Trinity Dublin verus Bath, Warwick, UCL etc..... Can you help?

[Rarily]

Hello
Can you help? My daughter has got A levels and has done well enough to study Maths at Bath or possibly at Warwick / UCL. I believe these are excellent places for Maths.
We are heading to Trinity in Dublin for an open day - we have Irish connections as a family and she wanted to look there too.
I am not sure how to advise her. I don't want her to be 'trapped' into feeling pressured to go to the universities that reflect her grades - Trinity requires a "B' in Maths and she has A* and A in Further maths.
Does any of you know how Ireland / England universities compare? Any thoughts particularly if you are a mathematician I'd really appreciate. I have lectured in universities, but in nursing, so it's a completely different world where connections and institutions don't impact so much on career paths..... Thank you!

Apologies @Glooop, I didn’t read your question properly.

Yes, many students move from TH in Y1 to KC in Y2. Once the booking window opens, circa May if I remember rightly, it has a straightforward rooms option portal.

Thank you all for your responses and advice. It was so helpful. In the end it turned out that my daughter was an A level grade short for maths. I had wrongly assumed that she would be fine based on the front page information and comparing across to similar UK universities. The grading system is pretty ferocious! Sadly (for me at least - I really wanted her to have the opportunity to go to Ireland if she wanted) there aren’t other subjects that she would want to do - the UK has more choice around applied maths , data science etc. anyway, thanks again .

Glad she has found other options. It is quite an achievement to get to TCD full stop - never mind about being offered a place from the UK which I don't think is often appreciated. It definitely isn't an 'easier' option which is often the assumption. I am aware though that it isn't accessible for everyone given that there is no funding for UK students to attend.

Mine is currently finding the work as full-on as their Oxford contemporaries.

@Friendshipgroup The terms at TCD appear to last 12+ weeks (with revision weeks thrown into the mix at the middle and end points), the terms at Oxford last only 8 weeks, with considerably more work needing to be undertaken during that time. Its not really comparable.

TCD has 2 semesters. Oxford has 3 terms. It adds up to roughly around the same number of weeks so I am not sure of your point?

Given that my DC has old school friends at Oxford now studying the same subject and friends at other Uni's also doing the same subject I think they would all probably have a better insight into how much work/essays they all have to do at each establishment?

If you can't tell the difference between 8 wks continuous work with 12 essays due and 12 wks work with breaks and only 8 essays due (as an example) then that's all the explanation I can be bothered to give.

You can obviously have different levels of intensity within 8 weeks, 12 weeks, whatever. I'm sure there are differences course by course, never mind institution not institution.

TCD used to have two nine week terms followed by a six week term. They've had no trouble getting through the same curriculum following change. There's nothing sacred about 8 week term structures (or any other)

the POINT is that MORE work is done at Oxford over LESS time.

Jesus wept.

Where are you getting the more work from?

The only objective fact we have here is term structure.

It's no skin off my nose, but it seems pretty obvious you'd need more information to assert that.

I’m not sure why you are shouting at people on the Internet who are offering other points of view to your own? You seem quite het up about this - on what was generally a helpful thread for the OP and others. Nor why you seem so determine to rubbish an observation my DC has made in comparison with their peers who are actually at Oxford. Oxford students are set work over the holidays where TCD student are not. This is not about one being better than the other nor any term/structure being better than others either. It is about what makes each student happy. And my DC’s peers frankly are not thrilled about having to work through the holidays when their peers elsewhere are not…They are both great institutions undoubtedly, but The Times reports today that the Vice-Chancellor of Oxford during her annual oration confirmed that 1 in 8 students at Oxford sought counselling in the last year with most citing anxiety. Make of that what you will.

If I was going to be really provocative I would also add that a 3 A grade offer met but not exceeded (pretty standard offer for Oxford to make for most Humanities Degree courses for example) would be unlikely to get a student a place on a significant number of the most sought after degree courses at TCD.

Yeah but internationally TCD no longer holds the same cache as either Oxford or Cambridge or many other places. Its something like #70 internationally. It used to be considered the "Oxford" of Ireland, but has slipped.

This seems very important to you. I'm not British but everyone's well aware that Oxford and Cambridge have resources most other universities can only dream of. Most European states spread the resources more evenly across institutions.

That's no impediment to TCD keeping undergraduates as well occupied and challenged as those at Oxbridge though - undergraduate experience is marginal to international league tables, and Irish HE structures don't incentivise separation of teaching and research to the same extent as in the UK. League tables don't tell you how many essays students write or how intensively they work. They tell you a lot about scale, and Oxford and Cambridge are primarily research institutes - undergraduates are a very small part of their business, though I'm sure they're a successful part.

If you've come on this thread to argue that the Oxford experience is superior to any other in every way, I'm sure you won't change your mind. But PP are talking about their children's experience of university now, and Oxford doesn't have a monopoly on setting a bit of homework! There'll be huge variation across courses, never mind universities.

From other posts made I think it’s the case that this poster has a DC applying to Oxford this year….and from what has been written above about psychology is not now applying to TCD….which is just as well given it’s ’lack of cache’ and terrible worldwide rankings 🙄

Okaaay. Well it’s great of you to jump on this thread to give us the benefit of your unsubstantiated opinions. I do hope your DC finds their tribe next year at a university acceptable to your own extremely high standards while the rest of us on this thread just make do with the world’s 70th best university…in some cases having chosen it over significantly ‘higher’ ranking institutions.

Not everyone considers league tables as the be all and end all. It’s about student happiness, experience and the chances of post graduate opportunities/ employability post graduation.

My student is really happy there, working very hard, having fun and getting excellent results so far, that will hopefully open doors ahead. That's the core of what we want for them.

@Friendshipgroup I'm sure your student will have a brilliant time at TCD. Great choice. Enjoy your trips there too!
@Rarily I hope your DD is really happy wherever they choose.

The OP wanted to know how UK and Irish Unis compare, and if there's an impact on employment prospects. A motivated student, with great academics and people skills, has great employment prospects. A Maths degree is extremely attractive to employers. Lots of Irish grads are in IB/Consulting/Law jobs in London and NY etc

TCD's a brilliant Uni. They've just renamed the main library after the wonderful, late alumna Eavan Boland (who was a Prof at Stanford). Oxford's Louise Richardson has a TCD History degree, was the first female Vice-Chancellor at both St Andrews and Oxford.

If she's more interested in applied maths type subjects, she should look at UCD. My info is 20 years out of date, but back in the day UCD had the better reputation for more applied subjects.

Hello - nightlife question
I've started a new thread on this elsewhere under Higher Education, but I wondered if you could help?
Parent of a prospective Trinity College Dublin student here. My DS is v keen to accept an offer but we're trying to figure out whether it'll be the best place for him socially. He's gay, and loves clubbing in London in places like Heaven. We have read elsewhere on MN that you can't get into nightclubs in Dublin unless you're over 21. Is that true? TIA for any help you can give.

Hello @booklover789, to not duplicate I will just respond on this thread re your question.

There are plenty of clubs but some will restrict to over 21’s though I believe can be flexible with their door policy.

But 4 years is a long time, even with an Erasmus year out to spend in a city, that does not match the nightlife of some UK cities. If yours is already enjoying the Heaven/Soho London scene, Dublin will ultimately have a smaller vibe.

Feedback from DD ans my nephew is that Belfast has more welcoming and vibrant night life for LBGTQ community vs Dublin, but that’s just their opinion.

If nightlife is a key driver on the decision making, it may be their UK option is better.

Thank you so much. That is really interesting. He would definitely prefer to choose TCD and Dublin is clearly a very cosmopolitan and welcoming city. It seems such a shame that door policies at nightclubs could be the clincher! Do the university societies fill in the gaps in terms of nightlife? (In my day the centre of Cambridge wasn’t great for clubs but there was always plenty going on in the colleges.) I suppose my question is: how much fun is there on a Saturday night?

Mine has an exhausting battery @booklover789 she is a full on social and academic queen with a wide and eclectic group of friends.

Absolutely yes to societies extending networks. Don’t forget that Dublin is also hub for cheap flights beyond which again, those inclined like mine will maximise to the full.

Honestly approaching 4th year; most of her friends are claiming cabin fever wherever they are, or that people are heads down. I don’t think Dublin feels that type of claustrophobia, if the right ground work has been done by the YP in early years. It’s most certainly not for the meek, requires very grown up living from the outset, but overall is a fabulous place to work and play.

Good luck on the decision making!

Hi there,

I am the parent of a clubbing student...in Dublin a lot of the policy for both pubs and clubs is over 21 at the weekend - which just shifts the student focus to student led events at the weekend or they work at the pubs and clubs...during the week the scene is very vibrant and as long as you are over 18 you are in. Mine has loads of gay friends and they have no hassle and the scene is very tolerant in the city.

Honestly, going to TCD has been the best thing for mine - food is no more expensive, nor is eating out but the student travel costs are just fantastic...very reliable and very, very cheap in relation to London. Because it is Dublin (and cheap flights are plentiful - Manchester to Dublin can be £30 return), loads of friends come over every weekend to stay and that makes it really special too. There are loads of internships to apply for at the major companies and the opportunities to attend festivals, concerts, gigs and sporting events has made the whole experience really enjoyable. Out of the friendship group from School I'd say mine is the happiest in terms of work/social life balance - and has done well enough in Yr1 to be considered for the most prestigious Erasmus courses in Y2 (highly prized are HK/Australia and the US but you have to be one of the highest scoring students to be eligible to apply). I'd wholeheartedly recommend.

Just jumping back on to say that mine has accepted a place at TCD and managed to get into Trinity Halls. They turned down an unconditional place at Durham to read History at TCD as the course is much more interesting to them.

Just on global rankings discussed earlier in the thread - I had a look at TCD vs Durham and TCD consistently beats Durham across a number of different global ranking systems.

Also we just the TH fees are literally half those of Durham £5k vs £10k (Durham was catered) and they can be paid monthly which helps us out immensely.

Just booking our trip over now for TWO a weeks time (it’s a quick turnaround) and have booked concert and theatre tickets for a visit later in the term and in 2026.

Does anyone know if the internships are open to 1st years?

Apologies for my typos traveling currently

My husband did Maths in ‘Trinners’ as he is from Derry. His reply is, what does the applicant want to focus on post university? Finance vs research vs academia vs teaching. In Global caché it’s, Warwick, Bath, Trinity.

Trinity has solid graduate employability in Ireland and EU (c. 85 %), and is highly respected locally. However, it has much less clout with London-based recruiters and globally than Warwick/Bath.
That said, for those planning to live/work in Ireland or within the EU tech/finance sectors, TCD remains a top-tier local brand.