People travel from far and wide for the Dublin experience, the guidebooks say that the nightlife is outstanding, visitors say that the people are friendly, and the league tables say that the education is exceptional, so why wouldn’t you want to come here? The city attracts plenty of new students each year, all looking to get stuck in and make the most of their time.
Whether you’re a Dublin local or you’ve travelled from a bit further afield to study here, there are a few things that you should know about being a student in this vibrant city. Not only are you on track to receive a great education and experience some great nightlife, but you’re also in the heart of a cultural hub with loads to see and do, and here’s how you can make the most of it.
1. THERE ARE SOME GREAT DISCOUNTS
That’s right: you’re a student now, and this means that you’ve got access to some amazing discounts that you probably didn’t even know about before. You can invest in student travel passes and explore the rest of Ireland by bus or train at discounted rate. You can take advantage of the many retail offers available in shopping centres like Stephens Green. You’ll be able to tuck into delicious meals with loads of restaurants offering two-for-one deals. See how good being a student is?!
2. PREPARE FOR BATTLE DURING EXAM SEASON
Dublin is relatively small as far as capital cities go, but by no means does this mean that the student population is small. It is a truly international city and is home to students from all over the word. Those student-numbers are going up and up each year, and this makes resources precious. You probably won’t notice it at first, and you might actually find yourself a favourite spot in the library in the first few months, but when exam season hits, you’ll need a game-plan if you want to secure the best workspace.
Libraries fill up, books get checked out, and printing queues will be the longest you’ve ever seen them. This is true for any college, but study space can be extra-competitive in Dublin. We recommend getting yourself down to the library nice and early each morning to secure the perfect spot.
3. PUT A FEW EUROS ASIDE FOR LIBRARY FEES
Okay, so you might not have to do this if you’re careful with the library resources, but around the busy exam period, everyone will want access to certain textbooks, which makes them sought-after. If you’re smart, you’ll read ahead and check these books out nice and early to beat the rush. But what that might mean is that you end up overrunning your lending time and fees will incur.
If you put a few extra euros aside to cover this, then great: you won’t have to worry (it’s still cheaper than buying the textbook, right?). If you don’t mind using loads of paper, you can save even more money by photocopying key pages from the textbook, using a few library credits at a time.
4. YOUR CITY IS A TOURIST ATTRACTION
If you’re not from Dublin and you’re not used to busy crowds and camera flashes, then you should know that the entire city is a tourist attraction. People fly from all over the world to see Dublin, and you might even feel like there are more tourists than students when you’re walking around in your first few weeks. Look around a bit and you’ll see why, though. The architecture is fantastic, the shopping is brilliant, the history is appealing, and the nightlife is something else.
If you’re studying at Trinity College, you’ll probably experience this more than any other student. Tourists will always be on campus to visit the famous library and one of the oldest books in the world: The Book of Kells. The tourists are something that you’ll get used to quite quickly, and their presence even helps to give you a bit of daily appreciation for the city, so make the most of it while you can!
5. SIGN UP TO SOCIETIES
Each college has a huge selection of clubs and societies, where you can learn new skills, follow up on interests, and meet loads of like-minded people. Dublin is no different, and there are plenty of ways for you to get into the college spirit. You can try your hand at Gaelic football or spend a few weekends in the year exploring the rest of Ireland. By joining a society, you’ll get to take on some CV-enhancing responsibility and make loads of new pals at the same time.
MAKE THE MOST OF DUBLIN LIFE
Whether it’s the amazing tourist attractions or the stand-out student discounts that make Dublin a great city to study in, there is something for every type of person. Student life is all about meeting new people and getting stuck in, so if you want to make the most of your time in Dublin, take a look at our student accommodation, where you’ll find everything you need to settle into student life.