Living in Ireland – A Guide for PhD Students | FindAPhD.com (2024)

Ireland is a popular and hospitable destination for students looking to study for a PhD. You can experience the country’s ancient heritage sites, verdant landscapes, cosmopolitan vibrant cities, and its famously welcoming and sociable culture.

This guide provides useful information for students thinking of moving to Ireland for doctoral study. It covers accommodation options, work permits, transport and banking.

Ireland is well-known as a hospitable and welcoming country. The Emerald Isle is also full of history and culture, famous for its beautiful architecture and cities, traditional music and many festivals.

The country is also one of Europe’s premier literary hubs, famous for its association with writers such as Jonathan Swift, James Joyce, W.B. Yeats, Oscar Wilde and Seamus Heaney.

Sport is huge in Ireland, where there is a passion for rugby, golf and horseracing. You may also experience traditional – and unique - sports like Gaelic football and hurling.

The scenery of the wild countryside and beautiful cities offer plenty of reasons to explore the Emerald Isle. The likes of Star Wars, Games of Thrones and others have all been filmed in Ireland’s stunning ancient landscape – and you won’t have to be researching a PhD in Film Studies to see why!

Types of available student accommodation in Ireland include:

• Halls of residence – most universities have on-campus apartments for 4-8 students with single bedrooms and shared kitchen, living room and bathroom
• Rented accommodation – standard rented rooms, flats or houses from a landlord / letting agent
• Homestay – some students may choose to live with a host family in Ireland

The overall cost of living in Ireland as a doctoral student is similar to most other countries of Western Europe.

You can expect to pay around €970 per month, budgeting €427 for accommodation, €167 for food and €380 for miscellaneous costs such as utilities and travel.

The following table gives an indication of prices for some common expenses during a PhD in Ireland:

All students who are enrolled full-time at university do not need a work permit to work in Ireland.

However, non-EU / EEA / Swiss students will need a valid Irish Residence Permit (IRP) from the Irish Immigration Service. You will also need the Stamp 2, enabling a maximum of 20 hours per week during the academic year and 40 hours per week during holidays.

The Irish currency is the Euro (€). This means that travel between other EU countries is relatively easy.

Doctoral students are normally free to open an Irish bank account. Most banks in Ireland offer student rates or student bank accounts. In most cases opening a bank account will require:

• A valid passport / ID card
• Proof of your Irish address (through a bank statement of utility bill)

Please note that you will only be able to open a bank account after arriving in Ireland.

Ireland has a modern nationwide transport system and getting around the country is generally quick.

Most of the following travel services accept discounts via the Student Leap Card and / or the International Student Identity Card (ISIC).

Most Irish towns and cities have a Bus Éireann bus service, and Dublin also has the Dublin Bus, Dublin Area Rapid Transit (DART) and LUAS Tram services.

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