Welcome to Trinity College Dublin YOUR UNIVERSITY YOUR EXPERIENCE Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin is a university with a global reputation, committed to the highest excellence in all academic endeavours. The ‘Trinity Experience’ is a chance in a lifetime for academic and personal development. Our inspiring professors are dedicated teachers in their fields, and global leaders in research and scholarship. Trinity also has many diverse societies and clubs, which contribute much to the life and fabric of the university and its diverse community. As a student you feel a great sense of history, of walking in the footsteps of famous graduates, many of whom have shaped the history of Ireland and the wider world. I hope you will join us to study here in September and I look forward to welcoming you to Trinity for an exciting new journey that will open your mind to new experiences, ways of thinking and friendships, many of which will last a lifetime. Dr Patrick Prendergast, Provost 1 WELCOME TO TRINITY COLLEGE DUBLIN Congratulations on being offered a place in Trinity, the best university in Ireland and one of the top 100 in the world! Whether you are an aspiring artist or scientist, historian or midwife; whether you are from Mayo or Mumbai; whether your passions find you on the playing field or in the orchestra pit; whether you are happiest parsing texts, debating policy issues or writing code; I hope we will have the privilege of your joining the Trinity community. This welcome pack will help you navigate the journey from accepting your offer to joining us during orientation. This year will obviously look a bit different but we are working hard to make sure you will still have a great Trinity experience. I hope you accept your offer to join the Trinity community and embrace all the richness of our diverse community and the opportunities that your years here at Trinity College will offer. Dr Catherine McCabe, Dean of Students 1 CHECKLIST When you start 1. Attend your scheduled orientation events. 2. Meet your personal Tutor. 3. Meet your S2S mentor. 4. Locate your school/course office. Before you 5. Locate your lecture theatres arrive and classrooms. 6. Locate House 6 for the SU. 1. Accept your offer. 7. Locate the shops, Cafés and 2. Go to orientation website. dining areas on campus. 3. Check your course page for 8. Connect your devices to the important information on student wifi. the website. 9. Sign up for a Library workshop. 4. Apply for accommodation. 10. Join a club or society. 5. Log on to my.tcd.ie. 11. Top up your TCard and 6. Register online. your print account. 7. Print your registration 12. Secure a locker, confirmation. if you need one. 8. Activate your email account. 13. Find out where to get support. 9. Login to Blackboard. 10. Download the TrinityLive app. 11. Follow Trinity’s social media #TCDFreshers. 2 3 ACADEMIC YEAR STRUCTURE/ KEY DATES - 28 September 2020: Freshers’ Week 5 October 2020: Teaching starts 11 January 2021: Winter Exams start 22 January: 18 December: Winter Exams finish Teaching finishes 15 March: Reading Week 1 February: 23 April: Teaching starts Teaching Finishes 26 April: Trinity Week 10 May: Summer Exams start 21 May: Summer Exams finish 2 3 TRINITY AND COVID-19 Due to Covid-19 restrictions, this year will look a bit different to previous years so we wanted to assure you that teaching, learning and the student experience will all still be as important as ever. There are some health and safety guidelines that you will need to be aware of prior to coming onto campus, including a safety induction and other protocols. The most up-to-date information is found on the Coronavirus website: https://www.tcd.ie/about/coronavirus/ Teaching and learning will follow a blended approach, where large lectures will be delivered online and smaller classes will be in person – subject to government guidelines. Your course meeting will outline all of this for you and let you know what you Stop Distance can expect. The student experience will also be a blended affair for you, the Students’ Unions, Clubs and Societies will be putting on events both in person and virtually for you to still meet other like-minded students Wash Cover and have some fun outside the classroom. The Freshers’ Fair won’t look like it usually does when you come in through the gates but all of our student organisations will still be working to make your Freshers’ Week as exciting as ever. Avoid Clean We know that this adjustment to College may be challenging and so our student supports and services will also be available to you whether you are on campus or at your desk at home. You’ll find more information about all of these things in this welcome guide! 4 5 GUIDE TO REGISTRATION 1. How do I register? When you have been invited to register you will see an in-tray message in your You will register online via the website student portal and you will have access to my.tcd.ie. Registration will open from the Register tab in the portal on the top August on a course by course basis. A menu. communication will be sent to the e-mail address you gave during the application In order to complete on-line course process inviting you to log in to the registration, you should click on the tab website to register. Please check your and proceed. e-mail for updates regularly. Once you You must complete all tasks successfully have registered emails will be sent to your before the process is complete. When you new TCD email address. have completed these tasks successfully A username and password has been you will see a green tick. If tasks are created to give you immediate access to incomplete they will be highlighted by a my.tcd.ie. red X. All mandatory fields are marked with an asterisk (*). Username: Shown on the top right corner of both the email and letter you received. Online registration does not have to This is also your TCD student ID Number. be completed in one sitting. You can complete a task or multiple tasks, exit and Password: This is your date of birth in the return later to proceed. The completed format DDMONYYYY, e.g. 03FEB1995 tasks will be saved when you log out. You Students who have previously accessed must complete each individual task the my.tcd.ie website should continue to before registration is complete. access it using your current username and Please view our step by step guide password as this has not changed. and video podcast at www.tcd.ie/ academicregistry 4 5 2. How do I pay my fees? free of charge, while receiving competitive foreign exchange rates. Where Pay to You can pay your fees through the following Study has a local bank account, you will methods: not be subjected to any international • Online Payment: You can make an online wire fees and will be able to pay in your payment using a debit/visa card on the local currency. Pay to Study receipts are website my.tcd.ie. You can click the ‘My also accepted by visa and immigration Finance’ tab on your portal to pay your agencies. fees. This is the quickest and easiest way to pay. 3. How do I know that I’m • EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer) i.e. registered? bank account or online banking: This You will receive a confirmation of involves the transfer of funds direct to registration in-tray message on your portal the Trinity College Dublin accounts. once have completed the registration This transaction isn’t immediate. Due process stating you are now a fully to banking requirements it can take up registered student. You can then receive a to 4-5 working days for payments to be student card and avail of all student services cleared on your account or up to 10-12 we have to offer. working days if the payment is made internationally. Please factor this into In light of the current social distancing your payments if you have a set deadline. regulations the Academic Registry is reviewing the distribution process of your Bank account details for EFT payments are TCD student cards and will communicate available on the Academic Registry website the arrangements to you during the and in your my.tcd.ie portal. registration process. • Pay to Study (Recommended for International Students): This is an easy- 4. How do I enrol in my to-use online payment process which classes (modules)? offers a secure, fast and affordable way You must enrol on your modules in my.tcd. to make your international payments to ie using the “My Program” tab. Further Trinity College Dublin. This method saves details are available here: https://www.tcd. you time and money when paying your ie/academicregistry/trinity-pathways/ fees internationally. Pay to Study allows student/online_module_enrolment.php” you to make your international payments 6 7 If you need to get health ORIENTATION screenings, Garda vetting, or submit module choice forms before you register, it’s vital that you do To help you settle in to Trinity, orientation this as soon as possible as you week runs from 28th September to 2nd may not be able to complete your October 2020. registration without submitting Obviously this year, we’ve had to change these forms. how we run things to keep everyone safe, All of the information you’ll need but we really want to still give you the best Trinity experience we can.