NCI Blog

NCI at a glance: get to know us a little better!

Thinking about starting or going back to college? Or doing an evening course? September marks the beginning of a new academic cycle, and it’s not just the kids that are preparing themselves for the classroom.

Dr Josephine Bleach, of the Early Learning Initiative* at NCI, offers these suggestions for making the most of the last weekend of the summer holidays. It is that time of year again. All the schools are back on Monday. Pens, pencils, copies, books and uniforms are flying out of shops as if there is no tomorrow. Just take a deep breath. Step back from it all and enjoy the last weekend of summer.

If you’re coming to NCI this September, these faces will become very familiar to you. The officers of the NCI Students’ Union are here to represent the interests of our students – and provide access to a host of social, recreational and other services throughout your college years. Of course, they may already be familiar to you – if you read yesterday’s Irish Independent, you will have seen the interview with Clubs and Societies Officer, Patrick Erhard.

Karen Mooney and Jonathan Lynch from the Student Support team outline some of NCI’s support services National College of Ireland offers a very supportive learning environment with a wide range of supports and a dedicated Student Support team, who are happy to help with any assistance you might require throughout your time with us. We are available for students to drop in and have a chat about what help they may need and we will ensure you are given access to whatever support you may require. Below are some of the specific supports available

Dr Josephine Bleach, Director of NCI’s Early Learning Initiative, has some tips for making learning fun and family-friendly! Weekends are precious, but can fly by all too quickly. Make the most of yours by planning a fun-filled family weekend, creating memories, doing things you enjoy and helping the kids to learn. My top three things for having fun and learning together as a family this weekend are:

Yes, returning to part-time study could be the best career decision you make. Certainly, improving your job prospects and earning more over the course of your career are valid reasons for doing a part-time course. But they’re not the only benefits: here are five you might not even have considered. You’ll Become More Popular Whether it’s a coffee after class, exchanging notes or just chatting to the people who sit beside you, one thing’s for sure: you’re going to meet new people. Because of the small class sizes at National College of Ireland, our graduates report that meeting a diverse group of new people with different life experiences is an unexpected benefit of studying part-time. And those new friends you’re making? They’re also a network of contacts, that will stand you in good stead as your careers progress.

Dr. Leo Casey, Director of NCI's Centre for Research and Innovation in Learning and Teaching, shares his thoughts on living and learning.

We at NCI are genuinely delighted to learn that our blog has been nominated in two categories in the Blog Awards Ireland 2014: Best Education Blog, and Best Corporate Blog. The Blog Awards Ireland celebrate the best in Irish blogging and, from perusing the nomination list, it’s clear that there’s an incredible amount of talent within Ireland’s blogging community.

Finding student accommodation in Dublin can be stressful – especially if it’s your first time around. With CAO offers just a few weeks away, the reported student accommodation crisis means that some students are encountering difficulties in finding a place to live. For first years and their families in particular, this is an unwanted additional worry at a time of uncertainty and change. That’s why National College of Ireland reserves a portion of on-campus accommodation for our first year students – despite the rest of our rooms booking out within two hours of applications being opened.