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School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences

Transition Year Programme Outline

The School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Trinity College Dublin offers placements for Transition Year students every year in order to allow them to experience during one week what studying Pharmacy is all about. Placements are possible every year in the months of October, November, February and March, and are restricted to two students per week.

Objective: The main objective of this placement is to allow the TY student to gain a sense of the nature of activities involved in undergraduate study at the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Science at TCD. In as much as possible, attendance and participation in laboratory based activity will be arranged.

Transition Year Placement within the School follows the School’s normal academic teaching schedule. An example of what the TY student can expect is given below.

Day 1 Monday

10:00 Arrive School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences; meet TY Coordinator

10:30 Safety briefing with Chief Technical Officer

11:00 - 13:00 Attend two undergraduate lectures

13:00 - 14:00 Lunch

14:00 - 16:00 Work with a Ph.D. research student thus gaining an overview of research activities in for instance chemotherapy drug design, synthesis and in vitro testing.

Day 2 Tuesday

10:00 -13:00 Attend undergraduate lectures or undergraduate laboratory class

13:00 - 14:00 Lunch

14:00 - 17:00 Attend undergraduate laboratory class.

Day 3 Wednesday

10:00 -13:00 Attend undergraduate lectures or undergraduate laboratory class

p.m. Tour of Campus; Book of Kells, Science Gallery and Museum Building. Observe the University experience, i.e. student activity apart from academic study.

Day 4 Thursday

10:00 -17:00 Laboratory class or computer based literature research activities, e.g. Spectroscopy.

Day 5 Friday

10:00 - 13:00 Attend undergraduate laboratory class

13:00 - 14:00 Lunch

14:00 - 17:00 Attend undergraduate laboratory class. Programme concludes.

Note: The above schedule is for illustrative purposes. It is subject to change according to School academic activities.

Twenty eight placements are offered by the School each year, 14 being in the first semester (Michaelmas Term) and 14 in the second semester (Hilary Term).  Due to the large number of applications received, candidates wishing to apply for a place on the TY programme must write directly to the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences and include the following:

  • A CV with a contact telephone number/email address.
  • A covering letter explaining why they are interested in pharmacy and what subjects they are planning to choose for the Leaving Certificate.
  • A written statement saying that the student is covered by their school insurance during their placement.

Applications can be made from the 1st of August to the 25th of September for those intending to take their place in the first semester (October and November) and from the 10th of October to the 3rd of December for those intending to take their place in the second semester (February and March).   

Students will be contacted once all applications have been reviewed.

Formal applications should be sent to the transition year coordinator, Asst. Prof. Fabio Boylan (fabio.boylan@tcd.ie).  Informal enquiries can be made to Elizabeth Daly in the School Office (edaly3@tcd.ie, Tel. 01-896 2809).