TCD, yea ...No ??!

[FLaKe]

Hey everyone, need some hands over here ... Can u guyz give me the Disadvantages of Trinity College Dublin ? and Advantages
Cheers

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[leorl]

I'll get more people to post their impressions... don't have much time at the moment but here are some off the top of my head

Pros:
1) this varies by class, but in general, really fun people
2) good cooperation and comraderie among classmates (ie. sharing notes taken from outside sources, proactive class reps, good relationships between different years) that make things like med day and biosoc nights out a really good success
3) in the preclinical years especially, faculty who are really interested in teaching and supportive of students (esp. for Anatomy, biochemistry, pharmacology)
4) diversity - meet non-health science people if you participate in clubs (which you definitely should do), very successful sports teams at Trinity, good spirit in college
5) good opportunities to do research or other projects that interest you - all you really have to do is email faculty who're doing projects you're interested in.
6) good social scene both in Dublin and out

Cons:
1) INEFFICIENCY - pretty rampant all over Ireland, really. A lot of people with good intentions but somehow manage to go about it all wrong. This leads to confusion regarding exam dates (may affect flights home), not being told what rotation you're on until the day before, timetable conflicts, and missed lectures/rescheduling of loads of lectures. The last one is most obvious in clinical years because lecturers are consultants or reg's and their schedule sometimes conflicts. Eg. this year, we had 7+ lectures in Pathology cancelled, rescheduled/reordered which confused the hell out of everyone, and this caused major problems when that material was tested on the exam. It also means we skip a lot of classes or rotation time ourselves when we view that our time's being wasted.

2) the above leads to lack of organization or direction, meaning you have to arrange things yourself and be more on the ball and determine your own education moreso than say...the US. Just have to be prepared to take your education into your own hands. Eg...we've got an OSCE coming up, where things like ECG reading and Xrays are going to be examined. Fair enough, we need to know these, except not the whole class has been formally taught. If you're in that position, you need to go and discover yourself how to do it either by asking for tutorials or reading up in books.

Having said that, somehow the Irish schools are meant to prepare you well clinically, but I have a feeling that it's from your own determination. Trinity does care about it students...but moreso in final year than anytime else.

3) Dublin's a great city, but somehow, staying here too long gets depressing and negative. I don't know how this happens, but you need a break from here every once in awhile.

that's just a few really quickly...others might have more to add

 

[Lanthanide]

Hey there!...This seems to be a tough choice that you have to make, but if i were you, i would also make a list of the pros and cons of St Andrews University, and then compare...But if i were in your place, i would personally choose Trinity over St Andrews, first of all, since Trinity is going to offer a 5-year programme, whilst St Andrews' course is a 6-year programme and i have a friend there in St Andrews who, although generally happy, is quite complaining about the fact that lecturers tend to give students 'more than enough' which you would not normally need in your clinicals, and most importantly, when you're practising. Nevertheless, Trinity has one of the largest and extensive libraries in Ireland, and probably in Europe!...Trinity, and generally Dublin, do also provide the necessary facilities and resources that you would need to undertake a successive path towards your studies, and i wouldn't say that you do have those opportunities if you were in St Andrews since, considering the fact that i've been there to visit my friend, i kinda found it to be a very 'limited city'!..And by saying this I'm not trying to diss any St Andrews students out there, it's just a matter of personal preference!...The other point i'm going to make is also about what i would prefer, and that would be different ways of approaching medical facts and knowledge. Trinity's Medical course consists of lectures, practicals, Problem-based sessions, small-group tutorials as well as case studies. This means that one would be able to develop his/her communication skills, critical thinking, and also team work skills. I'm not sure how it is exactly done in St Andrews, but i was told that one thing to note is that the PBL done in St Andrews is totally different than the one used in Manchester University.
Anyhow, that is one of the major decisions that you will have to make in your life, thus, i would recommend you to carefully consider the consequences of your decision, as i myself had to make a similar decision and am happy with where i ended up!
I'm sorry for posting such a long post!

Good luck with your decision!