Download - Pre-Entry Access Newsletter2012 Version3 09-15-08 Layout 1 · ACCESS SERVICE NEWS March 2013 3 Citi – Guiding the Way Forward In 2012, over 1,000 senior cycle students from schools

Access Department

U&Access DCUAccess Department Newsletter | March 2013

DCUSS&D

Access graduate Rebecca Townsend has won DCU’s 2012

Chancellor’s Medal for her outstanding achievements in both the

academic and extra-curricular spheres. The Chancellor’s Medal is

the highest award the University can bestow on an undergraduate

student. Speaking following the graduation ceremony Rebecca

said: “I feel that the Chancellor’s Award was recognition of

everything I achieved in DCU in both academic and extra-curricular

terms; it really was the pinnacle of my time in DCU. I could not

have done this without the assistance and support of the Access

Service; in fact, I would never have been in DCU without it. The

Award takes pride of place in my home. I have since been awarded

an Access Scholarship to the Law Library to study for my law exams

– thank you Access Service”. Rebecca graduated from the Bachelor

of Civil Law and Society course on November 6, 2012, with a first-

class honours degree. During her time as an Access Scholar in DCU,

Rebecca has been involved in a host of DCU sporting clubs. She was

also a volunteer for children’s charity CARI (Children at Risk in

Ireland), in addition to co-founding the DCU Free Legal Advice

Centre (FLAC). On behalf of all staff and students in DCU Access,

congratulations Rebecca and every best wish for continued success

in the years ahead!

Access graduate scoops top award

Chancellor’s Medal recipient Rebecca Townsend is pictured with DCUChancellor Senator Martin McAleese (left) and DCU President Professor Brian McCraith.

WelcomeWelcome to the 2013 edition of U&Access DCU, and another

action-packed year with DCU’s multi-award winning Access

Service. We are delighted to bring you the very latest news on

DCU’s outreach initiatives in North Dublin, an update on the

progression and achievements of DCU Access Scholars, and of

course a word from our alumni.

This year over 6,000 primary and secondary school students

registered on a range of initiatives, from maths and science after

school programmes, to courses in computing and accounting,

workshops in personal and professional development, and training

in sport, finance, entrepreneurship and civic engagement.

In 2012, numbers of undergraduate Access entrants to DCU were

at an all-time high, with the institutional target of 10% realised in

2012 – two years ahead of target – with just under 600 Access

Scholars now studying at DCU. Despite the surge in undergraduate

numbers, however, the academic performance of Access Scholars

remains high, with 97% of 2012 Access alumni achieving a first- or

second-class honours degree.

2012 has been an extraordinary year for student accomplishments

in both the academic and extra-curricular domains. Rebecca

Townsend, Access graduate in Law and Government, won DCU’s

highly coveted Chancellor’s Medal, while Abdul Ali Hassan, a final

year Access student from the School of Mechanical and

Manufacturing Engineering, won the Barnardos Nationwide

Helping Hands Young Volunteer Award.

Many thanks as always to our corporate supporters, to our

community partners, to all staff and students at DCU, and to the

many local teachers and guidance personnel whose inspiring efforts

and tireless commitment help transform the lives of many young

people in the wider community.

Ita Tobin

Head of Service

ACCESS SERVICE NEWS March 20132

NEWS

A word from our Schools OutreachOfficer

Welcome to another busy year

with DCU’s Access Outreach

Programme. This year we are

delighted to have over 6,000

students from North Dublin

schools taking part in outreach

activities. The Programme is

delivered both in schools and

through after school provision.

Our initiatives focus largely on

providing additional academic

support to students, and

enhancing their personal and

professional development. We

have introduced a number of

new initiatives this year, including

after school classes in maths and

science, a suite of career

guidance supports, and a series

of workshops in personal

development and social

innovation.

We look forward to working with

you again this year and wish all

our partners continued success in

their endeavours.

For more information on any of

our programmes, or any DCU

Access supports, please visit

www.dcu.ie/access.

Susan Hawkins

Schools Outreach

Officer, Access

DCU.

US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton

visited DCU on December 6, 2012, and gave a

wide-ranging global human rights address

entitled 'Front Lines and Frontiers – Making

Human Rights a Human Reality'. The event was

attended by an audience of over 1,000 guests,

including DCU students and staff, Government

representatives, members of the diplomatic

corps, and the media.

The event, which was televised nationally and

internationally, received enormous global press

coverage. Musical entertainment was provided

on the day by a host of young and highly

talented artists from second-level schools

linked to DCU. Among the students

performing was 15-year-old Tomike Jinad from

the Donaghies Community School, who said:

“Performing for Hilary Clinton was an excellent

experience. I was really excited when I was told

that I would be performing for her. While the

preparation was exceptional, I still found that I

had some nerves going on stage. However,

when I got on stage these nerves disappeared

and although it was overwhelming, I settled into

my song and gave the best possible

performance I could give. I feel privileged that I

was selected to sing for Hilary Clinton and it is an

experience that I will never forget”.

During her visit to DCU, Secretary Clinton

received the inaugural Fr Aengus Finucane

Award for Services to Humanity from Concern

Worldwide. The Award was presented to

Secretary Clinton by two DCU Access students –

Abdul Ali Hassan and Megan King.

US Secretary of State visits DCU!

ABOVE LEFT AND TOP: DCU Access students Abdul Ali Hassanand Megan King presented the inaugural Fr Aengus FinucaneAward to US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. ABOVE RIGHT: Student Tomike Jinad was among those whoentertained Secretary Clinton at the event.

ACCESS SERVICE NEWS March 2013 3

Citi – Guiding the Way Forward

In 2012, over 1,000 senior cycle students from schools linked to

DCU through the Access Service received a tailored careers

programme aimed at raising awareness of third-level education

while tackling the financial barriers that prevent students from

progressing to university.

Supported by Citi, ‘Guiding the Way Forward’ is a collaborative

project between the School of Education Studies at DCU, the DCU

Access Service and guidance professionals in 24 DEIS schools in

North Dublin.

‘Guiding the Way Forward’ provides a comprehensive curriculum

for use by career guidance professionals in the classroom. In

addition, a series of innovative workshops are available throughout

the year for students on the DCU campus, which focus on the

creation of study pathways, career portfolio programmes and

financial planning. Short courses are also provided to parents on

the benefits of higher education, planning for the future and

supporting a child through university. With the continued support

of Citi, an online version of ‘Guiding the Way Forward’ will be

available from January 2013, extending the reach of the current

programme in North Dublin. A vital part of this initiative will be the

availability of free continuing professional development seminars

for guidance professionals on the use of digital technologies in the

classroom. For more information, please visit www.dcu.ie/access.

Thanks again to Citi Foundation for their support of this

programme.

Discover DCU

The aim of Discover DCU is to encourage second-level students living

in areas of high social and economic disadvantage in North Dublin

to consider university as a realistic option. The programme is

delivered over a six-week period with students attending half-day

interactive workshops, co-facilitated by DCU personnel and current

Access students and graduates. In 2012/2013 it is estimated that

over 270 fifth and transition year students, aged 15 to 17 years, will

have attended Discover DCU. To date, our evaluations show that

95% of participants said that the workshop really made them focus

on what they will do after school, with 90% saying that they will

apply for college/university. Sincere thanks to our supporters State

Street, and all staff and students who contributed to the design and

consultation of this initiative. Special thanks to Muireann Ni

Dhuigneain, ex-officio Director of the Careers Service at DCU; Amy

Lucas, Access graduate from the School of Applied Languages and

Intercultural Studies; and, Greg Creevey, a final year student from the

School of Communications.

CAREERS

Students from Cabra Community College who took part in the DiscoverDCU workshop.

DCU President Professor Brian McCraith (right) with Brian Hayes, Head ofCiti Transaction Services for Ireland and Head of the Citi Innovation Labsin Europe Middle East Africa (EMEA), and the students of St Mary’s HolyFaith, Glasnevin.

This programme is kindly supported by:


Here’s what students from Cabra CommunityCollege had to say about Discover DCU…

“It was really good, we all really enjoyed it. We made loads of

new friends and the people running the workshop were nice

and helpful. We got a very good feel for college.”

“At first, we didn’t know what to expect, but it was extremely

exciting to go to DCU. We got to see the campus and everyone

was so nice and helpful.”

“We all got to say how we felt about coming to college. We

talked about our fears and how everyone has them and how to

overcome our fears. It made us think about our future.”


Google work experienceAs part of our careers development and personal development suite

of programmes, we were delighted this year to collaborate with

Deborah O’Neill, University Programmes Specialist for Google

Ireland and member of the DCU Alumni Council, on their transition

year work experience programme ‘OneWeek@Google’. Each year,

Google invites applications for 25 places on their work experience

programme, and this year these much sought after places were

offered to students from schools linked to the DCU Access

Programme. Students from Trinity Comprehensive Ballymun,

Patrician College Finglas, Colaiste Dhulaigh Coolock, Mercy College

Coolock, St Mary’s Holy Faith Killester, St Dominic’s Cabra, St

Declan’s Cabra, St Finian’s Swords, St Michael’s Finglas, St David’s

Artane, St Vincent’s Glasnevin, St Aidan’s Whitehall, and The

Donahies Community School all participated in the week-long work

experience programme. The OneWeek@Google programme was

developed in order to provide pre-university students with an

enriching, creative and challenging work experience within a new

media technology company. During the course of the week,

students met Google staff, worked on projects together, created

blogs and presented to senior managers at Google. They even got

a masterclass in pizza making from the Google Head Chef!

At a graduation

ceremony held on

Friday November

30 in the Google

Headquarters in

Barrow Street,

students were awarded certificates and prizes by Helen Tynan, Head

of HR Ireland, and Dominic Cunningham, Global Safety Manager,

Google (a.k.a ‘The Sherriff’). We would like to congratulate all our

students on a very successful programme, and extend our thanks to

Deborah O’Neill and her colleagues in Google Ireland for offering

our students this wonderful opportunity.

Events for parents

The DCU Access Service, along with DCU in the Community,

hosted a number of parents’ workshops in the Axis Theatre in

Ballymun. These workshops, held in October, November and

January, covered topics of interest to parents whose children are in

their Leaving Cert year. The first workshop was entitled

‘Supporting your child through sixth year and beyond’ and was

facilitated by Andreé Harpur, career guidance expert. The second

workshop covered the CAO application system and how to apply

to the Higher Education Access Route (HEAR) scheme, and was

facilitated by Joanna Ozarowska from DCU in the Community and

Susan Hawkins from the DCU Access Service. The last workshop,

held in January this year, covered how to apply for the grant and

was facilitated by Paul Hayes of the Northside Partnership, who

helped parents to navigate the new SUSI student grants system.

This initiative was kindly supported by Citi Foundation and the

DCU Access Service would like to thank all those who volunteered

their time to deliver these workshops.

CAREERS


Students at their

pizza making

masterclass!

Students from our link schools on the final day of their Google work experience.

Helen Tynan, Head of HR Ireland addresses the students.

Ross Hanny from Patrician College and Joanna Hickeyfrom Holy Faith Killester receiving their medals fromGoogle Global Safety Manager Dominic Cunningham,a.k.a. ‘The Sherriff’!


CAREERS

Ian O’Connell

Beneavin College, Finglas.

This was one of my best experiences

ever. It was a fun-filled and exciting

week. At the start of the first day

I didn’t know anyone apart

from my friend. The

icebreaker grouping in Trinity

College helped a lot in getting

to know people; if it wasn’t for

that I think I would have been

lost from day one.

It went to show that Take5 had really boostedmy confidence, which has helped me today.

On the second day of Take5 I went to UCD. We did activities,

including practical activities in medicine, and even attended a

sociology lecture, which was different. Later in the day I got to do

rock climbing and play lacrosse, which I found very enjoyable. On

Friday we went to NUI Maynooth and I got more information about

the Access Programme, which will really benefit me. On the fourth

and fifth days we went to DIT and DCU. They were probably my

best days of Take5. On our last day I was more nervous than the first

day as our marketing group had to give a presentation to a large

audience. I didn’t think I was the type of person to stand up at a

microphone and talk to people. It went to show that Take5 had

really boosted my confidence, which has helped me today. Overall

the week of Take5 was great: it was well planned and organised by

the access programmes of the colleges, and our student leaders

were very helpful as they told us their personal experiences of their

life at college. I am very thankful to the people that were able make

it happen. I would recommend the Take5 experience to anyone.

Jonathan Friel

Beneavin College, Finglas.

My name is Johnny Friel and I took part in the Take5 summer camp

in 2012. I was very lucky to get the chance to take part in Take5. I

went to five different colleges as part of the summer camp. They

were DCU, UCD, TCD, DIT and NUI Maynooth. I found this

programme was a great way to experience college life; I got to

understand what it is like to be a student in these five colleges. Each

college played a special part in the experience!

For me, Take5 was a complete success

There were four topics that we could study during the week –

photography, drama, music and marketing – and we then selected

the one we preferred. I chose photography and learned quite a lot!

We had Miriam O’Connor and Jimi Ennis to help us to understand

what it would be like to study photography in college. For me,

Take5 was a complete success and I am planning to go to one of

the colleges that we experienced during those five days. The staff

and students of each college really made the experience so much

better and I hope to be like one of those students in the future.

Take5 for university accessTake5 is a joint initiative organised by the access programmes of

DCU, DIT, NUI Maynooth, Trinity College and UCD. This highly

successful programme provides an opportunity for second-level

students to explore their interests and aspirations, and experience

day-to-day college life.

Students spend a day in each of the five colleges and also complete

project work, which they present to an audience of their peers,

parents, teachers and Access staff at a closing ceremony on the final

evening.

This year’s closing ceremony was hosted by the DCU Students

Union, and we would like to extend our sincere thanks to Shea

McNelis and his team, who volunteered their time and expertise to

ensure that the ceremony was a great success.Jonathan Friel (far right) with a group of fellow students after receiving hiscertificate for completing the Take5 Programme.

My Take5 experience


Murder mystery maths!

On Monday February 12, 70 first-year students from our link

schools became private investigators for a day. They came to help

Sherlock Holmes (Stuart Kehoe from CTYI) and Dr Watson

(Domhnall O’Hanlon, CTYI) solve the murder of our researcher

‘George’. It was alleged that George was murdered because of the

research he was conducting and Sherlock was unable to solve the

case on his own. Using clues that were left on George’s skeleton,

Sherlock and the students cracked various codes to reveal the name

of the killer. Students also helped Dr Watson to design an app,

which would assist Sherlock in solving his cases. The purpose of this

programme was to show first-year students the fun side of maths

and how maths can be used in different ways.

One student who attended on the day commented: “It was very

different to the maths we do in school. I enjoyed it, thanks very

much”.

Another student commented: “I had lots of fun solving puzzles and

games!”

This programme is one of a series of initiatives kindly supported by

AOL and we were delighted to have Laura Scanlan, HR Manager

from AOL, along on the day.

The sound of maths

To help celebrate World Maths Week in 2012, the DCU Access

Service hosted a ‘Maths Fun Workshop’ for 250 second-level

students and their teachers in the Helix at DCU. The workshops

were co-facilitated by leading experts in the Centre for Talented

Youth Ireland (CTYI) at DCU, and George Humphries, physicist,

musician and author of the New Concise Project Maths series for

Junior and Leaving Certificate. According to Ciaran McKevitt, a

maths teacher from Pobalscoil Rosmini: “Both talks were extremely

interesting and engaging, and drew a great reaction from the

students; it was a really fun way for students to gain a real

understanding of mathematics”.

The DCU Access Service would like to extend our sincerest thanks to

both Domhnall O’Hanlon and George Humphries, who volunteered

their time to deliver this workshop.

ACADEMIC



Clockwise from above: Students try to solve the clues, helped byStuart Kehoe from CTYI; as part of the murder mysteryexperience, students got to design an app; working together tocrack the codes and solve the mystery; and, students with ahappy Laura Scanlan, HR Manager with AOL, and a not sohappy George the skeleton!


Seeking clarity on science

The DCU Access Service seeks to encourage students in our link

schools to engage with science after the Junior Certificate, and to

continue studying science to Leaving Certificate. To this end,

students from link schools were provided with an interactive tour of

DCU’s high-tech Clarity Lab. Students from Ballymun’s Trinity

Comprehensive School also received additional mentoring from a

DCU graduate in preparation for the Young Scientist Exhibition.

Here’s what students had to say:

Fifth-year student Mirza Sultan talks about a positive

experience of science: My name is Mirza Sultan, and I am a

fifth-year student attending Trinity Comprehensive School in

Ballymun. On November 8, BITE and DCU Access arranged a trip

for our biology and phys/chem classes to the Clarity Lab to learn

about sensor technologies.

Aoibheann Bird gave us an introductory talk explaining the work of

the centre. Afterwards she showed us different examples of their

research in this area. This included a balancing board with a sensor

inside, which measured movements and projected them onto a

screen in the form of a 3D game. It was fun and most of us tried it

out. Then Aoibheann showed us a huge touch screen composed of

six individual screens, which had about three million photos on it.

She explained that it was taken by a research student who carried

a camera around his neck for two years, which took a photo every

20 seconds.

Sensor technology research could involve anything from a hat with

the ability to send telepathic messages and commands to a

computer, to a policeman’s gun that could be programmed to

respond only to his fingerprints!

On the lab tour we found out a lot about sensor technology. I was

amazed that if I opt to study science in university, it could be me

taking part in this research in two or three years. Thank you to DCU

Access and the Clarity Lab for organising this trip, it was time well

spent.

The DCU Access Service would like to extend its thanks and

appreciation to Aoibheann Bird from the Clarity Lab, who has been

so generous with her time in giving the students in our link schools

this wonderful opportunity to visit the Lab.

ACADEMIC

Aoibheann Bird from the Centre for Sensor Technology (Clarity Lab)hosted students from Trinity Comprehensive in Ballymun.

The science of cleaning “Last year our science class went to see the BT Young Scientist

Exhibition in the RDS, and this year we decided to do a science

project. Our project is to explore how much bacteria there is on

doors and other commonly used surfaces in our school. A lady

called Sheena Fagan, who works in Alltech in Ashbourne, came to

our school to help us come up with this idea. She is going to help

us with the project, along with our science teacher, Miss Henegan.

We are getting different cleaning products and are going to check

which ones work best. We will test the most commonly used doors

in the school, including the bathrooms! There are five of us

working on this project and we hope to visit the Young Scientist

Exhibition again in 2013.”

The DCU Access Service would like to thank Sheena Fagan,

Research Associate and DCU graduate from Alltech, who has

volunteered her time to mentor the students of Trinity

Comprehensive School in their science project.Students from Trinity Comprehensive are developing a science project.


After school science clubThe Biomedical Diagnostics Institute here at DCU, in collaboration

with the DCU Access Service, has offered places to students from our

link schools on its after school science club. Students experience

hands-on experiments and activities designed to help them to

investigate keeping their heart happy and the amazing immune

system, as well as using smart materials and fantastic fluorescence.

These classes, aimed and first and second years, are taking place on

Wednesday afternoons during February and March. Enquiries should

be directed to Clare Scalzo, Education and Outreach Officer, BDI.

CTYI finds local talent in abundance

In 2012, students from 24 North Dublin

schools, aged between 13 and 17, took

part in the Centre for Talented Youth

Ireland’s (CTYI) annual national Talent

Search. Working in association with

Matheson, Ireland’s largest law firm,

CTYI invited the students to the DCU campus to take the

Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test (PSAT). The outcome of the

PSAT tests was outstanding with Matheson awarding academic

scholarships as follows:

n Seven students received a scholarship to attend CTYI’s Summer

Programme, an academic programme aimed at gifted students;

n Fifteen students received scholarships to attend the CAT (Centre

for Academic Talent), a summer programme for very high

performing students; and,

n Thirty students were awarded scholarships to attend Summer

Scholars, designed specifically by DCU and CTYI for students

with excellent academic potential.

The modules that the students took included psychology,

philosophy, film studies, mechanical engineering, computer

programming, law, politics, international relations, pharmaceutical

science, biomedical diagnostics, genetics, accountancy, marketing,

financial management, human performance and sports psychology.

The 2013 Talent Search in Access schools has begun, with final

assessments taking place in January and February 2013. For more

information on this scholarship programme, please visit

www.dcu.ie/access. Many thanks to CTYI for their pioneering work

with gifted children from socio-economically disadvantaged

backgrounds, and to Matheson for their continued support.

ACADEMIC


Student rugby blitzOn Friday November 9 last, the DCU Access Service, in

collaboration with Leinster Rugby, ran its first ‘Tag Rugby Blitz’ for

first-year students in our link schools. A total of 196 students from

13 schools came along to the DCU rugby sports grounds and

competed against each other for the Merit Trophy. Despite heavy

rain, all of the players gave their best and really participated in the

championship.

Jack Hanratty, Community Rugby Officer for Leinster Rugby,

brought along the Heineken Cup for the students to see. Jack and

his team of volunteers organised a wonderful event for everyone

and feedback from the students and schools was excellent. The

Merit Trophy was awarded on the day to the school that had

demonstrated the greatest enthusiasm, teamwork and

commitment. The winning school, as nominated by all the

volunteers, was Colaiste Dhulaigh Secondary School in Coolock.

Richard Kelly, PE teacher at Colaiste Dhulaigh said:

“We thought the tournament was excellent. It was great to

introduce a new sport, especially to first-year students. We have

never had rugby in the school so it was a great starting point and

many of the students have since asked when is the next

tournament, or can we start a full team? The participation and

sportsmanship element to it was excellent, as most of the sports

and competitions we are involved in are all about winning, where

only the very able students play, whereas this was essentially sport

for all”.

We would like to extend our deep appreciation to Jack and his team

for all of their hard work and also to the current DCU Access

students who volunteered to help out on the day.

ABOVE: Jack Hanratty addressing the students andissuing the instructions for the day.

INSET: The DCU Access Service and Leinster RugbyMerit Award, presented on the day to ColaisteDhulaigh Secondary School in Coolock.

LEFT: One of the Colaiste Dhulaigh studentspictured with Jack Hanratty, Community RugbyOfficer for Leinster Rugby.


In 2012, 120 fifth-year students attended a suite of workshops in

social entrepreneurship at DCU. The workshops were facilitated by

Young Social Innovators (YSI) and supported by State Street.

Students were encouraged to explore and establish social

innovation projects that would be of benefit to their

schools/communities. An award ceremony was held in the Helix in

DCU, with student projects displayed throughout the Gallery. The

panel of judges included Ita Tobin, Head of Access, Billy Kelly, DCU

Dean of Teaching and Learning/Deputy Registrar, and Rachel

Collier, CEO of Young Social Innovators.

First prize was awarded to St Aidan’s CBS for their poster on

testicular cancer, and second prize was awarded to St David’s CBS

in Artane for their poster on mental health entitled ‘How well do

you know your friends?’ The judges also highly commended the

students from Margaret Aylward Community College for their

poster entitled ‘Young Carers’. The winning teams received a DCU

hoodie and a certificate, and the overall winners were offered full

scholarships on the DCU Summer Scholars Programme, run by the

Centre for Talented Youth Ireland, based here in DCU.

Eric Clusker, a sixth-year student in St Aidan’s CBS who was a

member of the winning team, continued with his endeavours to

raise awareness about testicular cancer among young men.

Following the event in the Helix, Eric undertook to organise a

fundraising event in his local community, raising money for the Irish

Cancer Society.

Eric stated that: “On the road where I live in Santry, a lot of families

have been affected by cancer, or have lost a family member to

cancer. This is such an important issue. I wanted to organise a really

fun event for all the family, which would help raise awareness of

testicular cancer and raise some funds for cancer research as well”.

With his family and friends on board, Eric organised ‘Bounce Cancer

Out’, with bouncy castles and fun activities for all the family to

enjoy. The event raised €1,114.40.

Attendance rewardedResearch has shown that regular school attendance is an important

factor in school success and that there is a direct correlation

between good attendance and increased academic performance. In

collaboration with teachers and home school liaison officers, the

DCU Access Service Attendance Awards are once again being

offered to students in our link schools. These awards aim to

encourage and reward students who achieve the highest

attendance records throughout the academic year, and

nominations are welcome from third-year students. This year, based

on feedback from guidance counsellors and teachers, we have

decided to offer the award to the student who has had the highest

attendance record, but we are also offering an award to the student

who has shown the most improvement in their attendance.

Winners so far this year include: Hannah Lawless and Kellie Gregan

from St Mary’s Holy Faith Killester; Anthony Sheils and Rebecca

Molloy from Grange Community College; and, Jamie Ardinez and

Megan Rothballer from St Mary’s Holy Faith Glasnevin.

Congratulations to all award recipients on their achievements.

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

Students work to build awareness

Eric Clusker, second from left, with the winning team from St Aidan’s CBS, Artane.

The students from Margaret Aylward Community College were highlycommended for their poster entitled ‘Young Carers’.



On Thursday December 6, 2012, the DCU Access Service hosted its

annual Achievement Awards. Some 374 students from the 24

schools linked to DCU were invited to attend an awards ceremony

where their achievements were acknowledged in the areas of Sport,

Arts and Culture, Academic, Community Spirit and Special

Nomination. Certificates were awarded to the students by Prof.

Eithne Guilfoyle, Vice President of Academic Affairs. The DCU Access

Service takes great pleasure every year in hosting our Achievement

Awards, and we welcome the opportunity to reward and recognise

the achievements and efforts of students attending our link schools.

Our aim is to recognise and reward the diligence and effort shown

by students and we hope that they will continue to aspire to even

greater levels of achievement in school and also in later life.

The students, teachers and their invited guests enjoyed a wonderful

evening of entertainment provided by the very talented singers and

musicians drawn from our link schools, St Mary’s Holy Faith

Glasnevin, The Donaghies Community School, Margaret Aylward

Community College, Pobalscoil Rosmini and St Aidan’s CBS.

In addition, the winners of the Maths Video Competition were

announced on the night and first prize went to St Kevin’s College

in Finglas. Gold medals were awarded to Jamie Keatley, Gary Farrell,

Daniel Cusack and Ross Delaney, who designed and filmed their

three-minute video drama on ‘The Right Angle Triangle’. In second

place was St Aidan’s CBS Whitehall, and silver medals were awarded

to James Fahy, Colm Lombard, Sam Singleton and Anthony

McMahon for their song entitled ‘Right Angle Triangle’.

We would like to extend our sincere thanks to all who helped to

make this event a resounding success.


A packed auditorium for the awards ceremony.

Students from Pobalscoil Rosmini, Drumcondra.

Students from St Dominic’s Cabra.

Students fromMargaretAylwardCommunityCollege,Whitehall.

Students from The Donahies Community College, Streamville Road.

High achievers acknowledgedat Awards Ceremony in the Helix

Silver medalwinners from St Aidan’s withPaul Keenan,DCU Graduate,Author andForeign Editorwith the IrishCatholicnewspaper.


PRIMARY SCHOOLS PROGRAMME

The Centre for Academic Achievement (CAA) has won a Google Rise

Award for the second year in a row. Since its establishment in 2006,

CAA has enabled over 1,450 primary school students from socio-

economically disadvantaged areas of North Dublin to attend special

after school classes at DCU. The Programme is a joint collaboration

between the Centre for Talented Youth Ireland (CTYI) and DCU

Access Service. It aims to encourage high ability students who

traditionally would not have access to university resources and

materials to fulfill their full academic potential. This year, over 250

primary school students aged between eight and 12 years

participated in the CAA. The Rise Awards fund, promote and support

science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) and computer

science education initiatives in Europe among socio-economically

disadvantaged groups. Over 300 companies worldwide submitted a

project for this award but only 30 were successful.

The CAA previously won The Irish Times Dublin Living Award in 2007

and The Taoiseach’s Public Service Excellence Award in 2010.

The subjects that the students studied during 2012 included:

n Volcanoes, Earthquakes & More n Computers & Animation

n World of Harry Potter n Code Breaking & Puzzles

n Medicine n Chemistry

n Multimedia n Superhero Science

n Engineering n Psychology

n Veterinary Science n Computer Gaming

Nurturing young interest in scienceJunior Achievement Ireland,

in partnership with Bord Gáis

Networks, launched the

second year of its Science

Forward programme on

November 15, 2012, in

DCU. Approximately 225

students from seven primary

schools participated in this

year’s programme. Students from Loughshinny, Skerries, Coolock,

Ballygall, Darndale and Cabra were introduced to the world of science

and technology through hands-on experiments and interactive

workshops. Delivery was facilitated by Junior Achievement Ireland and

trained staff volunteers from Bord Gáis Networks as part of Science

Week 2012 (November 11-18).

“This event was a wonderful introduction to the world of science and

to the environment of a third-level institute for the students,” said

Cathy Crowe, teacher at Christ the King GNS in Cabra. “The interactive

workshops and hands-on experiments were greatly enjoyed by the

students. Their interest in science was truly inspired and they have since

discussed selecting science as a first-year subject in secondary school”.

For further information, contact Damien Henehan, Junior

Achievement Ireland, Tel: 087-659 8368, or Email: [email protected].

Through partnership with the DCU Access Programme, BizWorld

Ireland has provided DCU students with the opportunity to engage

with primary school children, many of whom are from disadvantaged

areas, in a meaningful way, where the children learn important life

skills such as entrepreneurship, critical thinking, innovation, decision

making, money management and collaborative learning. Access

students have the opportunity to ‘give something back’ to their own

communities, acting as mentors, facilitators, and even venture

capitalists, throughout the two-day workshops. The children

experience the entrepreneurial process from company formation,

applying for jobs, market research, and pitching for seed capital, to

design, production and selling their product. In BizWorld Ireland’s

case, this product is a short animated movie. DCU students gain

invaluable insight into a complementary approach to education and

also learn about the importance of volunteering in their communities.

Through empowerment of students at both primary and third level,

BizWorld Ireland sows the seeds … so they can grow their future.

New entrepreneurship programme for 9- to 11-year-olds

CAA wins Google Rise Award for second year running

The Rise Awards fund, promote and support STEM initiatives among socio-economically disadvantaged groups in Europe.


Students enjoying the Science Forwardevent at DCU.



The 14th Access Orientation Programme (AOP) of the DCU Access

Service took place from September 4-7, 2012. A total of 220 new

undergraduate students took part in the Programme, DCU’s

highest Access intake to date. This year the group was made up of

students from all over Ireland and from over 20 countries, reflecting

Ireland’s changing demographics.

The programme is the first of the post-entry supports offered to

Access Scholars. Each year, the emphasis is on making friends,

getting to know Access staff and providing an easy transition to the

DCU environment, and 2012 was successful in all these areas.

Students participated in group work, presentations, social and

sports activities, and taster lectures for their specific programme of

study. They had the opportunity to meet some of their lecturers,

second-year Access students and Access staff. These supports have

proved to be significantly beneficial to students as they negotiate

first year at university. Successive research studies have highlighted

that the dropout rate for Access students remains at less than 7%,

with 92% of Access graduates gaining either a first- or second-class

honours degree.

Orientation Programme welcomes students

This is what our first-year students had to say…

“I found the Access Orientation really brought me out of myself,

and helped me to socialise.”

“I am so grateful to the Access Programme for giving me the

chance to study a course I thought was out of my reach. It is

beyond anything I ever could have imagined was possible. In

securing a place in CS, I now have the drive and ambition to

really engage in my course and all the opportunities DCU has to

offer. I hope I can prove that I was worth offering a place to!”

Over 200 students attended this year’s Access Orientation Programme. The aim of the Access Orientation Programme is to provide an easytransition into the DCU environment.

DCU Access team

Ita TobinHead of DCUAccess Service

Orla ConlanDeputy Head ofService

Cathy McLoughlinSenior AccessOfficer

Susan HawkinsSchools OutreachOfficer

Colette Keogh Post Entry ProjectOfficer

Caroline BowePost Entry ProjectOfficer

Caitriona PowerPost Entry ProjectOfficer

For further information about any of the items mentioned in this newsletter

please contact Caitriona Power: T: 01-700 8052 E: [email protected]