Maynooth University: Small But Mighty
- Originally published
- Last updated on July 24th, 2023 at 01:01 am
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Alright, Maynooth University is not so little. But its roughly 15,000 students make it the smallest Irish university campus in a field where large research campuses reign. Of Ireland’s public universities, only Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland is smaller. What is Maynooth University like? When asked, students often focus on the size of the historic town of Maynooth itself, where the university is located.
They often focus on other aspects of small-scale education like the helpfulness of faculty and the close-knit relationships they make with instructors and classmates.
Maybe mighty Maynooth feels smaller than it is. With tons of student services and glowing academic reviews, students like what they get here. If you’re easily bored on Friday night and looking for a party, Maynooth might not scratch your “Dublin”-itch. But if you’d love to commute to the party from afar, Maynooth was tailor-made for you. Here are the details.
Maynooth University Basics
University: A quick note. Maynooth sets its own tuition and has its own faculty, but it is part of a multi-campus National University of Ireland (NIU) system that includes schools like NUI Galway, or the University of Galway. NUI Maynooth is the same as Maynooth University
Degrees: BA, BSc, LLB ( Bachelor of Laws), and Bachelor’s degrees in business and education that might look a little unfamiliar (BBS, BCL, B ED, etc.)
Majors: Maynooth is a large and comprehensive university. Most students take a flexible Bachelor of Arts course from which they choose one or more majors, from French, geography, business, economics, law, and even music. There’s an emphasis on business and sciences degrees (geography here is even tied to biological sciences). In the arts department, you won’t find studio offerings. Maynooth also offers psychology, music, social science, media studies, and communication.
Location: County Kildare, Ireland (at least 30 minutes via car or train to the center of Dublin)
Cost for out-of-EU: €13,500-€15,000 annually depending on course of study
On-campus housing cost: €4,400-€5,870 for the academic year + a one-time utility fee of €500. Rye Hall and Village accommodations are the less expensive options since the rooms have shared bathrooms.
FAFSA Funds: Yes
Abroad from abroad: Yes, there is a large array of study abroad options as well as Erasmus opportunities (at other European universities) to go abroad from Maynooth. Opportunities are more limited in South America and Asia, so if you have specific language needs and countries in mind, check availability.
Student body: ~14,000 undergraduate students, about 16% international.
Five adjectives: Quiet, caring, inclusive, individualized, authentic
International Student Experience in the Town of Maynooth
Maynooth is a town on the rural outskirts of Dublin, but miles away from the mindset of the city. It’s small, and your local coffee spot will become your family, and you’ll make friends from the university out in town when they stop in to get their own tea in a chipped flowered mug, just like you’re sitting in your new, town-sized living room (there’s even a tea society).
Bottom line: It’s easy to meet people here. That’s a huge bonus for many international students, who say the size of the town lent itself to feeling welcomed, like they’d met “family” more than friends, and made lifelong connections here.
Maynooth is not hard on the eyes, either. It’s an Instagrammable respite from the city and a good day trip for weekenders coming from Dublin who are looking for a slice of the Irish countryside. Its beautiful, historic atmosphere 25 km from Dublin is heaven for lots of students.
Maynooth is smaller than other big universities. And it’s a close-knit community.
While the south campus architecture is charming and traditional, Maynooth prides itself on its “international outlook” and ranks high in the Times Higher Education rankings for welcoming international students, faculty, and research.
Its high ratios of international students and staff, along with a commitment to collaboration outside Ireland, has meant blossoming opportunities for great minds to meet across continental borders. The International Office has staff that recruits non-EU students and provides guidance both before and after enrollment.
Where to Go in Maynooth
Venture off campus and you’ll find that student life is the heart of Maynooth in this small town of 14,000 (about the same as the student population). Family businesses, student pubs, and indie eateries dominate Main Street and cater to a youthful clientele. Yet the village is not large enough to sport huge sports or music venues. Instead, informal parties and crawling Main Street are core social activities.
Hit the Shoda truck for pastries and latté, and even pick up reasonably priced eggs bennie for weekend brunch. The Roost serves up pints on tap in a traditional pub complete with dark wood and live music. Afterward, meet other students at Supermacs, an Irish fast food tradition when the bars close, and get taco fries before the sun comes up.
The worst part of Maynooth is that there is nothing to do in the town. As I lived up there for the year, there was nothing to do for recreational activities. You would have to get the train to Dublin for a day out. I didn’t know that before coming to Maynooth. Although the train is short and cheap, I just wish there was more to do in Maynooth town itself.
Because the university is growing, Maynooth itself accommodates plenty of privately owned student houses, and the student population and town overlap to a large degree. While a few students lamented this “college town” vibe, most gushed about Maynooth’s friendly student reputation.
Student Life and Stepping Out in Dublin
To get off campus, check out the Royal Canal runs through town, and helped Maynooth flex its historical power. Today, it offers prime, canalside jogging routes for students. It can even take you all the way to Dublin city centre (though the bike ride will take you about an hour and a half). There’s also the Old Rail Trail, which can take you all the way to Athlone, in central Ireland. It’s part of an ongoing project that will lead to a car-free Dublin-to-Galway cycle trail.
Reason #1 to go to college in Ireland? Because it’s much harder to say, “I biked across the country” back in the US.
Commuter trains cost about €5 and run every 30 minutes for those itching to get to Dublin’s nightlife. There’s also the bus line, with strong links that connect the town to Dublin easily. International students using Maynooth as their home base to explore Ireland could scarcely do better than this outpost on the commuter belt. Trains and busses can take adventurers not only to nearby Dublin, but as far as Sligo or Galway for weekend trips.
College Life on Campus
Maynooth has two adjacent campuses and the picturesque buildings on the south campus are a mere five-minute walk from the national rail train station where you can be whisked into central Dublin on the western suburban rail line.
Most classes are on the north campus, but to study at the library, you’ll cross the street and dip a toe onto the picturesque grounds of the original buildings of the south campus. The library is not only the geographic center of the university; it’s a social and academic hub, too. There’s coffee, the IT help desk, snacks, study spaces, and Maynooth’s unofficial mascot, Library Cat (who has his own unofficial Twitter account).
The south campus is close to town and you can visit the town’s medieval castle for free as a student.
While the ruined edifice excitedly screams, “I’m going to college in Ireland!” its history is sad. In the 16th century, Maynooth Castle was destroyed by English forces who controlled “The Pale”—the area around Dublin marked by garrison towns. The English destroyed Maynooth and its castle.
Luckily, Maynooth’s people (and its castle) bounced back, and today, the south campus’ gorgeous architecture is a testament to the enduring historical importance of the town. The cathedral rises up over grassy quads and ivy-lined stone buildings around the original college facilities.
Students in math, music, history, and geography will find themselves inspired on their way to class in the old parts of campus. Even if your program isn’t housed here, take a picnic to the “Secret Garden” to catch some solitary time in a field of flowers.
Maynooth has great opportunities for work. There are lots of jobs for students all over campus.
Students gushed about the amazingly high level of support they receive, and that seems corroborated by multiple active social media accounts and support offices for the size of the international community on campus.
Social and Sporting Opportunities
With nearly 100 clubs, societies, and activities, the center of student life in Maynooth revolves around students finding like-minded rowers, archers, or equestrians. You can get started on Fairs Day in October by browsing the offerings, signing up, and paying your €2 fee. There are student activities where you can learn the lay of the land and make friends outside of student clubs. For example, the Medieval Irish Studies department hosts weekend field trips, especially for international students, to learn about Ireland at historical sites like the Newgrange Neolithic tomb.
On campus, students will find a student union bar serving up beer, pool competitions, and live music. There’s also more traditional student cafeteria fare. If you’re on the south campus, you won’t do better than Pugin Hall, with its long, Harry Potteresque tables and soaring gothic windows. The library boasts a Starbucks, but watch out, it gets busy and your only seating may wind up being floor space.
There is a student union that hosts stuff some nights, which is good. There are two student bars in Maynooth which are quite good. They always do certain nights. Like I think one was beach night and stuff like that. So you could dress up if you wanted to.
Maynooth University Student Accommodation
Maynooth students can live in student residences, in the town of Maynooth, or a train commute away. With rents notoriously high in Dublin, many incoming international first-years choose residential life. Though the convenience factor is high, there is no guarantee students are assigned a room and it’s common to circle the housing portal the minute it becomes available on Booking Day, as if trolling for concert tickets.
A home finder service fills some gaps and keeps a list of nearby landlords and even host families with rooms for college students. River, Rye, and Courtyard complexes have ensuite bathrooms. That makes the prices a little higher than the Village student housing complex. Newer dorms also boast concrete with floor-to-ceiling windows of the gorgeous green countryside.
However, don’t expect an Irish castle here. All housing is nondescript, with lots of renovated, yet tiny, institutional rooms that are anything but homey.
As Ireland’s fastest growing university, living on campus is becoming an experience that mirrors the other big universities in this in-demand capital city. While students still have it good, the university will have to keep up its commitment to housing students in this university town or it will face less demand from international students. After all, studying at Maynooth University can be a difficult commute between outer regions of Dublin, without direct routes.
Student Services on Campus
However, student services try hard to make up for the isolation of their location, creating one of the most welcoming Instagram presences we’re seen.
For example, nice recycling women tell us that last year’s move-outs from MU dorms left housing items that are available to incoming international students. Thanks, recycling program staff! Once you’ve scored some free pots and pans, the active Maynooth University International Students Service is there with lounge space, to direct you to campus events, and build community with some comforting group introductions, videos about how to pack, and weekend field trips throughout Ireland.
Students say the university support services are outstanding, with offices on campus helping students adjust by offering everything from mental health support to academic support services Americans are used to (but are more difficult to come by in Europe, like accommodations for extra time and quiet rooms for testing).
That’s a bonus for international students! It’s worth looking into student accommodations in different countries if you were receiving (and want to keep receiving) academic accommodations back in high school. Some countries recognize both academic accommodations and even American-style medications. Others don’t. Ireland is about as close to the American experience as you can get.
Academic Year Programs and Faculty at Maynooth University
The most popular degree program at Maynooth is the Bachelor of Arts degree with students able to choose across disciplines in a flexible course that combines courses. Therefore, be sure to dive into the undergraduate degree program for this basic BA to find a treasure trove of disciplines not evident at first blush.
If you choose the BA degree, you even get your first month at Maynooth to decide your path and subjects. Do you want to split your credits into two equal parts for a double major? Three equal parts for a unique combination liberal arts degree? Four subjects? Go for it. There are also major and minor options. You won’t need to commit to a more specific program until you’re settled into your dorm, attended classes, and spoken to an advisor.
This opportunity lets students at Maynooth participate in a self-constructed liberal arts and sciences degree of their own making, putting together courses like Greek and Roman civilization along with anthropology, for example (and while we’re on the subject, this is the only Irish university for anthropology students).
Program Limitations
One limitation of this degree is that some disciplines are scheduled at the same time, so you must make sure your particular interests aren’t at crosshairs in the university schedule (German and philosophy students – you’re out of luck). For students who are interested in tailor-making their own program as well as benefiting from Maynooth’s programs in law or business, the Bachelor of Arts degree has a built-in “path” that allows students to commit to that major after their first year. The whole approach feels like a mashup of European-style program-centered education with the American system in which students choose a university, not a program, and explore options before they focus.
My workload is not insane but it can be intense sometimes. My course involves a lot of reading mainly, but other courses are more work-based. The students here work very hard, and the library is always full of people. But as there are not a lot of bars around, I think students have no choice but to work hard.
Irelandphiles beware: at Maynooth, there is an Irish language program that has no beginner options for first-year students without Irish in their transcripts. Celtic studies is available.
Some other majors have entrance barriers you’ll have to surmount along the way, too — you won’t be able to apply directly to them and gain acceptance. For example, a major in physics with astrophysics requires students to apply from the experimental physics, mathematics, or mathematical physics programs with at least a 60% after their second year.
American Style Academics at Maynooth
Students’ final grades often depend on exam scores more than most Americans are used to (you’ll sit exams in large gymnasiums at the end of term). Increasingly, there are more classes with problem-based learning modules, open communication and discussion about workloads, continual assessment, and presentation assignments instead.
That said, some students are proud of their programs for offering continuing assessments. One student said she only had a single exam last semester. When students are constantly scored on performance, they wind up with a bigger workload throughout the semester but less panic at exam time.
The downside is the amount of work compared to just having exams. I think Maynooth students work harder than most universities in Ireland.
Overall, students rave about Maynooth’s general student-centered attitude, expressing that they felt their education at Maynooth was valuable because tutors and lecturers made sure they succeeded. Overall, the academic approach mirrors the small-town friendliness of the rest of Maynooth, with students expressing that the support they had to complete their degrees made a difference in their experience.
Thinking of Applying to Maynooth? Here’s what You’ll Need
Students with a 1000 composite SAT score and a 3.0 can apply for most programs online at the university’s online portal, PAC, or via the Common App. You can apply for one undergraduate program choice and provide transcripts, identification, and test scores. Your course’s website provides closing dates for applications, which range from February to July.
For international students, a €2,000 scholarship to help offset the costs of non-EU tuition fees is available with no extra application for students who have accepted a place in the class and paid their deposit before March 31.
Still Looking for Your Academic Home Base?
Maynooth is a magical university a little off the beaten path from Dublin. That’s the perfect distance, with the perfect people, for many of its students. But it’s not necessarily your perfect university. Start at the beginning by learning about what university is like in Ireland. And check out other schools like Dublin City University or Trinity College Dublin, for a rowdier downtown vibe.
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Jessica Share
Jessica is the writer, Ph.D., and mom-of-an-abroad-student-in-the-UK at the helm of College Abroad Guides. When she's not asking college students where the coolest place to hang out in their city is, she's figuring out how she can make $60 imported Greek oregano potato chips and £50 British bacon potato chips appear on her doorstep for the cost of a local bag of Lay's.
