More and more Irish students are taking up the opportunity to apply for degree programmes overseas and study abroad.
There are many reasons for this, including missing out on Central Applications Office offers, to accommodation and lifestyle challenges, as well as simply to satisfy a sense of adventure.
There are more than 2,000 degree courses taught through English around Europe with the majority of them in the Netherlands, which is the number one destination for Irish students, with Poland, Denmark, Italy, and Germany also popular.
As an EU citizen, you are entitled to study at any university within the European Union under the same conditions as nationals.
Representatives from dozens of third-level institutions from Ireland, Britain, Europe and further afield will be on hand at Higher Options this year to give students a flavour of what is on offer out there. Here are ten of them.
Poznan University of Medical Sciences
This university has been educating medical professionals, conducting research and providing the local community with health services for more than a century.
Located in the city of Poznan and rooted in Polish tradition, the university has developed a network of international science and business partnerships throughout this time. In 1993, it became the first school in Poland to offer full-time studies in English.
Students are in contact with patients at its clinics from second year on so they combine theory with practice.
Those students who engage in voluntary service will have an opportunity to assist their lecturers during their duties in clinics, which also involves active participation in medical procedures and surgeries.
Em Normandie Business School
Founded in 1871 and one of the oldest French business schools, Em Normandie is one of the 1 per cent of business schools in the world that are triple-accredited.
At the national level, it is a member of the very closed circle of 38 management schools that are members of the Conférence des Grandes Écoles.
It is one of the world’s top business schools and has more than 6,353 students on seven campuses in Caen, Le Havre, Paris, Boston, Dubai, Dublin, and Oxford.
It runs programmes in finance; international trade; digital marketing; human resources; logistics and supply chain; management; and entrepreneurship.
Coventry University
Students at Coventry University benefit from state-of-the-art equipment and facilities in all academic disciplines including health, design and engineering laboratories, performing arts studios and computing centres.
It has been chosen to host three national centres of excellence in teaching and learning which has enabled it to invest substantial sums of money in health, design and mathematics.
Its city-centre campus is continually developing and evolving, and it has plans for further investment in it over the next few years. It is a big presence in Coventry, and contributes to the city’s friendly and vibrant atmosphere, while also fostering successful business partnerships.
Through its links with leading-edge businesses and organisations in the public and voluntary sectors, students can access project and placement opportunities that enhance their employability on graduation.
New York University
Since its founding in 1831, NYU has been an innovator in higher education, reaching out to an emerging middle class, embracing an urban identity and professional focus, and promoting a global vision that informs its 20 schools and colleges.
Today, NYU is regarded as one of the most prominent and respected research universities in the world, featuring top-ranked academic programs and accepting fewer than one in eight undergraduates.
Anchored in New York City and with degree-granting campuses in Abu Dhabi and Shanghai as well as 12 study away sites throughout the world, NYU is a leader in global education, with more international students and more students studying abroad than any other US university.
NYU students come from nearly every state and 133 countries, and the university draws upon the diverse backgrounds of its faculty, staff, and students, ensuring its scholarship and teaching benefit from a wide range of perspectives.
NYU stands out among the top US universities in its representation of low-income and first-generation students within its community.
The university caters to students from those that are beginning their undergraduate education and pursuing a strong liberal arts foundation to those seeking an advanced degree with a professional focus.
As such, its schools, colleges, and degree-granting campuses offer a diverse spectrum of undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and specialised degree programs.
Cardiff Metropolitan University
Cardiff Metropolitan University delivers professionally recognised degrees, together with impactful research and innovation, in art and design, business and management, education and public services, sport and health sciences, and technologies and engineering.
It has more than 1,600 core staff and above 25,000 student enrolments, 23 per cent of which are international students from over 130 countries with over 33 per cent studying postgraduate programmes.
It has a further 13,500 students in 13 countries across the world studying its programmes through its 13 global education partners.
Hanze University of Applied Sciences
This is the largest university of applied sciences in the northern Netherlands. Hanze offers both bachelor’s and master’s degree programmes in a variety of fields such as art, business, communication, engineering and health.
Most international study programmes operate from the Zernike Campus, located in the north of the city of Groningen, within a 15-minute biking distance from the city centre. The campus can also easily be reached using public transport.
As a university of applied sciences, students get the chance to apply the knowledge gained from lectures in assignments and projects from day one. They will learn by doing, always accompanied by the right amount of theoretical background.
They will graduate with work experience — as all students do a work placement — as well as a graduation internship during their studies. As a result, they will have actual work experience on your CV upon graduation.
Anglia Ruskin University
ARU is an innovative global university with students from 185 countries studying there. It offers courses in a wide range of areas from accounting and finance to architecture, computer science, engineering, law, nursing, marketing and policing, among others.
It was named Times Higher Education University of the Year in 2023, which recognised its success in delivering high-impact initiatives across its campuses in Cambridge, Chelmsford, Peterborough, Writtle, and London.
It is also rated in the top 10 per cent of universities in the country for graduate employment.
Liverpool John Moores University
With a heritage that stretches back to 1823, LJMU is now one of the largest and well-established universities in the UK. Within its five faculties, its research is influencing policymakers, improving people’s lives and finding solutions to the problems of the 21st century.
Its academic structure is divided into five faculties, each home to world-leading research, teaching and learning in a wide range of fields. They are arts, professional and social studies; business and law; health; science; and engineering and technology.
Scotland’s Rural College
Scotland’s Rural College was established in 2012 through the merger of the Scottish Agricultural College with Barony, Elmwood and Oatridge Colleges. Through these institutions, it can trace its lineage back more than 100 years.
Its vision is to be Scotland’s “enterprise university” at the heart of a sustainable natural economy.
Education, research, and consultancy at SRUC aim to grow a natural economy fuelled by responsible use of the world’s natural resources: people, land, energy, water, animals and plants.
By working in partnership, it is focused on solving the “wicked challenges” facing the planet, including climate change, biodiversity and access to nutritious food and clean water.
Imperial College London
Since its founding in 1907, Imperial has sought to be a world-leading and a world-changing university. It has combined its strength in science, engineering, medicine and business with scientific discovery, innovation and entrepreneurship, to create real-world impact.
It has some of the UK’s best-resourced entrepreneurship facilities to give an edge to its research-intensive education — ranked among the best in the world.
It has more than 350 student-led clubs and societies, arts and music programmes and state-of-the-art recreational facilities are just some of the options enjoyed by its global student community.
Its academic strategy is geared towards pushing the frontiers in world-leading research, life-changing education and transformative innovation. Its strategy is geared to deliver transformative impacts for societal benefit on a global scale.
It draws on its ground-breaking fundamental research and ability to develop new insights to enable sustainable change and improve the world. It has a vision for an improved student experience that prepares them to be leaders, to innovate and drive change.
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