Send your WebWorld queries to pcollins@irishtimes.com or by post to Padraig Collins, The Irish Times, D'Olier Street, Dublin 2.
AS IRELAND'S original institute of technology, it is not surprising to find that DIT has the best developed site. Constituted from 10 different colleges, it now has over 22,000 students, making it the biggest third-level college in the State. The site is well-designed, easy to navigate and easy on the eye. The links are clear and descriptive, though - the curse of this business - some are out of date and broken.
Applied Arts, Built Environment, Business, Engineering, Science, and Tourism & Food all have their own separate homepages which do a good job of selling courses to prospective students (a function and opportunity all too often missing from other c ollege sites).
An area of the site that stands out is the Centre for Social and Educational Research. The CSER was established within DIT in 1997 to develop its research profile in the areas of applied social studies and education, with a particular emphasis on early education.
It also lists its objectives, structure, organisations it works with and areas of research - and it gives contact details. If it could provide some of the text and results of its research it would be a superb resource to anyone interested in social studies and education in Ireland.
The alumni association section is also very good, particularly its newsletter, The Network. Issues 2 and 3 of this are available on the site. The article by Niall Roche (an environmental health graduate) on his work for Concern in Mozambique, helping people affected by floods, is particularly interesting. It is a very worthwhile and informative service that other colleges would do well to copy. It must be useful for current students to see what their qualifications could lead to, as well as a good way for graduates to track each other's career.
The fact that there are also now alumni chapters in Boston, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco shows that DIT is very well catered for in this respect, and well thought of by its former students.
A fine website, and it can only get better.
