University College Cork (UCC)

Political Science at UCC is mainly "European Studies", that means - as the name indicates - a big big emphasis on European topics. If you look around in other departments as well (History, Geography), you will find extremely interesting, sometimes even exotic seminars. The best course I attended: "Migration in Europe" with Mr Piaras McEinri (Geography department). This guy is brilliant!

Well, you just have to know and accept that academic life at UCC is more like in school rather than at a - for example - German university. Another important point: Irish students start their academic life at a age of 17. As a German student you are at least 20 years old when you join them through the Erasmus-programme. The library at UCC is rubbish for a political science student. Incredible! I based my research on the internet (good access in the computer labs) and the Munich library during my X-mas-break.

honestly, things don't start to get serious with classes until the last month and if you go to college in the US it will be a breeze.

Academics are not the reason to study abroad and if they are your reason, i suggest finding somewhere that takes it a bit more seriously. i had a great time when i did go to class though, they were hardly ever mandatory.

Some course are not very well done, but it is important the reletionship you have with the teachers: speak with them if you have any problem, they are nice and ready to help you.

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Mix Irish students more with internationa students.

All the exams are at the end of the year: a period of exams in the middle of the schoolyear, wouldn't do harm.

Take an Irish language course if you like a challenge and are interested in learning something you rarely find outside of Ireland.

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This University is hard. If you're gonna partie all year long UCC is not for you! Many essays and exams are taken during the year