The website of the Dublin European Institute at UCD has, according to its deputy director, Dr Ben Tonra, to perform several functions: "It is an advertisement, a detailed course brochure, a resource for our current students and (hopefully) a platform to maintain links with our alumni. The question always is whether we are achieving any of those objectives . . ."
Admirably so, in the opinion of this reporter. It's not the sharpest looking site in the world, nor does it need to be. Its purpose is to attract people to the courses offered by the institute and inform them of the content, and it does that very well.
Particularly strong is the Studying Europe in Ireland section. Explaining the reasons behind a particular course of study, rather than merely recounting the fact of its availability, is a great idea. It talks about the historic, cultural and political forces in Europe that have had a unique impact on Ireland. It also refers to the economic, social, political and cultural consequences of membership of the European Union. If you were a student considering a number of different courses, this is just the kind of careful evaluation that could swing the vote in favour of a particular college.
The institute has two long-standing master's degree programmes and also offers an integrated doctoral programme. There is a detailed break-down of what you would study and, most importantly, why you need to study it.
The alumni section is the best selling point the course has. Commendations such as the one from a north American graduate who says that "MEconSc opened a door into Europe that has helped me greatly in my professional endeavours," are the best way to entice people onto the courses.
Another good idea is the huge list of employers, in 25 countries, who employ graduates of the institute. The only gripe here is that all of these organisation's names should be hyper-linked to their web sites - only seven currently are. Nevertheless, it is a very informative site, and an absolute must-see for anyone even remotely thinking about doing a postgraduate course in European studies.
