I first came to RCSI in 2014, working as an intern in a small research project in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health Medicine, in order to finalise my Master of Science final thesis from a Dutch University. As I got on well with my supervisors, we decided to continue collaborating. I applied for PhD funding, hoping that I would be able to return to Ireland and RCSI - which I did, a year later. I am mid-way through my PhD at RCSI now and do not regret this decision at all. People in Dublin, or wider in Ireland, but also specifically in RCSI are very friendly, helpful and open to foreigners like me (German-Lebanese). The biggest challenge with moving here certainly was the housing condition in Dublin - renting contracts are expensive, housing conditions not always ideal and in particular at the beginning of the academic year, the competition for rooms is high. Looking back at this now, I should ideally have taken a short-term rent somewhere farther out of the city centre until the worst flow of incoming students was over and search from there. Apart from this, however, there is no single reason why I would not recommend studying at RCSI. The city is a bit pricey, but has a lot to offer all the same, the weather is actually not as bad as people always tend to say, and both within and outside the college, people here know how to enjoy their lives and socialise. On top of that, for anyone seeking contact to people from similar backgrounds, RCSI has a lot of international students - sometimes I wonder whether these outnumber the Irish people you get to meet here.
A short note on the research programme, I assume like everywhere this can differ widely depending on supervisors and the actual programme chosen. However, I have not heard bad stories from other postgraduate studies. Speaking for myself, I am enjoying an excellent level of supervision, the well-built research infrastructure offered at RCSI, and I am able to work independently.
What would you improve about this program?
Indeed, it may be helpful if a little more support was offered to students before they move to Ireland. As far as I know, most students stay in hostels or hotel rooms for the first few days or weeks upon their arrival and have difficulties finding long-term accommodation. It may be helpful to them if the college could provide support, e.g. through setting up a central contact point for queries around this issue, or by recruiting voluntary mentors who help incoming students before and in the first few weeks of their programme.