Program Overview

The International Foundation Year at Dublin International Study Centre is a three-term undergraduate foundation programme. It’s designed for ambitious international students, who have good academic qualifications from their home country.

You will be based on UCD's main campus and prepare to make a confident start to your degree in Ireland.

We offer three subject routes for progression to UCD. Across each route, you will study a mix of modules designed to improve your English language and academic skills so you're ready to progress to university. You will also benefit from our dedicated support staff in-centre, who will work with you to ensure you're on the path to success.

Once you successfully complete your International Foundation Year and achieve the required grades, you will be able to progress to your chosen undergraduate degree.

Engineering & Sciences
This engineering and sciences foundation year programme is perfect for students wanting to study an innovative undergraduate degree at an Irish university. You will have good subject knowledge, and want to develop it further, while also improving your English language skills.

Why study the International Foundation Year in Engineering and Sciences?

• When you progress to UCD, you'll benefit from world-class facilities in both the UCD College of Science and College of Engineering & Architecture.
• Each school within the College of Engineering & Architecture is individually accredited by prominent organisations so you can be confident in the quality of your degree.
• UCD offers a range of internship opportunities, as well as professional placements in industry for specific disciplines.
• UCD is ranked No.1 in Ireland for Chemical Engineering, Civil & Structural Engineering, Architecture and Built Environment, Veterinary Science and other Engineering and Sciences subjects. (QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024).

Progression to Biomedical Engineering
Biomedical Engineering involves the application of traditional engineering principles to healthcare and medicine. We can think of the brain and nervous system as a large communication system, which coordinates and transmits signals around the body, and the organs and limbs as sophisticated engineering systems that control functions such as movement, respiration and blood flow. UCD Biomedical Engineers are educated with a strong foundation in electrical, electronic and mechanical engineering, which is complemented by an understanding of physiology and anatomy.

This foundation is applied to problems in medicine and healthcare in specialised, interdisciplinary modules such as Biomechanics, Medical Device Design, Neural Engineering, Rehabilitation Engineering, Cell Culture & Tissue Engineering, Biosensors, Biomedical Signal Processing and Machine Learning. If you are interested in developing new medical techniques, systems and devices, and you want to be involved in the breakthroughs that are improving the healthcare system for doctors and patients every day, then this is the course for you.