Preparation
Since I did not have the time to plan a semester abroad on Erasmus due to my exams at my home university and I was otherwise quite undecided about it, MicroEDU was simply the natural choice with its incredibly comprehensive and professional help. Due to personal recommendations from my circle of friends, I was made aware of MicroEDU at an early stage, but the quick and extensive answering of my questions at all times surprised me a bit. So once again a big thank you to Ms. Bastianthat has withstood my innumerable questions. During my semester break (Feb-Apr) I finally started the application process and got all possible information (since the choice of university was still open). I sent my application in April. With a deadline in June that was still completely okay. I then received the DBS “Confirmation Letter” relatively quicklyin my mailbox. The application itself was easy and smooth, just as you would like it to be. After exploring the experience reports on the MicroEDU homepage, it quickly became clear to me that looking for an apartment there would not be child’s play. looking for a room. It is very important: Irish tenancy law stipulates that the landlord first gets to see the potential tenant before taking over the tenant (since many students keep trying to rent an apartment from Germany). All other advertisements that promise this are simply frauds (some of which exist due to the devastating supply situation). Visit ehuacom.com to get information about BU study abroad program.
Reside
Let us now seamlessly move on to the next point. As you can imagine, looking at the apartments on site is a must. Therefore, plan plenty of time (preferably a week before the start of the lecture). I had a lot of fellow students who had nothing for a long time or who moved from room to room. Otherwise everything else is very unproblematic. The usual Irish landlord acts according to the motto: First come, first serve! So speed is the be-all and end-all. In addition: For exchange students who are there longer than a semester, the housing market is much more relaxed, since most offers are available from 9 months of residence. You can roughly orientate yourself on the prices for London: So very, very expensive.
I myself paid about 900 € for my room, which was newly furnished but all in all without heating, proper cooking equipment and a fold-out bed was rather poorly equipped. The Irish level is simply not the German standard, but where is it? In some experience reports it says 400 € pp, but it should be clear that you then share the room. All in all, you should plan on renting € 600-1000.
University
The DBS is really very centrally located on Aungier Street, one of the largest streets in Dublin with an incredible number of restaurants and a little further also most of the clubs (not far from Trinity College). The DBS mainly consists of two large buildings, which are located 5-10 minutes’ walk apart. The equipment itself is no longer the latest but manageable. There is a very small, but very cozy and also good and inexpensive cafeteria as well as a “common room” with PlayStation, loud music, table tennis etc. The university itself also has a very good reputation in Ireland and also here in Germany, it is but the largest private education provider in Ireland. About the courses: The level fluctuates extremely. My courses:
Advanced Economic Perspectives: Since I was deepening economics and business administration in Hohenheim, but especially macroeconomics, I wanted to choose something that I also enjoy. But after a few hours it passed. Mainly we have drawn models with completely absurd explanations that would have made any decent economics professor in Germany blush in the face. Well, DBS isn’t really known for its economics courses either. It was explained in great detail, but this would not have been necessary given the level of the course. After the semester, an exam was written (my only one), which in terms of effort cannot be compared with the one here, but it was one of the most difficult exams there.
Employability in Action: Everyone had to complete the Bachelor’s course and so it came about that this course was the only one in which I came into contact with Irish people (most subjects are with other Germans and French, but mainly exchange students). You learned some great things, learned for prospective job interviews, but only in group work and the lecturer was incredibly strict. A total of 3 deliveries.
Financial Accounting: In this course we 3 German exchange students were sometimes the only ones, otherwise there were 7. Very nice lecturer, the subject was also really good and was the only real challenge for me in English during my stay, it was after a few Time but also rather very easy, as we did more homework and exercises than VL.
Financial Management: The subject in which I lost my belief at the level of this college. We sometimes discussed the NPV for three weeks, and some of the class still couldn’t. Nonetheless, a very nice lecturer and a large course for the local area (approx. 20-25 people). A housework at the end.
Financial Structured Products: My absolute favorite course, which was certainly also due to the incredibly good lecturer and his enthusiasm to show us his point of view. A very practical course, something that is not known from the German university landscape in this sense. Even if the actual course topic was derivatives in all its facets, the other course (Treasury and Risk Management) was omnipresent. A must to choose both courses together as they combine perfectly. The level should certainly not be too low for people who do not come from the banking / finance environment.
Treasury and Risk Management: Same lecturer, same approach, which absolutely inspired me, so that I am now even active in this industry. Again, very practice-oriented, especially in the term paper, emphasis was placed on Excel calculations with various calculations. Basic knowledge in statistics would not be wrong, but you can also teach yourself everything. The supervision of the term paper is not perfect, but it is very hard and cannot be compared with Germany, since the lecturer even takes the time to check the term paper in advance and gives important information (but you should get along with the lecturer). Without these two courses, the semester would probably have been a flop, but these two courses are highly recommended!
General: In the DBS there is compulsory attendance! So you have to register before each course, otherwise there will be deductions in the grade in some courses. This is completely incomprehensible, since as an exchange student you mainly have to hand in homework in December (for me it was 5!) And therefore could use the time more sensibly. A certificate is required in the event of no-show. There were various rumors circulating right up to the end, according to which, for example, you must not miss more than 30% of the course in order for the course to be credited. In addition, the DBS offers a very diverse range of sports. In addition, there are numerous other societys where you can come into contact with other fellow students.
Life
In Dublin itself there is always something to do.Since I had to be at the university every day until about 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., the days went by relatively quickly. In the evening you can get really drunk in one of the countless pubs. A beer costs between € 2-7, with the average in a normal pub being around 5.40. And yes, the Irish like to drink, a lot and, above all, always! Morning, noon, evening. No time to see the pubs empty. You can have a great chat with them, that you go to a pub alone and not immediately make 10 new friends is almost impossible. Otherwise Ireland of course has a lot of nature but also the usual rain. Unfortunately, my experiences with the weather are extremely negative. It may be that I come from the sun-drenched south, but from mid-October it rained continuously. It was really bad in December. Not a day without rain and above all every day with almost no sun. In return, Ireland presented itself from its other side in September, it was sunny (but windy) almost every day and it sometimes did not rain for weeks. From Dublin itself you can get to all parts of the country relatively quickly and also to various suburbs such as Howth / Bray / DunLaoghaire, which are an absolute must and all are beautifully located by the sea. Otherwise, apart from the rents, Dublin is a normal city in terms of prices. There are enough shopping opportunities with LIDL / ALDI, and the quality is significantly better than here in Germany. The Irish, like all Anglo-Saxons, are a people who really like to eat out, which is also evident from the sheer selection of the most diverse restaurants. Dublin is quite a big city, but unfortunately it lacks a decent local transport system. Since there is no U-Bahn / S-Bahn or anything else and only buses run at exorbitant prices (the monthly ticket for students was around 120 €!), We walked a lot. At the beginning it was very annoying, but you got used to it quickly and I have to say, after a while in D I miss it a bit again.
