Madam, - As I read John G. O'Dwyer's very interesting article on UCC's Social Study diploma course (An Irishman's Diary, October 14th), my thoughts drifted back some 30 years to the gathering darkness of an October evening when I enrolled in my local vocational school for that same course.
The course was to have a profound effect on my life. This was no ordinary night class. By means of the course UCC succeeded in bringing university-level education to our local town, long before the concept of distance learning was heard of. My classmates and I were introduced to economics, sociology, and philosophy in a gentle and supportive manner. We also became aware of the pleasure, enjoyment and fulfilment of returning to study.
One word of caution however, UCC's Social Study Course is highly addictive. The writer, who enrolled on the course all those years ago, is still a student. - Yours, etc,
DAN FINNAN, Ballyryan West, Sologhead, Tipperary Town.