Looking back, I haven’t regretted my decision to do the semester abroad in Ireland . All in all, it was a great 3 months , in which I met a lot of nice people and, despite the university, was still able to see a lot of the green island.
The application for DBS proved easier than I thought. I sent all the necessary documents to your website, such as an overview of grades, proof of English, etc., which were then forwarded to the DBS. A few weeks later, the DBS gave me the approval. I decided on the ” Certificate in International Business “, which covers the subjects of International Marketing , Business Accounting , Business Communications , Multinational Business Practice , and Multinational Business Project as well as an elective (in my case Chinese). The quality of the courses varied depending on the professors and one’s own level of knowledge. International Marketing, for example, dealt with the absolute basics of marketing , which some already had at their home university, but was completely new to others. Overall, however, the courses were interesting and the grades were fair.
Regarding the “internationality” of my courses, it was a shame that the courses were almost exclusively composed of French and German. But this had something to do with the “Certificate” and was probably only so “extreme” in my time. If you have a free choice of courses, you can sit in lectures with Irish, American, etc. students. However, I quickly noticed that the level of English was very different and that made communication with other students sometimes very difficult.
Due to the large number of societies on offer (football, rugby, basketball, film, etc.), however, you also get to know many other students. For example, I signed up for the Football Society. Sometimes we had training twice a week, played in a university league and there were also cup games. The trainers studied at DBS themselves and were very open. With numerous trips to the surrounding sights and regular parties organized by the university (e.g. Halloween) one could distract oneself a bit from the university stress. So there were enough leisure opportunities available. The organization of the societies and the DBS in general is good. Even if there were minor problems, the contact persons were always very nice and dealt with them immediately.
The DBS buildings are located in the middle of the city. In many cafés, restaurants and pubs in the immediate vicinity you can find lunch deals for students that are affordable compared to the high price level in the city. The cafeteria also offers good food at affordable prices. After a while you will find a couple of student pubs or clubs where the prices are very fair (e.g. Dicey’s Garden) to go out. Check andyeducation to see more reviews from current students.
In general, however, you should calculate a little more money, as rents in Dublin are particularly high. I also recommend looking around for an apartment beforehand. If you have no problem driving 20-30 minutes into the city, I recommend a host family, as all of my fellow students have had positive experiences with it and these are also a bit cheaper. Otherwise you have to reckon with around 500 euros / month in the inner city area, although there are of course exceptions here. However, one should be prepared for an overall lower standard of living. For example, many had to struggle with mold.
Although I had a lot of group projects and had to write small term papers, I didn’t miss out on traveling. In the so-called Reading Week (middle of the semester) there are no lectures and so I was able to use the time for a round trip to see the other beautiful cities like Cork or Galway. The weather was sunny and mild for an astonishingly long time, so that I could take regular trips to the sea. The Wicklow Mountains, only an hour away, were perfect for hiking on sunny days. The small town of Howth is definitely worth a visit. So traveling was not a problem with a bit of clever timing . But Dublin is also a very good place to live and when the weather is nice, Stephens Green Park is the perfect way to relax. All sights in the city can be comfortably reached on foot and local public transport only has to be used for longer distances to other parts of the city.
Conclusion
I can only recommend everyone to spend a semester in Dublin. Although I missed some things from Germany, for me it was a city where you can definitely take it longer than “only” 3 months. It was an unforgettable time, especially in connection with the right people from the university.