Technological University Dublin


Technological University Dublin or TU Dublin is Ireland's first technological university, established on 1 January 2019, taking over all functions and operations of the three preceding institutions.
The university was formed by the amalgamation of three existing institutes of technology in the Dublin area – Dublin Institute of Technology, Institute of Technology, Blanchardstown, and Institute of Technology, Tallaght, and it is the second-largest third-level institution in Ireland based on student population of 28,500, behind University College Dublin. It is the eighth university in Ireland, and the fourth in the Dublin Region, following Trinity College Dublin, University College Dublin, and Dublin City University.
The institution's history stretches back to 1887, with the establishment of the first technical education institution in Ireland, the City of Dublin Technical Schools.
Professor David FitzPatrick is the inaugural president of TU Dublin.

History

City of Dublin Technical Schools

TU Dublin has its origins in the City of Dublin Technical Schools, with a Technical College founded at Kevin Street in 1887 by poet, songwriter and novelist Arnold Felix Graves.

Amalgamation of Institutes of Technology

In 2014, the Dublin Institute of Technology, Institute of Technology, Blanchardstown and Institute of Technology, Tallaght jointly entered into a formal process to merge into a university. At the time, following the "Institutes of Technology Act of 2006", there were fourteen IT's in Ireland, and a political appetite emerged to amalgamate several to form a more advanced third-level institution, known as a technological university, similar to that of Delft and other technological universities in Europe.
The Dublin bid, proposed by the three institutes, eventually coalesced in 2014 to seek designation as a technological university under the project title "Technological University for Dublin Alliance" / "TU4Dublin". A final application was submitted in April 2018, following the signing into law by President Michael D. Higgins of the "Technological Universities Act 2018".
The formation of the Technological University of Dublin was approved in July 2018, and the university was formally established on 1 January 2019, on which date the preceding institutions were dissolved.
In April 2019, TU Dublin sold its Kevin Street campus to York Capital and Westridge Real Estate for €140 million.
In March 2020, TU Dublin put the Aungier Street campus up for sale.

Facilities

The university consists of three main campuses, located in Grangegorman, Blanchardstown, and Tallaght - the campuses previously of DIT, ITB, and ITT respectively, the institutes which have amalgamated. The Grangegorman campus will complete ongoing relocation of activities at Kevin Street and Cathal Brugha Street, expanding its capacity to 10,000 students, while development is planned for the other two campuses during the formative years of the university.
According to then Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, the new university will have an "entrepreneurial ethos", and offer degrees and programmes ranging from Level 6 to Level 10 in the National Framework of Qualifications. While having an emphasis on computer science and STEM subjects, given its status as a technological university, the then Minister for Education and Skills Richard Bruton stated that the university would aim to sit at "convergence of the arts, business, science and technology".
European University of Technology
The Technological University Dublin is one of the eight holders of the European University of Technology, EUt+ with the Technical University of Sofia, the Cyprus University of Technology, the Hochschule Darmstadt, University of Applied Sciences, the Technological University Dublin, the Riga Technical University, the Polytechnic University of Cartagena, the University of Technology of Troyes and the Technical University of Cluj-Napoca. The European University of Technology, EUt+ is the result of the alliance of eight European partners who share a common vision.
Innovation
The Grangegorman campus includes the Greenway Hub, which is a "state-of-the-art facility for research and innovation that has been developed on the new TU Dublin campus at Grangegorman". It is home to the Environmental, Sustainability and Health Institute and to DIT Hothouse.

Students' Union

The Technological University Dublin Students' Union was established by referendum in February 2019 as the amalgamation of DIT Students' Union, IT Tallaght Student Union and Institute of Technology Blanchardstown Student Union.
The TU Dublin Students Union began operating on 1 July 2019.

Other Technological Universities

In January 2021, IT Tralee is due to merge with Cork IT to become Munster Technological University.
Similar institutions are planned in the south-east, mid-west/midlands and north-west.