Candidature
On September 4th, 2013 I flew from Stuttgart to Dublin to start my semester abroad at the Dublin Business School. I chose your website because I was too late for a semester abroad, which would be organized through my home university. Since I only decided on a semester abroad in the 5th semester of my bachelor’s degree, only one semester as a “free mover” came into question for me, because the lead time and planning times for a stay abroad of 1.5 years organized by my home university are Rule. Your website works with universities and colleges that are spread across all continents. Since of course tuition fees and all other costs incurred during such a semester abroad must be borne by yourself only one semester in Europe was possible for me. Ireland is not one of the classic places chosen for a semester abroad. But on the one hand I was won over by the range of courses offered by the Dublin Business School and on the other hand by the diverse, small country in the north. Since I no longer had to have any courses credited, I was free to choose and use this to gain an insight into subject areas that are not offered at my German university, such as human resource management or consumer analysis.
I already looked for an apartment from Germany through Viva House Dublin LTD. This offers different rooms and apartments, spread over the whole city. The communication and processing worked very easily and smoothly and saved me from a long and tedious search for an apartment on site. Many people, especially foreigners, whom I got to know here, did not manage to find an apartment within two weeks because the demand is very high and the supply is very rare. Experience has shown, however, that landlords definitely prefer people here when it is mentioned that they come from Germany. You should also always have the required deposit with you so that you can put the money directly on the table on site and thus increase the chances of winning. Many landlords will not answer any emails either, which is why it is always a better strategy to call directly and seek personal contact. Generally speaking, it is easier as a German in Ireland, as the Germans enjoy a high priority and are seen as exemplary in many areas.
Costs
The cost of living cannot be compared with German prices. For a normal room you always have to reckon with 500-700 € monthly rent and groceries are on average 20-30% more expensive. Anyone who visits German food discounters such as Aldi or Lidl and observes the “special offers” in the large discount chain Tesco has the best chance of saving some money. It is very clear that alcohol and cigarettes are much more expensive here. A pint of beer in a pub always costs around € 5 and a pack of cigarettes starts at € 9 and up. Life outside of your own four walls is very expensive. This means that going out to pubs and discotheques as well as going to restaurants and takeaways are the things that are very expensive.
Life
The pub culture in Ireland is unique and cannot be compared with anything in Germany. Some things are very contradictory. On the one hand, drinking in public is forbidden, alcohol can no longer be sold in supermarkets after 10 p.m. and the curfew comes into effect between 3 and 4 a.m., which, however, means that the Irish start to drink very early in the evening drink and therefore already around 10 p.m. conditions prevail on the streets, as they may not prevail in our country until around 5 or 6 a.m. In general, people in Ireland drink an above-average amount, it is not for nothing that Ireland has the highest proportion of alcoholics in the EU, but at the same time also the highest proportion of people who do not drink alcohol at all. Ireland has slowly overcome the crisis of 2007 and is on an upward trend again, but the consequences of the crisis are clearly visible in Dublin in particular. The proportion of homeless people has risen sharply since the crisis and some buildings are still empty or are in ruins. In general, it can be said that Dublin is very opposite. There are very rich and well-kept areas just to the south of the city, and then there are some run-down areas in the northern part of Dublin.
When it comes to crime, you should be vigilant and keep your cell phone and wallet safe at all times. Also, I would not advise anyone to walk home alone at night, as I had to witness an attempted robbery myself. All in all, the crime rate is comparable to that in major German cities. Otherwise, people place much more value on sociability than is the case in Germany. This means that after work it is better to have a drink with colleagues or friends in a pub than to go straight home, as is more the case in Germany. The people here are very open and helpful. Even during my time at DBS, the tutors and staff were always helpful to us. This is probably not least because that almost 80% of all students at DBS come from abroad. In general, Dublin is an extremely international city where you can hear countless different languages throughout the day and meet people from all over the world.
The food culture, on the other hand, is not really appealing. In Dublin there is a shop in every second building that sells some kind of food, but you will not come across a choice of 5-6 dishes. Pizza, burgers, china noodles, chips and fish are the only options here to eat without spending a fortune in a restaurant, which is why you are very quickly led to cook your own food, mainly in the evening, for something Maintain variety in diet.
Dublin has nothing to do with the rest of Ireland and Ireland has nothing to do with Dublin. These are two completely different worlds, which every Irish person will confirm. The landscape and vegetation of Ireland is unique and very varied. So you should of course take the chance here and book one or the other bus tour to see the countless lakes, palaces and castles of this historically rich country.
Dublin Business School
My grades in the individual subjects are all made up of the texts assessed by the tutors. These each comprised 2000-4000 words and had to be completed in groups by a certain deadline. The semester ends in the last week before Christmas, which is why everyone can be home with their families on time for Christmas. All in all, this time not only helped me professionally, but also gave me the opportunity to get to know and experience a slightly different approach to life. Check jibin123 to see more reviews from current students.
