Education

TU Dublin: ‘Creating beacons for sustainability across industry and society’

Technological University Dublin is the second largest university in Ireland with a history going back to 1887.

TU Dublin campus locations include Aungier Street, Bolton Street, Blanchardstown, Grangegorman and Tallaght.

Colin Gleeson
Tue Apr 30 2024 - 01:00

Name: Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin)

Location: Dublin

Established: January 1st, 2019

Students: 27,000

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Overview: TU Dublin is the second largest university in Ireland. It has a rich history in providing technical education, with its legacy institutions of DIT beginning in 1887, IT Tallaght founded in 1992, and IT Blanchardstown founded in 1999.

It offers a wide range of courses that cater to diverse interests and career aspirations. From apprenticeships to PhDs, its courses span various disciplines and are accessible at levels 6, 7 and 8 across all faculties.

It is the top choice for QQI applicants, making 21 per cent of all offers nationwide.

Looking ahead, a spokeswoman for TU Dublin said the institution is “embedding sustainability as a learning outcome” across all academic programmes.

“In September, we introduced a new approach to student orientation, with over 5,400 first-year students participating in an induction programme that offered a practical sustainability dimension,” she said.

“By ensuring that every TU Dublin graduate is equipped with a sustainability education that is relevant to their discipline, we are creating beacons for sustainability across industry and society.

“These graduates are empowered throughout their careers to challenge unsustainable and exploitative work practices, making a real difference in the world.”

TU Dublin said it believes in a “well-rounded” learning experience that goes beyond academics, with a focus on hands-on, practical learning, with students taught by lecturers who bring “real-world experience to the classroom”.

“The university is committed to innovation and entrepreneurship, offering programmes and resources to support students in launching their own ventures and contributing to the thriving start-up ecosystem,” the spokeswoman said.

The university does not offer on-campus housing.

Campus

TU Dublin has five distinct campuses across Dublin City located in Aungier Street, Blanchardstown, Bolton Street, Grangegorman and Tallaght.

The campus at Grangegorman currently accommodates 10,000 students in its new buildings, the East Quad and the Central Quad, which will grow to 15,000 with the opening of the West Quad in the coming years.

The academic hub and library in Grangegorman will be ready in 2025, providing a library and learning spaces for the campus, including the Career Development Centre, the Maths Learning Centre, and Disability Support Services.

The Aungier Street campus specialises in business-related courses. With over 5,000 students, it is the largest business school in Ireland. The campus, located on a 26,000sq m site is built on the historical site of the former Jacob’s factory.

The campus is close to the green Luas line stop at St Stephen’s Green, and a range of cross-city Dublin Bus routes stop outside it. It is a five-minute walk from Dame Street, which is also serviced by a multitude of bus routes.

Upon completion of the West Quad, the activity on this campus is scheduled to move across the Liffey to Grangegorman.

The Bolton Street location has been a centre for technological education for over 100 years. This three-storey neo-classical building, designed by CJ McCarthy and built in 1908, has since been extended and retains many of its ornate features.

Specialising in the areas of engineering, architecture, building and environment, the campus is fully equipped with computer and electronic labs, lecture theatres with the latest audio-visual equipment and learning aids, fully equipped workshops, a library, restaurants, a students’ union area, and a student recreation area.

Bolton Street, centrally located, just a five-minute walk from both O’Connell Street and the Grangegorman campus, is serviced by a wide choice of public transport options, including the green and red Luas lines.

The Blanchardstown campus, located in northwest Dublin, is home to over 3,000 students in a 22.5-hectare site within the IDA College Business and Technology Park, Blanchardstown Road North, Dublin 15.

The modern campus comprises eight buildings, with a total area of over 22,000sq m. It is fully equipped with computer labs, electronic labs, lecture theatres with the latest audio-visual equipment and learning aids, fully equipped workshops, a library, restaurants, a sports hall, a fitness centre, a students’ union area, and lots of bicycle parking.

Construction is under way on a state-of-the-art teaching facility which will feature open, flexible spaces for active learning.

To complement the public transport options serving Blanchardstown, the university operates a dedicated shuttle bus throughout the academic year. The bus runs between Coolmine train station and selected stops in Dublin 15, including Blanchardstown Shopping Centre, where it links with Dublin Bus and Go-Ahead services.

In addition to the greater Blanchardstown area and the north and west of Dublin City, the campus also attracts students from neighbouring counties of Meath, Kildare, Cavan, Louth and beyond.

The Tallaght campus, based in southwest Dublin, is home to approximately 5,000 students. It is located on an 18-hectare site between Old Blessington Road, Belgard Road, and Greenhills Road in Tallaght, Dublin 24.

It is fully equipped with lecture theatres with the latest audio-visual equipment and learning aids, science, electronic and computer labs, culinary kitchens, a restaurant, a library, a coffee shop, and a students’ union area.

A €14.7 million Sports Science, Health and Recreation building on campus is now fully operational and provides an additional 3,282sq m of space.

This new building comprises teaching laboratories incorporating a gym, an exercise medicine laboratory, a sports hall, lecture theatres and classrooms.

The laboratories support research and teaching in exercise physiology, exercise rehabilitation, strength and conditioning, anthropometry, biomechanics, and performance analysis.

Sample course:

Computing with Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence (TU862) is a Level 8 Honours Degree delivered on the Tallaght campus. Machine learning and artificial intelligence are cornerstones of the next wave in information and communications technology, and IDA Ireland is pursuing an AI Island strategy set to attract the brightest and best AI players to work in Ireland. There is a skills gap in Ireland and internationally for data scientists with computing and business intelligence skills. This four-year degree course, designed in consultation with major IT companies such as AWS, Microsoft, SAP and IBM, develops a mix of computing, business intelligence and data science skills to address this gap.

Contact: tudublin.ie

Colin Gleeson

Colin Gleeson

Colin Gleeson is an Irish Times reporter

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