Behind the News: Ultan Hoey, emigrant student

Ultan Hoey was already at rag week at Tilburg University, in the Netherlands, when he received his first-choice CAO offer, of arts at NUI Galway, this week.

“I knew I’d do an arts course. I was interested in sociology, history and law, and then Tilburg University had a stand at the RDS Higher Options event,” the 18- year-old student says.

At first he thought that studying abroad would be “a bit too much commitment and life change”, but then he looked up courses at Tilburg and was taken by its three-year degree in liberal arts and sciences.

To get a place on the course he had to do an interview and write a letter to explain his motivation. “I could have done the interview on Skype, but I decided to do the interview at the university, to see what it was like,” says Hoey, who did his Leaving Cert in June at Newbridge College, in Co Kildare.

So by the time the CAO offer arrived, on Monday, he was already enjoying the atmosphere of Tilburg’s rag week. “I flew into Eindhoven last week, then met my room-mates, who are from South Africa, Finland, Poland and Liberia. Rag week – or hop week, as they call it here – is brilliant. It’s like going to a different festival every day.”

The international aspect of studying in mainland Europe and the wide range of subjects in first year were the big attractions for Hoey. “I’m allergic to science, so the course here is perfect for me. I will study business and management, social sciences, law and history in first year. I can do a major and minor subject in second year and do an exchange in third year. I’d like to go somewhere like New York, Singapore or South Africa.”

The course costs €1,900 a year; accommodation costs between €300 and €500 a month.

There has been an increased interest in arts courses across Europe among Irish students, according to Guy Flouch who set up Eunicas to support Irish students studying abroad. "Students have been going abroad to study medicine and veterinary science for about 10 years, but, more recently, students are also going to study business and arts," he says.

The Netherlands is one of the most popular countries; the absence of fees in Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Germany attracts Irish students to those countries, too. “There is a hunger for international students to do degrees through English, to compete on the international market. There is a strong concept of the right to third-level education, so courses can be easier to get into, but once you’re there you have to work hard and attend lectures,” Flouch says.

How is Hoey settling into life in the Netherlands? “It’s very easygoing. I’d been to Amsterdam before, and I like the people here. I feel at home, and it’s only an hour from Dublin. Tilburg is a lovely city, and I’ve got student accommodation in the centre. I haven’t got a word of Dutch, so I’ll see how that goes.”