I'm applying to schools for a masters degree (Library science) I've applied to a bunch of schools in the states........but saw that I could still possibly attend school in Dublin. Anyone know about the school? Is going to grad school in Europe significantly different? Are there jobs/internships in Europe? Would I be able to come back to the U.S and find work?
Well, I have an American friend who wanted to finish his Bachelor degree at UD and was never happy (and eventually returned to Cali to finish it there). The same friend was happy studying in Tübingen and Amsterdam, however. So it certainly makes sense to look around within Europe. Europe is currently at the end of a 15-year process of implementing a Bachelor - Master system like you have in the US or England. Before usually you would just study for 5+ years at one piece and get a degree equivalent to a Master, with no such thing as a bachelor degree. However it is no problem to enter into a Master programme, even though not many Europeans work between their undergrad and their master programme. Another thing that is different is that you decide on your major before you start the undergrad, but I guess that is less important for you. Internship are available, but very often unpaid. However, study fees tend to be lower, in some countries there aren't any for European citizens. Cost of living varies greatly, however. There are more and more master degrees (or general degrees) in English, even in countries like Germany or Poland, so don't restrict yourself to Ireland and England (both countries that happen to have high costs of living and high study fees, btw). From the Americans I know that went back to the states after finishing a Master's degree here I haven't heard of anybody who hasn't found a job, but that probably depends on a big number of factors. If you don't have citizenship of a European country it will be nigh impossible to get a working permit for student jobs, soi keep that in mind. I guess wikipedia and facebook can help you come to a decision, too. Maybe I should add that times ranking and shanghai ranking only take english-language publications into account, so for non-english speaking countries that is a huge disadvantage. and therefore the ranking is somewhat misleading when it comes to German or French unis, for example.
Thanks a lot. I think what I'm gonna do is get my MLS here in the U.S (or Canada if i get accepted to UBC) and then maybe get a M.A in history or geography later .Maybe at a bigger name school. After talking to some librarians the ALA accreditation is vital.
Forgot to add that I haven't heard any of my Irish friends complain about UD, though, even though in light of the current crisis the financial situation in Ireland has worsened significantly, and studying has become much more expensive there (still cheaper than in the US, but still).