hijabs? I know they're short, but really you don't see them? They're generally here to study nursing or other health sciences.

Just because 90% of the people you know in college are European doesn't mean the non-EU students don't exist. Says more about your blatant racism tbh if you make no effort to get to know them. Take a walk outside your Arts Block bubble some time. Also source that EU students get free fees? That'll be news to some of my French and Italian friends.

Kwekubo

Fo Real wrote: »

Also source that EU students get free fees? That'll be news to some of my French and Italian friends.

http://www.tcd.ie/Admissions/undergraduate/fees/

Tears in Rain

kthnxbai wrote: »

Trinity has decent facilities for the most part. I personally think we're lacking a decent student centre, but the campus is lovely. There's lots of computer rooms. We have the best library in the country, as Trinity is entitled to a copy of anything that is published in Ireland. There's a brand new sports centre with a new gym, pool and rock climbing wall.

I'd have to disagree about the library. While I haven't actually visited the libraries in any other universities, I don't think it's fair to claim that Trinity is the best library just because of its entitlement to all new published books. How good a library is, from a student's point of view, is a factor of, among other things, how many copies of required reading material are available, how many other titles in a given subject are available, how quiet the library is, how much space there is available for studying, reading or researching, how many journals are available, if there is sufficient provision of computers for online research, etc.

Also, is Trinity's status in this regard unique? This page states that publishers are required to send copies of books to, among other places, NUIG, NUIM and UCD.

As for the sports centre, while new, it's certainly not big, and the gym is overcrowded even at the best of times. Now, I'm the last person to base my decision to go to college on the quality of the gym, but if you compare it to somewhere like UCD, UCD wins hands down.

Finally, to address a common theme in this thread, I think it's a little silly to just say "Oh, Trinity's the best because the rankings say so, and everyone knows so, and everyone knows it's Ireland's most prestigious university". It comes off as incredibly patronising to anyone who's done their research and is actually interested in concrete reasons why they should enroll in a particular course.

It may be, for instance, that Trinity is the best (if we agree, for now, that it is) simply because its prestigious reputation attracts people who are inclined towards academic success, i.e. they desire to do well academically, and they feel that Trinity is the sort of place where one ought to go if they are that way inclined. Now this says nothing about the quality of lecturing, or the quality of the library, or the quality of anything else, but it will lead to Trinity performing well in international rankings. And of course how well you do is influenced by your peers, and if you're surrounded by the best and brightest, you're going to push yourself further and perform better. But at the end of the day, if bright people suddenly decide they no longer want to go Trinity, you'll find its whole reputation is built on a house of cards.

That's not to say at all that I think this is the case with Trinity, I'm a second year TP student and personally I think my course is the best thing since sliced bread, the material's extremely challenging, it's great if you know exactly what you want to be, and the general atmosphere is good in that I'm surrounded by very motivated driven people who work hard at doing well in their course. But if someone asks me should they do TP in Trinity, I'm not going to merely point at international rankings that say how well the Physics or Mathematics department perform, I'm going to give them concrete reasons of why I feel the course is good.

In response to the original poster, I think you're probably right in feeling the open day talks came across as disingenuous, but it's gonna be the same anywhere, any course, any college (probably). If you really want to get a feel for what the course is about, the best way is always to ask current and former students. Make a new thread about Law in Trinity and find out what people think.

bscm

I was helping out at the Physics stand yesterday and never once mentioned TCD's ranking... neither did any of the staff at our table. In fact the ranking was only brought up by one parent who seemed hell-bent that his kid was going to TCD.

Open Days last year were useless for me... you really do have to ask students to get the information that you want or else contact the course offices for a shadowing day

Tears in Rain

bscm wrote: »

I was helping out at the Physics stand yesterday and never once mentioned TCD's ranking... neither did any of the staff at our table. In fact the ranking was only brought up by one parent who seemed hell-bent that his kid was going to TCD.

Ha, I was probably a bit silly in saying it's the kind of thing you'd expect in general from an open day talk, but it's definitely something to be wary off. My gf was helping out with the Physics department too for the Open Day, and by all accounts sounds like it was run pretty well.

Unshelved

"Also, is Trinity's status in this regard unique? This page states that publishers are required to send copies of books to, among other places, NUIG, NUIM and UCD."

Just to correct you, those libraries are legal deposit libraries for irish publications only. Trinity is a legal deposit library for Irish and UK publications - one of only six libraries with this privilege and the only such library on the island of Ireland.

Tears in Rain

Unshelved wrote: »

"Also, is Trinity's status in this regard unique? This page states that publishers are required to send copies of books to, among other places, NUIG, NUIM and UCD."

Just to correct you, those libraries are legal deposit libraries for irish publications only. Trinity is a legal deposit library for Irish and UK publications - one of only six libraries with this privilege and the only such library on the island of Ireland.

Durrr...I should have read that page a bit more carefully

kthnxbai

Tears in Rain wrote: »

I'd have to disagree about the library. While I haven't actually visited the libraries in any other universities, I don't think it's fair to claim that Trinity is the best library just because of its entitlement to all new published books. How good a library is, from a student's point of view, is a factor of, among other things, how many copies of required reading material are available, how many other titles in a given subject are available, how quiet the library is, how much space there is available for studying, reading or researching, how many journals are available, if there is sufficient provision of computers for online research, etc.

Also, is Trinity's status in this regard unique? This page states that publishers are required to send copies of books to, among other places, NUIG, NUIM and UCD.

As for the sports centre, while new, it's certainly not big, and the gym is overcrowded even at the best of times. Now, I'm the last person to base my decision to go to college on the quality of the gym, but if you compare it to somewhere like UCD, UCD wins hands down.

Finally, to address a common theme in this thread, I think it's a little silly to just say "Oh, Trinity's the best because the rankings say so, and everyone knows so, and everyone knows it's Ireland's most prestigious university". It comes off as incredibly patronising to anyone who's done their research and is actually interested in concrete reasons why they should enroll in a particular course.

It may be, for instance, that Trinity is the best (if we agree, for now, that it is) simply because its prestigious reputation attracts people who are inclined towards academic success, i.e. they desire to do well academically, and they feel that Trinity is the sort of place where one ought to go if they are that way inclined. Now this says nothing about the quality of lecturing, or the quality of the library, or the quality of anything else, but it will lead to Trinity performing well in international rankings. And of course how well you do is influenced by your peers, and if you're surrounded by the best and brightest, you're going to push yourself further and perform better. But at the end of the day, if bright people suddenly decide they no longer want to go Trinity, you'll find its whole reputation is built on a house of cards.

That's not to say at all that I think this is the case with Trinity, I'm a second year TP student and personally I think my course is the best thing since sliced bread, the material's extremely challenging, it's great if you know exactly what you want to be, and the general atmosphere is good in that I'm surrounded by very motivated driven people who work hard at doing well in their course. But if someone asks me should they do TP in Trinity, I'm not going to merely point at international rankings that say how well the Physics or Mathematics department perform, I'm going to give them concrete reasons of why I feel the course is good.

In response to the original poster, I think you're probably right in feeling the open day talks came across as disingenuous, but it's gonna be the same anywhere, any course, any college (probably). If you really want to get a feel for what the course is about, the best way is always to ask current and former students. Make a new thread about Law in Trinity and find out what people think.

I would have thought our library was decent. Sure, it gets crowded at exam time, but I've always found places to study in Trinity and have never had problems getting books out. Ok, I can't compare it to other college's libraries, but I was just making the point that you can get anything you want/need from the library.

And the rankings do take into account the quality of the lecturing and the facilites, so you're downright wrong there. There's a whole bunch of things that they take into account, including lecturers, funding, facilites etc. Part of the reason that our ranking hasn't been higher is because we don't have as good a student centre as well should. Now, this has changed recently, since funding has been decreasing and fewer staff are being hired etc.

My statements about both the gym and the library related to my experience using them. I suppose I should have stated that. But I've never had an issue with either the gym or the library. I would like it if there were more places to get food/sit etc. I think the college is lacking in this. Generally, people just join societies and go use their rooms, but we really should have a student centre.

People's opinion of the college will vary greatly, depending on their experience there, but I was just giving my opinion on the college.

I do agree that it's worthwhile to try and talk to some students doing law, or anything else you're interested in studying though. It's best to get their perspective on the course. And that's true for any courses and colleges that you're interested in applying for.

EDIT:

I also forgot to mention, that it's worth taking into account that a course in a lower-ranked university might be better than the equivalent course in a higher ranked university. Just taking my own undergrad, engineering into account. DIT has a really good reputation for it's engineering degree too.

montown

Chuchoter wrote: »

Open days are always fairly crap. You're not supposed to be choosing courses based on the talks, its just to get a feel for the place and who is there. The half hour talks are bad at every open day.

Totally disagree. The TCD talks i went to (law,physiotherapy,medicine) were appalling in comparison with the talks in UCD. The staff seemed pretentious and arrogant - "There are 3 reasons for you to go here. Firstly, we are the best, secondly, we are the best, and thirdly we are the best". Nobody appreciates that arrogance and big-headedness. I will definitely not be going to TCD after that terrible experience of an open day.

Amirani

montown wrote: »

Totally disagree. The TCD talks i went to (law,physiotherapy,medicine) were appalling in comparison with the talks in UCD. The staff seemed pretentious and arrogant - "There are 3 reasons for you to go here. Firstly, we are the best, secondly, we are the best, and thirdly we are the best". Nobody appreciates that arrogance and big-headedness. I will definitely not be going to TCD after that terrible experience of an open day.

So you don't want to be with the best because they're arrogant? They were telling the truth after all, and that's what employers are gonna care about.

languagenerd

Fo Real wrote: »

As partyatmygaff has already said, the non-EU students who pay high fees are a much more common sight at the Hamilton end of the college (that's the science area in case you didn't know). Don't tell me you don't notice the gangs of Malaysian girls roaming around the college, wearing their hijabs? I know they're short, but really you don't see them? They're generally here to study nursing or other health sciences.

Just because 90% of the people you know in college are European doesn't mean the non-EU students don't exist. Says more about your blatant racism tbh if you make no effort to get to know them. Take a walk outside your Arts Block bubble some time. Also source that EU students get free fees? That'll be news to some of my French and Italian friends.

My "blatent racism"? Are you serious? If I've never met a Malaysian person on campus, that's because I'm racist? You have some great logic there...
I never said they didn't, I was just pointing out they aren't quite as prevalent as your post made them out to be.
"Arts Block bubble" - yes, because I've never used the gym, or met friends for coffee in the Java in the Hamilton, or had classes in Aras an Phiarsaigh, or eaten lunch in the JCR, or attended a society event, or gone to the Pav. :rolleyes:

And your French and Italian friends seem to be seriously mis-informed, you might wanna show them the link Kwekubo posted ^^^.

This is going off-topic now, so let's agree to disagree, will we? I personally believe Trinity that care about their prospective/current students (whatever their nationality), you possibly don't.

Back on topic: The open day could be better. Some talks are great, some aren't, totally depends on who the departments/schools can get in to do said talks. But that said, you should ask all questions you have at the stands, take all the tours, read all the leaflets etc. And email the course heads if you're still unsure, that's one of the reasons they're there!

aramush

Fo Real wrote: »

There are too many culchie students who treat their first year of college as one big drinking session, disrupt lectures, and then drop out. They are easily identified by their GAA jersey uniform and tacky "class rep" hoody - most likely the only two items of clothing in their minuscule wardrobe.

I really would love to see things from your point of view little man, but frankly, it would be physically impossible to get my head that far up my own h*le.

Lawliet

montown wrote: »

Totally disagree. The TCD talks i went to (law,physiotherapy,medicine) were appalling in comparison with the talks in UCD. The staff seemed pretentious and arrogant - "There are 3 reasons for you to go here. Firstly, we are the best, secondly, we are the best, and thirdly we are the best". Nobody appreciates that arrogance and big-headedness. I will definitely not be going to TCD after that terrible experience of an open day.

If you want to go to UCD over Trinity, then that's fair enough, but I think it's short sighted to use a few talks as the deciding factor. Although I definitely do sympathize when you say the speakers were arrogant, I was working at the open day and I got the impression that the staff felt they were above dealing with prospective students -medicine probably being the worst offenders. It's definitely off-putting, but I wouldn't let it be the only reason not to go to Trinity.

kthnxbai

kthnxbai wrote: »

Ah now in fairness, a lot of students do get pissed all the time and don't turn up to lectures, or else turn up and talk through them.

I have found that this sorta depends on the class size. 1st and 2nd year engineering, with classes of over 150 often suffers from idiots talking through the entire lecture, or just generally arsing about.

But it's a pile of bull**** to say that it's only culchies that do this. Not to mention, that I'm certain it happens everywhere...

Also, piratequeen, Trinity is not stuck up. At all. Some people who go there are. But the same can be said about everywhere.

And languagenerd made a really good point about the tutors actually. I do tend to forget about that. Tutors are actually really helpful if you're struggling with college or if you have problems with exams or lecturers etc...

Sorry let me clarify I didn't mean the students are (they're not, the vast majority of people I know who go there aren't!) but I feel like the insitiution or management or whatever you want to call it is :P The number of times I've had introductory lectures or information evenings where half of it consisted of 'we're better than everywhere else' is too many!

CIARAN_BOYLE

languagenerd wrote: »

Just to point out, in my experience, I think TCD care more about their students than other universities in Ireland. Every student has a tutor, for one (which none of my friends in other colleges have) and the lecturers in my departments know most if not all of their students by name. So I'm not entirely sure where your points are coming from...

Thats not something to reccomend TCD by. The tutor I had when at TCD was crap. Many tutors see being a tutor as an extra bonus onto their paycheck.

If you fail a year and are regularly absent with medical conditions you can get a medical repeat (with free fees) the for which has to be signed and then submitted by your Tutor. I left it with him two weeks before the deadline and he said he'd get it in that day. He ended up handing it in two days after the deadline and thus no medical repeat for me.

He was regularly difficult to contact, out of the country when needed, ignored emails didn't have a clue about vital in college services.

languagenerd

CIARAN_BOYLE wrote: »

Thats not something to reccomend TCD by. The tutor I had when at TCD was crap. Many tutors see being a tutor as an extra bonus onto their paycheck.

If you fail a year and are regularly absent with medical conditions you can get a medical repeat (with free fees) the for which has to be signed and then submitted by your Tutor. I left it with him two weeks before the deadline and he said he'd get it in that day. He ended up handing it in two days after the deadline and thus no medical repeat for me.

He was regularly difficult to contact, out of the country when needed, ignored emails didn't have a clue about vital in college services.

But you can change your tutor at any point, you don't have to specify a reason and you don't have to ever contact them to tell them, the Senior Tutor will just give you a new one!

I haven't ever really needed mine (thankfully) but the one time I did contact him, he replied the same day and met me two days later.

Iceuil

I am a first year in TCD and I can easily say that lecturers here are very helpful and easily approachable. I never met a lecturer who was arrogant or anything like that. BUT beware of library staff. These are the most rude and unhelpful people in college.

Another factor to choose TCD is that some things here are for free, while in other colleges lke UCD, you have to pay for them. Some things I mean supplemental exams and other small things about which you dont think when you apply.

I remember the open day I went to was a total disaster. I hated trinity and really didnt want to go here. But Im here now and I love it. I love the atmosphere, the people, my course. TCD does care about its students unlike other colleges. I remember I had a problem and I didnt know what to do. I emailed my tutor and my problem was resolved within one day!

Maybe_Memories

Iceuil wrote: »

I am a first year in TCD and I can easily say that lecturers here are very helpful and easily approachable. I never met a lecturer who was arrogant or anything like that. BUT beware of library staff. These are the most rude and unhelpful people in college.

I wouldn't say that about all the library staff. Some can be quite helpful. I once had a €22 library fine, went in to pay it, the clerk asked why I had such a big fine, I explained, and she let me off with €20. Not much, but hey, it was still nice.

Jammyc

Exactly, some library staff can be really nice and helpful. I remember in first year, not knowing how to check if books were in, shelfmarks etc. Rather than get frustrated at yet another first year not having a clue, one of the librarians took 5 minutes or so to show me where everything was and how to search for books. On the flip side of that coin, there are some that can be rude or just indifferent, but then again thats life and to say all library staff are rude isn't fair.

On topic, OP don't get too worried about your impression from the open day. Look more into the course you want to do, talk to current students and email lecturers. I didn't have a great impression of Trinity before I started but now I think its nice. I also found open days to be annoying in general as you get bombarded with information, half of which doesn't answer any questions you might have.

shanefitz360

Trinners is for winners!!

cookiemonst3r

[QUOTE=CIARAN_BOYLE;75815058 Many tutors see being a tutor as an extra bonus onto their paycheck.[/QUOTE]

I'm pretty sure the tutors here don't get paid extra. I think it's voluntary.

Also, another reason why the lecturers don't put much effort into their talks is because they know that students will go to Trinity, regardless of whether they give a good talk or not. This happened this year with the medicine presentations. They didn't turn up to their presentations, because they know that their spaces will be filled no matter what they do.

The budget TCD get for their open day also pales in comparison with the funding other colleges get. We just don't have the money for anything these days.

TC80

cookiemonst3r wrote: »

This happened this year with the medicine presentations. They didn't turn up to their presentations, because they know that their spaces will be filled no matter what they do.

Huh????

There were 3 medicine presentations on the saturday.

likelike

well i cant speak for any of the other courses but I went to the law talk on the open day and i wasnt too impressed. So i put law in trinity first but no other trinity courses, all ucd. But i got into trinity and i actually love it. all the law lecturers are so sound its ridiculous.

Lawliet

TC80 wrote: »

Huh????

There were 3 medicine presentations on the saturday.

Medicine were suppose to be running demonstrations on Friday, but they hadn't organised anything; they just weren't bothered. They got nagged into doing it on Saturday though.

CIARAN_BOYLE

cookiemonst3r wrote: »

I'm pretty sure the tutors here don't get paid extra. I think it's voluntary.

http://brianmlucey.wordpress.com/2011/06/04/thoughts-on-tutoring-in-tcd/
The Tutorial system is thus a mixture of academic and pastoral care. And as a consequence of the additional duties over and above the academic those, like myself, that manage a full chamber (100 students) get €255.83 extra per month (before tax).

languagenerd wrote:

But you can change your tutor at any point, you don't have to specify a reason and you don't have to ever contact them to tell them, the Senior Tutor will just give you a new one!

Not according to the senior tutor a few years back

Lawliet

CIARAN_BOYLE wrote: »

Not according to the senior tutor a few years back

http://www.tcd.ie/Senior_Tutor/your-tutor/change/

TrollHammaren

Fo Real wrote: »

I'm going to speak a few truths here so I hope I don't come across as harsh. Trinity doesn't really care if you choose the college as number one on your CAO form or not. You can be sure there are thousands of other students fighting for a place in Ireland's premier university who would love to take your place. In fact, the college would prefer to take in a foreign student from India or Malaysia who pay more in fees than than an Irish student who avails of free fees thanks to our decrepit socialist government.

Trinity doesn't need to set up flashy stands or pay for expensive advertisements to attract the best and brightest, because frankly its world renowned reputation speaks for itself. Did you expect the lecturers to beg you to attend Trinity? This isn't DKIT. In fact, I personally think Trinity should demand potential students fulfil certain criteria other than high CAO points to gain entry into the college, such as personality tests. There are too many culchie students who treat their first year of college as one big drinking session, disrupt lectures, and then drop out. They are easily identified by their GAA jersey uniform and tacky "class rep" hoody - most likely the only two items of clothing in their minuscule wardrobe.

I feel I need to perform a public service every time this guy posts in a thread aimed at potential students. Most of the time his racism and bigotry is hilarious, but I wouldn't want any potential TCD students to think that this is how we all behave. My advice is to just ignore this guy's unhelpful response.

TimeToShine

Fo Real wrote: »

I'm going to speak a few truths here so I hope I don't come across as harsh. Trinity doesn't really care if you choose the college as number one on your CAO form or not. You can be sure there are thousands of other students fighting for a place in Ireland's premier university who would love to take your place. In fact, the college would prefer to take in a foreign student from India or Malaysia who pay more in fees than than an Irish student who avails of free fees thanks to our decrepit socialist government.

Trinity doesn't need to set up flashy stands or pay for expensive advertisements to attract the best and brightest, because frankly its world renowned reputation speaks for itself. Did you expect the lecturers to beg you to attend Trinity? This isn't DKIT. In fact, I personally think Trinity should demand potential students fulfil certain criteria other than high CAO points to gain entry into the college, such as personality tests. There are too many culchie students who treat their first year of college as one big drinking session, disrupt lectures, and then drop out. They are easily identified by their GAA jersey uniform and tacky "class rep" hoody - most likely the only two items of clothing in their minuscule wardrobe.

I go to UCD and saw this thread on the "Latest posts" and could not believe I was reading this. You've basically reaffirmed my confidence in my decision to not go to Trinity. Amongst other things, this post is painfully arrogant, condescending, narrow-minded and bigotted. Ridiculous.

TrollHammaren

TimeToShine wrote: »

I go to UCD and saw this thread on the "Latest posts" and could not believe I was reading this. You've basically reaffirmed my confidence in my decision to not go to Trinity. Amongst other things, this post is painfully arrogant, condescending, narrow-minded and bigotted. Ridiculous.

Let me point out that the vast, vast majority of TCD students are not like him. This is the guy who claims to derive pleasure from seeing natural disasters cull "lesser races".

XxMCRxBabyxX

Also came across this in latest posts. I'm a Maynooth law student myself - something which some of you must be appalled by!

There seems to be a real arrogance in this thread about TCD. To think that people are going to go to TCD despite bad experiences is quite presumptuous. I ended up placing TCD lower on my CAO after having such a bad experience at the open day and being comPletely unimpressed by the place. And I'm glad I did if the attitude seen here and the stories from TCD students that I know are anything to go by.

I actually feel that I have ended up in a better law degree as a result. I have managed to get great opportunities that you can't get from the TCD law course.

So no, Trinity is not automatically the best and don't presume that people will go there just because.

TC80

Lawliet wrote: »

Medicine were suppose to be running demonstrations on Friday, but they hadn't organised anything; they just weren't bothered. They got nagged into doing it on Saturday though .

Hang on a minute, the saturday presentations were confirmed weeks ago. There was no nagging by anyone.

Perhaps you should put a simpsons-style disclaimer at the start of your posts like "DRAMATISATION: May not have happened. Or perhaps more succintly "I am completely making this up"

TC80

Lawliet wrote: »

Medicine were suppose to be running demonstrations on Friday, but they hadn't organised anything; they just weren't bothered. They got nagged into doing it on Saturday though .

Hang on a minute, the saturday medicine presentations were confirmed weeks ago. There was no nagging by anyone.

Perhaps you should put a simpsons-style disclaimer at the start of your posts like "DRAMATISATION: May not have happened. Or perhaps more succintly "I am completely making this up"

Jammyc

XxMCRxBabyxX wrote: »

Also came across this in latest posts. I'm a Maynooth law student myself - something which some of you must be appalled by!

There seems to be a real arrogance in this thread about TCD. To think that people are going to go to TCD despite bad experiences is quite presumptuous. I ended up placing TCD lower on my CAO after having such a bad experience at the open day and being comPletely unimpressed by the place. And I'm glad I did if the attitude seen here and the stories from TCD students that I know are anything to go by.

I actually feel that I have ended up in a better law degree as a result. I have managed to get great opportunities that you can't get from the TCD law course.

So no, Trinity is not automatically the best and don't presume that people will go there just because.

Besides the post which has been pointed out by Troll Hamaren as not being reflective of TCD, what others have brought you to this conclusion? I never said I thought TCD was the best, I said it was nice. Everyone will have allegiance to their university but nobody is outright demanding to be seen as superior. Not all TCD students think its the shiz. If you need proof, take alook at the rant/bitch/moan thread or indeed any of the individual course threads.

NeuroCat

Personally, I find the overall experience in Trinity to be positive. I enjoy the college. It ranks higher than the other colleges in Ireland consistantly (although you do have to take those polls with a pinch of salt). This doesn't automatically make it the best. The whole thing is rather subjective. The open day was terrible when I attended 3 years ago and I found it to be a complete waste of my time. Yet when it came to taking the CAO offer the only one I felt comfortable with was Trinity. I probably would have happily repeated the leaving had I been offered the same course in any other University.

Lawliet

TC80 wrote: »

Hang on a minute, the saturday presentations were confirmed weeks ago. There was no nagging by anyone.

Perhaps you should put a simpsons-style disclaimer at the start of your posts like "DRAMATISATION: May not have happened. Or perhaps more succintly "I am completely making this up"

So were the Friday demonstrations but they certainly didn't happen - many disappointed students from the open day could confirm that one. Our team leader spent most of Friday running back and forth to the medicine stand and contacting various people within the department to try and find someone who would run the demonstrations. It was only a few hours into the open day on Saturday that they informed us they'd decided to run the demonstrations after all.

languagenerd

TrollHammaren wrote: »

I feel I need to perform a public service every time this guy posts in a thread aimed at potential students. Most of the time his racism and bigotry is hilarious, but I wouldn't want any potential TCD students to think that this is how we all behave. My advice is to just ignore this guy's unhelpful response.

Actually, do we have any proof he actually goes to TCD?

To everyone here who's not a TCD student or who is trying to pick a college at the moment: we are not all like that. In fact, most of us are not like that. The "Trinity snobbery" dates back to when only rich people could apply, nowadays it's open to all and a much nicer place for it!

Anita Blow

TimeToShine wrote: »

I go to UCD and saw this thread on the "Latest posts" and could not believe I was reading this. You've basically reaffirmed my confidence in my decision to not go to Trinity. Amongst other things, this post is painfully arrogant, condescending, narrow-minded and bigotted. Ridiculous.

And it's equally as narrow-minded to cast all tcd students with the same brush after reading one post from some randomer who mightn't even go there.

I'm in first year and have yet to experience this snobbery that some students from other colleges go on about. It seems to be something everyone talks about, but not many have actually experienced.
Infact, the only snobbery I've noticed is from within. As in Arts students looking down on science students and vice versa. But that happens in every college I'm sure.