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Trinity College, Dublin (TCD), founded in 1592 by
Elizabeth I, is the only constituent college of the University of
Dublin, Ireland's oldest university. Trinity is located on College Green in
Dublin, opposite the former Irish Houses of Parliament, now Bank of
Ireland headquarters. The campus occupies 47 acres, with many attractive buildings,
both old and new, centered around large courts and two playing fields.
For all intents and purposes the college and university are essentially one. The main exception to this is the conferring of
degrees; the college provides all the programmes and academic staff are members of it, but the university confers the degree.
History
The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin was founded by Royal Charter from Queen Elizabeth I in 1592. The Corporation of Dublin granted the new university the lands of All Hallows monastery, a mile to the south east of the city walls. Trinity College is
today in the very centre of Dublin, as the city has moved eastwards.
During its early life, Trinity was a university exclusively for the Protestant ascendency class of Dublin. Following the first steps of Catholic Emancipation, Roman Catholics
were first admitted in 1793 (prior to Cambridge and
Oxford, incidentially Trinity was modelled on them), though
until well into the twentieth century they had to obtain the permission of the Catholic Archbishop of Dublin to take up a place if they wished to avoid excommunication. In 1873 all religious tests were abolished, except for Divinity. Women were admitted to Trinity College for the first time in 1904. The first woman professor was
appointed in 1934.
Location
Trinity is an unusual university as it is centered in a capital city, but still retains a strong campus atmosphere. This is in
large part due to the compact design of the campus: the main buildings look inwards, and there are a small number of public
gates. Student numbers increased during the 1980s and 1990s, with total enrolment more than doubling in size, and leading to
pressure on resources. Students can be housed either on campus, or in Dartry four kilometers to the south of the city campus
mostly for first years.
Mergers
In the late 1960s there was a proposal for University College Dublin to become the second constituent college of the University of
Dublin. This plan, suggested by Brian Lenihan and Donagh O'Malley, was dropped after mass opposition by Trinity Students. For
many years Dublin Institute of
Technology had its degrees conferred by the University of Dublin and a merger was considered. However, it is generally agreed
that a merger with either of the institutions would have overwhelmed Trinity.
A more detailed history: History of Trinity College (Trinity Website) .
Academic
Typically an undergraduate is awarded an ordinary Bachelor in Arts after three years study before an additional year to be
awarded an honours bachelor degree in their chosen specialism, thus requiring a total of four years study. This is closer to the
Scottish model than the English; most other Irish universities award Bachelor of Arts after three years of study, though other
bachelor degrees such as dentistry, engineering, medicine or science usually take longer. In recent years, students have been
offered a broader range of courses, outside of their major field of study. As a result, the pedagogy has moved a little closer to
the North American than the British university model. In addition to academic degrees the college offers the Postgraduate Diploma.
Trinity's six faculties:
- Arts (Humanities)
- Arts (Letters)
- Business, Economic & Social Studies
- Engineering & Systems Sciences
- Health Sciences
- Science
Governance
The University is headed, titularly, by the Chancellor, currently former Irish president and UN High Commissioner for Human
Rights, Mary Robinson. The College is headed by the Provost, currently
John Hegarty. The college is officially incorporated as The Provost, Fellows and Scholars of the College of the Holy and
Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin
The governance of Trinity was changed in 2000, by the Irish Government, in a bill introduced by the Board of Trinity: The Trinity College, Dublin (Charters
and Letters Patent Amendment) Act, 2000. This was introduced separately from the Universities Act 1997. This states that the
Board shall comprise:
- The Provost, Vice-Provost, Senior Lecturer, Registrar and Bursar;
- Six Fellows;
- Five members of the academic staff who are not Fellows at least three of whom must be of a rank not higher than senior
lecturer;
- Two members of the academic staff of the rank of professor;
- Three members of the non-academic staff;
- Four students of the College at least one of whom shall be a post-graduate student;
- One member not being an employee or student of the College chosen by a committee of the Board which shall comprise the
Provost and two members of the Board from among nominations made by such organisations as are representative of such business or
professional interest as the Board considers appropriate;
- One member appointed by the Board on the nomination of the Minister for Education and Science following consultation with the
Provost.
The Library
The Library of Trinity College is a deposit library the largest
research library in Ireland. It is entitled legally to a copy of every book published in Britain and Ireland, and contains 4.25
million books. The Book of Kells, the Library's most famous book can be
seen in the Long Room of the old Library. It is also believed that the Jedi Archives in Star Wars Episode II:
Attack of the Clones was inspired by the Long Room[1] .
Notable Alumni
See also
External Links
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