Term time proper may not begin for another month, but for more than 220 international students, the academic year gets off to a new start on this coming Monday. This particular group of students - mainly from North America - have opted to participate in the Early Start programmes being offered by UCC as a pre -session that provides a broad introduction to Irish Studies.
The Early Start concept is unique to UCC and is one of the reasons that UCC attracts such a hign number of North American students each year. These flagship programmes span a range of disciplines and offer a carefully guided approach to Ireland’s history, culture and civilisation. A suite of 8 discrete programmes is offered to cater for all academic tastes and backgrounds.
The College of Arts, Celtic Studies and Social Science offer programmes in Irish Archaeology, Irish Folklore and Ethnology, History and Modern Ireland, Literatures in Ireland and Musics in Ireland. The College of Science Engineering and Food Science offer a very popular programme in Irish Ecosystems while the College of Business Law offers two distinct programmes: one in Management and Marketing in the European Union and for the first time this year, a newly designed programme in Law in Ireland.
There is a strong fieldwork component in all the programmes and day trips to various sites across the country - and indeed to Northern Ireland in the case of the History programme - bring alive the material taught in the classroom. At the end of the four-week pre -session, the “Early Starters” will join their Irish counterparts and a further cohort of other international students who will commence term proper at the end of September
The students participating in the Early Start programmes are drawn from several universities across the US and Canada and will receive full academic credit for the courses they take at UCC. Student reaction to the Early Start programme has been highly positive.
Says Audrey Menard, a Commerce student from the University of Ottawa who attended UCC last year:
"The Early Start Semester in Management and Marketing is an excellent opportunity for anyone interested in business and administration to experience these fields from an Irish and European angle. Field trips allowed us go on site and meet small business owners as well as visit the facilities of multinational companies."
UCC is one of Ireland's most international campuses and more than 2,000 international students will study at the University in the coming year. UCC's international programmes are promoted and administered by the International Education Office. Full details on international programmes are available at www.ucc.ie/international
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