>> Biography of UCD President Dr Hugh Brady
>> UCD Strategic Plan to 2014 now available online
>> The UCD Alumni Fund connects former students with today’s UCD Community
>> The history of UCD, from Cardinal John Newman’s tenure to today
When I returned to Ireland from North America over a decade ago to take up an academic leadership position at UCD, I experienced not just a wave of nostalgia and pride in my alma mater but also a sense of excitement about the path ahead. The destinies of UCD and Ireland have always been intertwined. For over 150 years UCD and its graduates have played a central role in Ireland’s advancement as a dynamic and successful independent European state. The University will have to be even more ambitious, creative and successful in the years ahead if Ireland is to continue to flourish as a progressive knowledge society.
UCD today is a leading European research-intensive university where 3rd level undergraduate education, 4th level postgraduate masters and PhD training, research, innovation and community engagement form a continuum of activity. We strive to advance knowledge through high quality research and scholarship, to communicate knowledge through excellence in teaching and to use new knowledge to develop the businesses, products, policies and services of tomorrow.
Over 23,000 students and academics explore and learn in the creative and collegial environment of UCD’s Belfield campus. This beautiful leafy 320 acre gem hosts a unique mix of academic facilities, research institutes, libraries and archival collections, enterprise facilities, student villages, and sports and recreational facilities within a short distance of Dublin’s city centre.
UCD leads as the university of first choice for Irish school-leavers and our undergraduate students embark on a journey of academic and personal discovery. The UCD Horizons curriculum encourages the holistic development of our students. Building on the educational philosophy of UCD’s founder, John Henry Newman, UCD undergraduates are expected not just to become expert in their major subjects but also to explore a broader knowledge base and disciplinary mix through our elective system. In addition, students are actively encouraged to become involved in the many clubs, societies, sports and volunteering activities which have always been such a special part of UCD campus life.
UCD is a distinctively Irish university with global impact and prepares its students for life as global citizens. The University is home to over 3,500 international students from over 100 countries, many of whom are drawn from the Irish Diaspora. The UCD faculty is increasingly international – a rich diversity of backgrounds to complement UCD’s diversity of academic disciplines. UCD runs overseas programmes in partnership with leading international universities and education providers in China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Spain, and Sri Lanka. UCD students have access to a range of study abroad opportunities through the Erasmus Mundus programme and through UCD’s membership of the Universitas 21 network of global research universities.
Over 50% of UCD undergraduates progress to 4th level masters and PhD studies and UCD is Ireland’s leading 4th level provider with a rich offering of postgraduate programmes supported by dedicated Graduate Schools. In addition, UCD offers an exciting menu of continuing professional development, executive education and adult learning opportunities and is a wonderful venue for academic and professional conferences and summer schools.
UCD’s postgraduate programmes are intimately linked to the University’s thriving research programmes. A stroll through the campus, or even the UCD website, will reveal groundbreaking work on UCD writers such as Gerald Manley Hopkins, James Joyce, Kate O’Brien, Flann O’Brien, Maeve Binchy and Roddy Doyle; scholarship on the wonderful manuscripts of the medieval Franciscans, the Irish Folklore Collection or the papers of the Irish political parties; empirical studies on important social issues such as early childhood education, human development, and behaviour and perceptions of food and obesity; and cutting-edge scientific research in areas such as climate change and sustainable development, information and communications technology, the genetics of thoroughbred horse performance, and key medical challenges such as diabetes, arthritis and infectious diseases. Our academics operate in an environment that encourages cross-disciplinary research, thereby drawing on the academic diversity that is UCD’s great strength, and collaborate extensively both within Ireland and with leading international research institutions.
We are delighted that so many of our alumni now visit regularly to take part in class re-unions and other alumni events, to contribute to our academic programmes and mentor students, to avail of our campus facilities and to support the ongoing development of this great university.
Our doors are open to open minds. We invite you to step inside.
Dr Hugh Brady,
President