International Study Tour to Dublin

23 & 24 October 2025

TOUR SUMMARY

Our journey started in the 17th Century with the historic Rubrics residential structure at Trinity College Dublin and the Campanile, now both lovingly restored. We continued to the temple-like Printing House, repurposed to hold the Book of Kells. The adjacent Printing House Square displayed a bewildering number of student services and superior residential units. Onto E3 Learning Foundry knitted into a new college quarter then the Portal Innovation Hub within Victorian warehouses in TCD’s eastern, dockside campus.

At the Grangegorman campus, the group toured TU Dublin’s new arts faculty housed in the East Quad containing a state-of-the-art recital hall. Also toured was the nearby Central Quad, with its spectacular grand stair. This is now the home of health and other sciences plus the catering college. Finally the group reached TU Dublin’s latest project: the exciting Academic Hub and Library. This design clusters new teaching and learning spaces around part of the original Victoria asylum.

The next stop was at DCU’s Woodlock Hall Graduate Library converted from the former refectory of the All Hallows seminary then the newly completed Polaris Building on DCU’s Glasnevin campus - a centre for health and human performance studies, research and general teaching.

The University Design Forum wishes to thank Trinity College Dublin, TU Dublin, DCU, their staff, designers and contractors for their generosity in hosting and guiding our tours but also to our tour supporters Troup Bywaters + Anders, MPA and Sheppard Robson without whom the event would not be possible.

Written by Rod McAllister.