An Interview With Oscar About College in Ireland
Oscar is home for the winter break, after his first semester in college. (Yes, it’s a long winter break — school starts again in about a week.) I’ve received quite a few messages asking for a report from Oscar, so this morning, we did a little interview. Enjoy!
How did you decide to apply to a school in Ireland?
Well I was working on applying to schools in France and then I realized that I wanted to do my university coursework in English. When I was applying, I had just finished taking the Bacc (short for Baccalaureate — the big standardized test in France that you have to pass to finish high school) and I was really worn out of doing my schoolwork in a second language. Don't get me wrong, I love French — but being able to do my coursework in English this past semester has been a lot easier.
Anyway, I knew that Ireland was English-speaking and still part of the EU, so it seemed like a great option. Staying in the EU meant I would have closer proximity to my family, and I heard lots of great things about Ireland, like cheap flights from Dublin to anywhere in Europe, and just great vibes overall.
In an American university, students typically start with general education classes, and then eventually declare a major. How does it work at your university?
You have to pick specific majors when you apply. But instead of majors, they’re called Courses. In my case, I got to apply to eight different Courses, and then I ranked my favorites out of the eight, and then I could choose from among the Courses I got accepted into.