The University College Cork (UCC), built around a beautiful stone-faced quadrangle, was founded in 1845, making it one of the oldest universities in Ireland. The university has four colleges: Medicine and Health; Business and Law; Science, Engineering, and Food Science; and Arts, Celtic Studies, and Social Sciences. Over 17,500 undergraduate and postgraduate students take courses in more than 60 different departments. The campus is a combination of early and modern architecture located in a wooded riverside setting close to the city center. The university is a constituent of the National University of Ireland and strongly emphasizes research while maintaining close connections with industry and the local community. University College Cork has been selected as Ireland’s University of the Year by The Sunday Times. The award, for the third time, follows on the heels of UCC becoming the only Irish university to achieve the unique status of Ireland’s first five-star university and improving its position in the QS World University Rankings.

Cork
Cork, the second largest city in Ireland, is located on the south coast of the island. The city is a busy seaport and the home of a large number of industries including electronics, pharmaceuticals, brewing, and food processing. Named the European Capital of Culture in 2005, the city was praised by Lonely Planet as one of the top 10 cities in the world to visit; the city boasts international arts, film, and jazz festivals, lively performing arts and a growing artisanal culinary culture of cafes, restaurants, markets, and boutiques. Cork is situated at the head of the inlet of Cork Harbor with the sea just to the south, mountains, hills, and river valleys to the north and east, and the well-known Lakes of Killarney a couple hours to the west.