The University of Notre Dame is celebrating 25 years in Ireland, starting with a study abroad program in 1998!
The Dublin study abroad program was created in 1998, creating immersive educational experiences and cultural programs that enrich the study abroad experience and lead to a holistic and authentic appreciation for Ireland. Notre Dame’s home in Dublin has been in O’Connell House, a historic building with an eye-catching blue door on Merrion Square which was once the residence of noted Irish Catholic political leader Daniel O’Connell. In 2016, Notre Dame expanded it's presence in Ireland with the Kylemore Abbey Global Centre, an idyllic setting located in an active Benedictine monastery that offers a true Irish immersion.
Whether you're attending the Aer Lingus College Football Classic in Ireland this fall or simply learning more about Notre Dame's initiatives across Ireland, join in on the celebration of 25 years in Ireland.
Featured Stories
East & West: Notre Dame in Ireland
The University’s relationship with Ireland can be traced to its very founding, when seven Irish brothers and religious traveled with French priest Rev. Edward Sorin, C.S.C., to South Bend in the cold Indiana November of 1842. A more formal presence was established in Ireland in 1998, buoyed by some name recognition from a football game played in Dublin’s Croke Park stadium two years prior.
Good Craic: A look at cultural immersion in Ireland
“Craic” (pronounced “crack”) is an Irish Gaelic word for “fun.” While Notre Dame students work hard at their studies in Ireland, the holistic experience includes engagements with culture and recreation.
Emerald Isle Interns: Notre Dame students access a world of experiential learning in Ireland
The University’s presence in Ireland affords students an opportunity to advance their studies in virtually every discipline.
Mám Éan: An Irish Pilgrimage
In the Connemara region of Ireland, there is a remote site nestled in the Maumturk Mountains. It’s accessible only by foot, as it has been for thousands of years. Students studying at Kylemore ventured there on a pilgrimage excursion that explored how the ancients engaged with this land. The ultimate destination, Mám Éan, was a site believed to be where St. Patrick stopped to offer his blessing over Connemara.
A Bog's Life
As Ireland contemplates its energy future, a Notre Dame student works to restore its ecological past. The ready presence of bogs is what attracted Mariana Silva ’21 to the Irish countryside. Now her focus is understanding water movements in bogs, and how the knowledge she uncovers can contribute to the ultimate goal of restoring areas that bore the brunt of industrialized peat harvesting.
Glendalough Valley: County Wicklow, Ireland
In the heart of Ireland’s Wicklow mountains, the Avonmore River rises and flows into the Glendasan River, connecting two lakes along its route. It’s there you’ll find Glendalough Valley, home of Glendalough’s Monastic City, chosen for its remoteness and beauty by sixth-century monk and hermit St. Kevin. Students studying at Notre Dame’s Dublin Global Gateway spent a day hiking part of the 13.7-mile (~10 km) loop learning more about the rich history embedded in its countryside.
Go raibh maith agat!