However, due to the pandemic, the plan didn’t seem feasible at times – it wasn’t until August that circumstances allowed me to go. Even during the pandemic, I looked for travel health insurance abroad, which I then took out at short notice in August for the period, as well as a corresponding flight connection. The International Office took care of the organizational aspects for me, such as matching modules.

I was able to book my accommodation directly through the university – I chose the Host Point Campus Student Accommodation. At this point, I can only recommend choosing this comparatively more expensive student accommodation over a host family or similar. Firstly, you are still quite centrally located in Dublin and can spontaneously go into the city center, which also reduces your expenses for public transport. Secondly, you can make contact with your fellow students much more easily and gain a completely different experience. My flatmates, for example, came from Germany, France, Nigeria and India – and when do you ever have the opportunity to experience such a cultural exchange?

After arriving at the airport, DBS had organized a shuttle service to my accommodation. DBS does not consist of one large campus, but several buildings that are located close to each other in the city center and were easy to reach from my accommodation by public transport and, in good weather, on foot. However, most of the lectures were held online anyway due to the pandemic.

DBS is known throughout Dublin for its vibrant student life. Under normal circumstances, networking events and excursions in and around Dublin take place almost daily. This year, these were either held online or could at least take place in small groups. Nevertheless, the events are an experience in themselves and you get to meet a lot of new people. Dublin itself and the surrounding area are well worth seeing and boast a unique flora and coastal landscape. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to really experience the nightlife in Dublin; however, many pubs were able to open in the meantime and it is a very unusual atmosphere. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to explore more of Ireland as we were required not to leave our county (= federal state).

German students have to adjust to slightly different conditions during their studies: I only wrote a proper exam in the Maths & Statistics module, as is usual in Germany. In the Management, Project Planning and Control and International Economy modules, the examination consisted of writing one or more assignments, the grades of which were then added together to give the overall grade. What also differs is the expectations of the lecturers – these are often formulated very openly and offer few concrete starting points. However, none of this is tragic, as the course is easy to complete and you don’t need to be an English ace to follow the lectures.

Studying and living in Dublin is no bargain. My costs looked something like this:

My accommodation (Host Point Campus Student Accommodation): https://pointcampus.ie

• This should be booked directly through the university.
• Single room, private bathroom & gym. Each apartment consists of 5-8 rooms and the kitchen is shared.
• Make sure you bring your own blanket and pillow! Unfortunately, I was not told this by DBS at the time ;).

There are mainly “Centra” supermarkets in the city center, but they are relatively expensive. For larger purchases, the 15-minute walk to Lidl is worthwhile. You can use your German cell phone contract for the four months without any problems. You don’t need a bank account either, but you should check with your bank before you leave to make sure that your account is activated for international transfers.