Student life
Getting Somewhere to Live
If you need to rent accommodation to attend college, you have a number of choices. You can rent private accommodation near the college. Sharing accommodation with other students in a private rented apartment or house is a common option. As well as sharing the rent, you generally share the bills such as electricity, gas and phone charges.Many larger colleges now offer on-campus student accommodation. Typically, these are blocks of apartments in which a small number of students each have their own room and share common facilities such as a kitchen and lounge. Some colleges have single-occupancy apartments and most on-campus student accommodation now includes units suitable for students with disabilities.
Lastly, there are what is sometimes referred to as ‘student digs’. Although they are less common nowadays, they can be cost-effective for a student who travels home for weekends. In digs, the student lives with a family and may be provided with prepared meals, access to the kitchen, and so on. Household bills such as light and heat may be included in the overall weekly or monthly cost.
In recent years, it has become a somewhat easier task for students to find suitable accommodation, and rents are expected to fall further in 2010. Nevertheless, you should not leave it too late to start looking for the accommodation you need.
There are some essential tips in relation to finding somewhere suitable to live. Threshold has a guide to renting accommodation available here, and other useful information is available on the Threshold website.
Most colleges have information on their website on student accommodation – both on-campus (where applicable) and off-campus. Accommodation services to students include providing access to an up-to-date list of accommodation available in the local area. Larger colleges have dedicated accommodation officers.
A popular website to search for accommodation for rent is www.daft.ie.