The Technological University of the Shannon, or TUS, is located across four counties with campuses in Clonmel, Athlone, Ennis, Limerick and Thurles, as well as a soon-to-open Coonagh Campus in Limerick. Since its establishment on 1st October, 2021, TUS has had a strong focus on practical education provided by over 2,000 staff to its 15,000 students, with a real-world hands-on approach to prepare individuals for the dynamic workforce.
The university plays a substantial role in the local economy, contributing an approximate €420 million per year. Furthermore, it respects the trend of apprentices receiving higher wages than university graduates and actively adopts the ‘earn and learn’ option.
TUS can boast of a high graduate employment rate, with a recent higher education survey revealing that close to 87% of its honours degree graduates were employed in 2022, the highest proportion countrywide. TUS undergraduates are also said to be more likely to find work in the regions where its campuses are based. The university, with a forward-thinking approach, is also in tune with societal changes like remote working and rural migration.
The culture at TUS encourages partnership, innovation, and flexibility. It continually works with prominent stakeholders across various sectors to encourage the growth of the regions it serves. This driving vision also extends to the creation and introduction of relevant postgraduate courses that are innovative and includes an expansive focus ranging from practical taught courses to in-depth research studies. TUS takes pride in the fact that numerous firms understand the worth of these courses with many sponsoring their workers to accomplishment advanced studies at the university.
The university houses seven unique research institutes and a broad range of research teams, centres, faculties working in diverse disciplines, from fine arts and design to biotechnology and sustainable development. TUS prioritizes applied research with the intention to solve tangible problems and enhance the lives of people and communities.
As a university with a technological specialisation, we are dedicated to actively contributing to solutions for global and regional problems. We emphatically promote open science principles, putting us in a strong position to influence various societal aspects. These include life sciences and health, environmental sustainability and digital inclusion.
The Athlone Campus, hosting around 6,000 students, provides industry-specific courses from tertiary education to doctoral degrees. It offers programmes in fields such as virtual reality, cybersecurity, and pharmaceutical science. The campus is equipped with top-tier athletic facilities and is currently developing a new STEM centre.
The Coonagh Campus, due to open later in the year, aims to be the leading engineering-orientated higher education hub in the Midwest, according to the university. Similarly sized, the Moylish Campus on the fringes of Limerick City is a vibrant learning space for around 6,000 students, housing the thriving Hartnett Enterprise Acceleration Centre and several sports facilities.
The university has also revealed its plans for the Coonagh Campus to have cutting-edge facilities to encourage education, research, and industry collaboration and planned to host over 500 students.
The Clare Street and George’s Quay Campuses serve as creative hotspots and house the Limerick School of Art & Design (LSAD). Another key edifice, the Thurles Campus, acts as the base for the university’s SportsLab and Enterprise Centre. The Clonmel Digital Campus, albeit smaller, offers programmes in game design and digital media.
The Ennis Campus, equipped with modern facilities, provides social-care work degrees catered for small class sizes.
While the university doesn’t offer on-site student accommodation, it ensures students have multiple nearby housing options, ranging from convenient to well-maintained. To streamline the housing search for students, the TUS Students’ Union fosters relationships with property managers and private landlords, who are registered on the TUS Students’ Union Accommodation System for students to view the available accommodations.
The undergraduate degree programme, US 925: Applied Psychology – Bachelor of Science with Honours, holds accreditations from both the Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI) and the British Psychological Society (BPS). The course proffers a thorough examination of human cognition and behaviour.
Throughout the programme, students gain hands-on experience from a range of practical learning opportunities, including a semester dedicated to work placement in a variety of environments, such as mental health facilities or community development projects. These experiences furnish learners with indispensable abilities that further academic exploration at postgraduate level and boost prospective career prospects in sectors like clinical psychology and counselling psychology.
In addition to this, the curriculum provides an international academic opportunity, allowing learners to study at the University of Valencia.