Since 2019 the School of Chemistry has offered an 8-week Summer School in Organic Chemistry for students from US universities wishing to complete their OChem requirements while studying at University College Dublin and exploring Ireland. Currently, we work with partners from the (opens in a new window)University of California system and have since grown by the addition of the(opens in a new window) University of Hawaii and, most recently, (opens in a new window)Penn State. Our small class size of 20-30 students is an asset allowing each participant to benefit from this student-centred offering to ensure a successful outcome from this intensive program. The Summer School starts in mid-June and covers all aspects of the Organic Chemistry curriculum as taught in the US. Daily classes take part in the morning that are complemented by tutorials, problem solving workshops and labs in the afternoons. Weekly tests enable our students to apply new knowledge prior to final exams at the end of weeks 4 and 8. The program is delivered by several Organic Chemistry professors from within the School of Chemistry. All academic activities take place in the modern facilities of the UCD School of Chemistry which is part of the O’Brien Centre for Science where meals are served in the Pi-restaurant during weekdays. Accommodation is provided in the UCD Student Village which is a short 5-minute walk away. Weekends are set apart to allow students to travel in Ireland and this year included 4 organised visits to the Cliffs of Moher, Kilkenny, Newgrange and Howth.
Academic contact: (opens in a new window)Dr Marcus Baumann
Administrative support: Deirdre Murphy, School Office.
2022 Group Photo, Outside the O'Brien Centre for Science, University College Dublin.
Testimonials
“One of the things I loved most about this program was the amount of help that was given. Each TA and professor really gave their time to help which I absolutely appreciated. “
“The four organised trips were wonderful and great! I’m glad we got to see Newgrange and do the Howth hike. There were plenty of opportunities to explore Ireland and Europe during the weekends. I was fortunate enough to explore Galway, Cork, Dublin, London, and even Amsterdam!”
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“I highly recommend this program to future US students; I can’t praise enough how this experience has been. It knocked out one of the hardest classes for me AND was a vacation. It was the perfect environment to learn due to the size of the class and engaging learning.”
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“This was the greatest experience of my life, and I would absolutely recommend this to any student. The experience of learning from a prestigious university and amazing professors, while also exploring a new country and making so many new friends, it is absolutely worth it. The biggest challenge would just be learning all the material in such a short amount of time. But with enough focus, it is absolutely doable”
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