The capital of Ireland, Dublin City needs no introduction and for many visitors, Dublin is the top rated destination both for higher studies and adventure activities. The city boasts the best charm, history, culture, sights and abundance of character to explore. The city of Dublin is voted the 4th most popular city in Ireland and considered to be the favourite city break destination. Owing to its rich heritage and culture and of course its captivating Georgian architecture, it always remains the attractive capital of Europe. Although the city of Dublin is relatively small in size but safe enough to get around on foot. Dublin is the place in Ireland where you will find most of the country’s treasures, museums and housed in the city’s galleries.
Dublin City: Important Things to Know:
For students whose notion of an ideal student city involves mingling top-rated study facilities and cultural surroundings with furious social serene and popularly friendly locals, Dublin must be their first choice indeed. Dublin is the city in Ireland that comprises the largest student population, owing to the fact that it offers vibrant, warm and friendly learning environment which not only speed up the learning but also help students to have lots of fun. With more than 40,000 student population, Dublin remains the most bustling and energetic city that enables the students to create new relationships, enjoy student life to the fullest, while developing new social skills.
Accommodation and Housing
There are both long term and short term accommodation facilities made available to all students studying in Dublin. The short term accommodation includes hotels, B&B, private owned properties, apartments and more. However, the long-term accommodation facilities include the on-campus accommodation offered by the universities and colleges in Dublin to students studying here. There are many privately owned properties, apartments and condominiums available in and around Dublin that students can rent out during their academic years in Dublin. However, the cost of accommodation varies depending upon the type of accommodation and amenities includes. The average cost of long term accommodation in Dublin would range from 4, 626 euro to 5, 967 euro per academic year.
Food and Grocery Shopping
Dublin comprises the largest shopping centres in Ireland. They city has both the cheap stores and branded stores that can fulfil your all weekly food and grocery shopping in Dublin. Some of the campuses in Dublin also have on-campus stores that are operated by Student’s Union and these stores stock a wide range of goods ranging from food to beverage, stationary to confectionary and more.
The supermarket chains in Dublin include Tesco, Dunnes Stores, Superquinn, Aldi and Lidl. There are also other stores from where your weekly food and grocery shopping can be done and the price varies between the supermarket chains. Students are likely to spend around 50 euro to 60 euro per week on food and grocery shopping while studying in Dublin.
Entertainment
Apart from its scenic landscape and friendly people, studying in Dublin can offer you a plethora of options for entertainment with a variety of national and local events, festivals and major sporting events that are hosted across the city round the year.
From international music events to summer arts festivals, literary festivals to film and food festivals, there are many entertainment options in Dublin that will definitely give you the chance to experience the Irish culture. The city also hosts lots of unique Irish events celebrating traditional and local themes. The festivals and events in Dublin can give to the perfect opportunity to explore the nation’s local and cultural delights.
Olympia Theater, The O2, National Concert Hall, Vicar Street and Bord Gais Theatre are the primary concert venues in Dublin where you can pay a visit to enjoy live musical concerts by national and international artists.
Travel and Transportation
Dublin has the robust travel and transportation network and facilities for all visitors and students. The city is easy to assess on foot and there are lots of options to choose from when deciding the travel and transportation services in the city to get around. Students studying in Dublin can opt for the Student Travelcard from the Student’s Union office. The Travelcard not only offers the students with great deals for students to get around the city and enjoy food, shop in the city but also helps them to avail cheaper prices for taking Irish Rail, Dublin Buses and Luas System.
Dublin has the strong network of rail and buses that can take you within walking distances to the majority of place in city centre. Luas System is the light-rail system in Dublin that offers you with a direct link to some of the major locations outside Wider Dublin city region. Students can also opt for the Dublin Bikes which is the easiest option to get around the city. The bikes are available for rent and students with TravelCard can also avail great discounts while renting a bike in Dublin.
Cost of Living
Before deciding to study in Dublin, you need to ensure that you have sufficient funds to support your studies and living cost in Dublin. Students from foreign nations need to demonstrate that they have sufficient funds to support their education and living expenses in Dublin throughout their academic years. Precisely, how much you would require for the living and the cost of living in Dublin would vary depending upon your courses; type of accommodation and of course your own lifestyle. On average, it is estimated that a student studying in Dublin is likely to spend from 7, 000 euro to 12, 000 euro per year during their academic years. This cost of living is just an estimation and likely to vary depending upon the accommodation type, university, and lifestyle that student leads in their academic years.
Job Opportunities
Many students who come to Dublin to pursue their higher studies will find suitable job opportunities with the help of university. The universities regularly conduct “CV Workshops” and “Interview Skills” classes to help the students write exceptional CV and prepare them for an interview with the Irish companies and other reputed organizations. Most of the students that are graduated from the Dublin University and other institutions have secured respectable jobs in different organizations of repute across the world. The universities and colleges in Dublin provide advice on how to secure a job after graduating from the university. Campus placements are also conducted to help final year students to secure a reputed job in the domain of their interest.
Part Time Work
International students pursuing a full-time degree of at least one year’s duration which is recognised by Irish Department of Education and Skills presently don’t need any work permit to work in Dublin throughout their academic year. Lots of students studying in Dublin work during their academic year to earn some money to aid their lifestyle and also to increase their chance of employability. The part-time work in Dublin can be found through classified ads and local recruitment firms. Part time work in Dublin will not only help students earn money, but also enhance their CV and benefit them in their future career prospects. Work experience combined with academic qualifications can surely help students to stand out and enhance their employability chances post graduation.
Activities
Dublin is the city that is located in the midst of the Irish Sea and mountains, thereby offering the students to participate in a host of outdoor activities. The natural landscape comprising mountains, coastal areas and valley offer the students with a lot of activities and outdoor pursuit options to take part in for an adventure. Starting with a stroll, the alluring outdoor scenery provides you with great hill walking option, leisurely walks, intense hiking and ample opportunities to enjoy the nature in your own way.
If experiencing the countryside on foot is not your cup of tea, then rent a bicycle or use the horseback to explore the city to the fullest. You can enjoy horse trekking and equestrian related sports activities. Students can also involve in adrenaline and alternative outdoor land-based activities or other individual adventure sports activities around the country that take benefits of the natural landscape of Dublin. Windsurfing, waterskiing, windsurfing, sailing and surfing are some of the other water activities to enjoy in Dublin.
Indian Communities
Ireland Indian Council is the largest Indian society in Ireland comprising over 25000 members of the Indian community in the Republic of Ireland. Indian origins students studying in Dublin can approach this community to get in touch with some of the members and get guidance about the city while studying here.
Pubs
Dublin is known to have the best nightlife scene in Ireland and you will come across with regular student nights in some of the popular late night bars and pubs. Students looking for the best experience of nightlife in Dublin must head towards the Temple Bar. There are also other pubs and restaurants that host a variety of traditional music events and more. The Stag’s Head, O’Donoghues Bar and The Long Hall are some of the popular pubs in Dublin.