Toast 2.5 (Apr. 2010)

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opinion - exams - elected officers - rag - elections - pictures - societies

vol: 02 issue: 05 the ‘spring’ edition

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STU3 09 A5 ROI.02388.indd 1 10/09/2009 09:35:20

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welcome & contents

Hello! Welcome to TOAST 5 – our penultimate serving of news and updates, topped off with pics and as ever advice you need to know.

As Easter is over and the weather picks up – it can mean only one thing – exams are around the corner again. Check out page 20 for info on what to do if you haven’ t received your first semester results in time.

As ever we have coverage of what’s been happening, some remarkable photos from RAG Week on pages 24-29....big up to babygro man at the 40ft...The fun and games are not over yet as we have a few things lined up to amuse and entertain you at minimum recession busting cost.

So whether it’s nice long Walk in The Park, getting down and dirty on the Farm or a Big Day Out at the races there’s some-thing for everyone in April. ....so you can have a least one last hoorah before the serious business kicks off completely and you all resume a monk like existence for the month of May.

Remember we in your Students’ Union are here to help and advise you on all manners of issues and as you can see on page 41, more and more of you availing of these services. So whatever the questions we know the answer (or if we don’t, we know who does )– so come on – try us.

We hope you enjoy this latest slice and remember any stu-dent can submit an article, photo, letter, rant or a rave and we will publish it (within reason of course). Next issue is the last for this year so if you want to see your name in glorious technicolour print please send in your piece to [email protected] before 01 May 2010.

Mairead

P.S.Welcome to the new bunch of Apprentices in Kevin St. Our office is on the first floor in the annex so make sure you drop up for your travel card, to find out what we can do for you (as SU members) and grab any freebies on the go.

contacts [General] [email protected] [advertisinG] [email protected] [desiGn] [email protected]

contriButors orna cunninGHaM, GraHaM Hayes, Kieran Keane, deirdre McGinG, cHerry MorGan, KatHryn payne, ivan privalKo

Get in toucH tHis is your MaGazine, and we want you to Be involved. fancy writinG an article, taKinG soMe pHotos or Generally HelpinG out? just drop us a line [[email protected]]. feel tHe need to reply to any of tHe issues raised? just Mail us.

all riGHts reserved. tHe entire content is copyriGHt ditsu. ltd., and cannot Be reproduced in wHole, or in part, witHout written perMission. views expressed are tHose of tHe contriButors and not necessarily sHared By dit students’ union.

elected officer report: tracey elected officer report: jen elected officer report: sean wHat’s tHe word: ast & Bst wHat’s tHe word: cBst & Kst wHat’s tHe word: MsQ & ratH feature: elections 2010 spotliGHt: art & desiGn weeK upcoMinG: cars feature: raG weeK 2010 update: GoverninG council feature: erasMus feature: international students opinion: McGinGs MusinGs spotliGHt: societies awards fun for your luncHtiMe

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tHe toast teaM [editor] Mairead Butler [suB editor] eve donnelly [desiGn] eddie corr

vol: 02 issue: 05 the ‘spring’ edition

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elected officer report Words: Tracey FlinterContact: [email protected]

wHat’s tHe craic?

There is loads going on at the moment. After a meeting with Finance Department in March we have discussed a number of options to make paying the capitation fee easier for students ie by paying in installments. We are hoping to progress this further. There are a number of outstanding issues with regards to carrying fees over and repeat exam fees but we have hopefully sorted them all out. It is now €60.00 to sit repeats in DIT due to the economic climate. I have requested that we are consulted when the Finance Department are developing their policies so confusion like this does not occur again. With regards to Grangegorman, there has been talk of applying a student levy on your fees to fund the Student Centre in Grangegorman but don’t let this worry you. According to HEA regulations, that decision will have to made at a Student Referendum (a vote from the student body) in order to proceed. I just want to make sure all students are kept in the loop and are aware of what is going on with regards to the hopeful move to Grangegorman.

Mary Coughlan is now the new Minister of Educa-tion and we have a fight on our hands about the definition of Student Services. At the moment there are a number of colleges that would like the library and information services to come from the student capitation fee. Our argument is that the library and the information services, like the computer labs are a core function of the third level education and they would cease to exist without them. I will be attend-ing a Joint Oireachtas Committee Meeting on Educa-tion and Science on this subject making sure student views are heard at the core of the decision making process. I will keep you posted on this debate!

TRACEY FLINTERSU President

Last but not least I would like to thank everyone who ran for election for the next academic year. There was a great buzz around all sites and the Election Campaign seems to be growing from year to year. Without students putting themselves forward to rep-resent the over all student body in DIT there would be no such thing as DIT Students’ Union. I want to take this opportunity to wish Ciaran Nevin, Clare Cul-len and Eric Fitzgerald the best of luck for next year.

your students’ union president tracey

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Hello tHere!

Well, it’s lunchtime at the moment and while I munch on Dorito’s (chilli heatwave, of course) and sip my can of Sprite, I wonder what in god’s name I’m going to write for this issue of Toast. I don’t want to bore you with waffle about stuff that’s coming up but if I don’t tell you now you may never find out, so very briefly here’s what’s on the cards...

Week 11 – April 12th: Class Rep Recruitment for next year, Cheating and Plagiarism & Freedom of Information awareness campaigns begin.April 17th: National Breakdance Competition Week 12 – April 19th: CARS (College Awareness and Road Safety), Student Feedback (Q6 forms)Saturday 24th: Free Bike Maintenance Classes Week 13 & 14 – April 26th: Welfare Power DaysApril 29th: Inauguration Ceremony for incoming sabbaticals

After that it’s time to chain yourself to the desk and study study study. Unless of course you’re in one of those rare and magical courses that doesn’t have summer exams. In which case, stop gloating, study-ing for summer exams sucks more than a car alarm the morning after a session. Now on a lighter hearted note...I had a look at that Overheard in DIT Facebook page the other day, and stole a few bits from it. My top tip for this issue....if you have a spare few minutes, check it out. Here’s what I stole...

“While waiting for the lift an unknown lecturer farted and it STANK! Lecturer - “you won’t tell on me will

you?” and he walked up the stairs cause the embar-rassment was too much for him to handle. “

Student: “can rhinos live without their horns!?” Lecturer: “yeah but they’re disfigured aren’t’ they.... who wants to be walking around without a horn on”

Bolton Street Lecturer: “everything his eyes saw, he had to finger”

“person 1: what time are you going for lunch at?person 2: one.person 1: well its 5 to 1 now.Person 2: what, your putting odds on lunch now?”

Law lecturer: “What’s the difference between com-mon law and the ten commandments?”Student: “What are the ten commandments?”

Lecturer: “I think were gonna need an extractor fan in this area (waving hands above smelly student).later on that day......Lecturer: “here... if this happens again I’m gonna have to ask you to leave (then to others close by) you all get danger marks for putting up with this! Discussing Invictus...”Morgan Freeman was born to play Samuel L. Jackson!!”

And with that I have to say goodbye because I’m starving and my stomach is starting to get abnor-mally loud… If you’ve any questions, comments or issues please contact me.

cHat soonyour vice president, jen

elected officer report Words: Jen JordanContact: [email protected]

JEN JORDANsu vice-president [asa]

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elected officer report Words: Sean CampbellContact: [email protected]

Howdy partners!

Yes folks it’s after Easter, and the eggs are gone so here comes the summer. It’s time to study basically, spread the work load over the next two months and go for it. Just think of them sunny days lying on the beach, in Sandyford, licking an ice cream, it will be all worth it.

National Congress was on over Easter and it was long days and long evenings of debating the motions for your better future. Organized by the national Union USI and attended by most of the colleges in Ireland it is an important annual gathering of Students from all over the country. Fancy going next year? Well, get involved and have a go at public speaking and debating and life skills learning for free.

What’s going to happen next year? Are we going to see more cuts to the DIT budget? Yes, most likely we are and it means that students are going to suffer. Please ensure that you feed into your Class Rep and into your Students’ Union if you’re having any prob-lems whatsoever with the course. If we don’t know about the problems then we can’t fix them.

With Facility issues it’s the same .If we don’t know what’s going on, we can’t help, so please email me on [email protected] with those. The Big Bash is the next on the agenda for the E&M department. Every year it’s a great success and it’s a blow out for classes to have before the exams. This year is going to be no different see local posters for details.

DITSU is your Union and your money, what would you like to see change, do different, bigger gigs,

bigger bands, more academic issues solved, more consultation with students? Let us know it’s the time of year to record the issues and make the changes: your union, your voice.

The Walk in the Park will be taking place at the end of April so please get involved as it will be the last RAG event of the year. RAG week was good fun and busy with over 35 events so we in the E&M dept would like to thank all who helped out and got involved in the many goings on.

At the time of going to print we are still counting but we have just hit the 10K and there’s still lots more to come so Thank You and please know that you are making a difference to Our Lady’s Hospital, Crumlin. I had fun and I hope you all did too. Big up to the Eteam and to Keith for all their hard work.

That’s the craic, see ya all around at the big bash - it’s going to be epic!!!

your vice president,seany

SEAN CAMPBELLsu vice-president [s&t]

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Hi there,

OK, so after elections and RAG Week, things have quietened down, finally, but that doesn’t mean that there’s still lots to look forward to! Here’s what’s gonna be coming up in Aungier St before the end of term.

Myself and the Aungier St LPIT are looking at how we can spend the rest of our budget to improve the college experience of Aungier St students. One of the best sug-gestions we’ve received so far is getting a Wii for Danger St. Expect to see people flailing around playing tennis sooner than you think! It’ll give us a great opportunity to hold competitions and just add a bit of craic and atmosphere to the place, don’t you think? We’re also looking into the possibility of holding a “RAG Day” in Auniger St, just to bring back the atmosphere of RAG for a day before the inevitable doom and gloom of exams and assessment. Naturally, we want to raise more money for our charity, the Research & Medical Centre at Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin, too!

Hey there,

Well guys... I hope you all had a good Easter and that you didn’t wear your-self out too much!! I would like to welcome all the Apprentices who started back on the 7th so I hope you all know your way around by now! And don’t forget if you have any issues or problems call down to the SU Office (beside the pool tables)!!

While you guys were at home relaxing over Easter, I was in Ballinasloe at the USI’s Nation Congress... This was a great Congress and we all did the best we could for you at it!!

And so we enter the final stretch of the year... The last few weeks of Semester 2!! This is always a good few weeks but I can be long too so get plenty of rest along the way..!! There will be a few things happening on stage too to keep you entertained at lunch and to take the pressure of and help you to wind down and relax! Also we will be running a Pool Competition so keep an eye out for the posters with all the details!! It’s gonna be a manic few weeks especially for all those in Final Year... Good luck with your thesis.......

Some inconsiderate soul feels the need to block the toilets in the common area every evening. While I’m sure it seems like a laugh riot to you, whoever you are, there are a few hundred others who need to use them during the day, too. Grow up and have a bit of cop on!

Biggest news of the year – the TVs are finally working in Aungier St!!! They mysteriously turned on around the beginning of Cheltenham – co-incidence much? Regard-less of the reason, they’re yours to enjoy now! Who’s the daddy on Jeremy Kyle? What freak will Maury have on this week? What did Heidi say to Spencer? NOW WE HAVE THE ANSWERS!

That’s about all we’ve got time for this episode, but stay tuned! There’ll be many more weird and wonderful goings-on in the bestest site ever, Danger St!

Eric ([email protected])

With our LPIT (Local Programme Implementation Team) Budget... we will be using this money to invest in a few bits and bobs to create an atmosphere and also to use on our on-stage events... So if there is anything you want to see happening in Bolton Street in the coming weeks let me know... If you want Bands, Comedians or whatever call down and we will figure something out!

It’s that time of year again when I will be popping into your class to elect your Class Reps for next year... So if you haven’t seen me in your class come and get me!

I think that’s it for now.... but be sure to keep an eye out on the Bolton Street page on the DITSU Website.... www.ditsu.ie/bolton-street

Have a fun few weeks and I will see you all about soon!!

Suzann ([email protected])

WHAT’S THE WORD: aungier st.

WHAT’S THE WORD: bolton st.

site reports

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Hi there,

How are you all? We’re into the latter stages of the academic year now and we’re all snowed in under the proverbial avalanche of assessments and study......fun times. So the question is: what can we do to relieve your stresses and make you feel a little better about college?

What about movie nights run in the SU common area on Thursdays? What about another Jam Session? We’re working hard to come up with good events to run for you on-site and we have a few in the pipeline at the minute, one in particular that we are all very excited about but I can’t say anything until everything is confirmed, keep your eyes open for posters. If you don’t like the events we’ve been running or there’s something you’d like to see done then let us know. You can drop into the office anytime and let us know. We always want student input so that we can make the events what you want, so help us to help you!

There are always problems with exams and assessments at this time of year for some people, but remember there is help out there. I won’t go into to detail here on what

supports to give but any questions just drop into the office and we’ll do anything we can to help.

I want to congratulate Seóna Dunne, your Cathal Brugha St. Class Rep Convenor Elect. She’ll be the person writing this article, this time next year, representing your views as students and work-ing with the Student’s Union to try to make your college as amazing as possible. Best of Luck to you Seóna, we all know you’ll do a fantastic job.

Well now, that’s all the serious stuff but I want to end this report on a happy note.........it’s almost summer and soon we shall all be finished exams and we can just kick back and relax in the sun in Italy or the snow in Alaska or whatever you’re into. In the end it all boils down to the same thing, college is almost over again for another year. ;-D Nate ([email protected])

WHAT’S THE WORD: cathal brugha st.

Two cows are standing next to each

other in a field.

Daisy says to Dolly, “I was artificially insemi-

nated this morning.”

“I don’t believe you,” says Dolly.

“It’s true, no bull!” exclaims Daisy.

LAUGH WITH LORNA:

site reports

Kevin Street:

Our Graham gets a close shave,

all for char-idee of cours

e!

Kevin Street:Our Eamonn gets an even closer

shave... Good old RAG Week!

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Hay all,

Hope ye enjoyed Easter, I know I did, have the extra few pounds to prove it! So, Art and Design Week was a huge success and congrats to all who put in work for the exhibition… but… now we need you all to collect your artwork. It’s sitting in the office taking up all our space and we need you to collect it ASAP.

So what’s in store for Mountjoy Square and Portland Row I hear you ask? Well lots actually! We are going to have an official opening of the Fr.Ted Corner very soon. Its done now, but sure we all know it could be better, but not without your help. So if you have anything lying around, like shabby lamps, dodgy picture frames, a Jesus throw or a lovely lovely horse, bring it in to us and we will find a space for it.

Very recently I’ve been asked to get a Wii for the canteen! Now before you get overly excited there are a few things to work through so it might take a little while but fear not, a Wii is on its way!

Hi there,

It feels like I haven’t talked to ye guys in ages!!! Hope you’re all doing well, I know that everyone has been mad busy in Rathmines with the amount of end of year and midterm concerts, exams, competitions and shows we’ve been doing. I’d like to congratulate you all on the hard work you’ve been doing so far and really keep up the good work; I promise it’ll pay off. And I guess for those of us who’ve probably let some things fall by the way side, there are only a few weeks left so if we just kick it into high gear we’ll be fine (GAH here’s hoping, lol.)

Well as regards DITSU events on site we’ve had SHAG and RAG, which didn’t necessarily go according to plan but it was pretty funny seeing everyone attempt putting on condoms with beer goggles and seeing how excited ye all got with a few party hats and musical chairs during RAG week, definitely something we should do again.

Hummmm …site facilities…ok so the TV and the pool table may still be a bit defunct but hey we’ve got hooks on the toilet doors and a little bird told be a window or two might get fixed, yayness. I know the canteen is

And as for Portland Row, you also get your gaming experience upgraded with your very own PS2. I’m in the process of sending it down to ye… just need to find the space, but fear not, before you know it you will all be gaming junkies in college.

Just to shake it up a bit as well, we have decided that its just not fair on the Portland Row students to have to come to Mountjoy Square all the time so we have decided to bring everyone to Portland Row. Trust me guys and girls, they know how to throw ye all a welcome you will not forget. I’m not going to give away to many details right now because its in the early planning stages but lets just say by the end of the year, Portland Row might just be in the running to be considered the best site in all of DIT!!!

Now enjoy the suspense, the gaming and the Fr.Tedness of it all and sure pop in to the office for a chat… ah go on… go on … go on… go’ on go’ on go’ on go’ on!

Jon ([email protected])

crappy, but let’s make the most of it, put back the games when you’re done with them, and tidy up after yourself, otherwise why would DIT think we deserve nicer things if we trash the crummy stuff we already have?

Oh yeah I noticed a few paper recycling bins in some of the classrooms, so if ya have paper sure just keep it till you are in that classroom or give it to a friend to leave in on their way past, no point throwing it into the regular bin. We also have a bus shelter lookin bike rack now, yay, hopefully that should deter those crazy criminals who think it’s fair to steal bikes from students...

The ball will be coming up real soon, we’ll hopefully have a few nibbles, a DJ and fingers crossed a band if the budget allows it. Tickets will be around €12 and will be on sale on site soon, remember to buy them quickly coz they’ll prob go extra fast this year with all the extra first years we have this year. Posters detailing all about it will be in the canteen. I’m really excited about it. And remem-ber if you want to have your say in the ball, with anything you’d like to have at it, feel free to email me anytime with suggestions. ([email protected])

My regular jokes have proved so popular I know have my own joke section! Check it out on the opposite page! LORNA ([email protected])

WHAT’S THE WORD: mountjoy sq.

WHAT’S THE WORD: rathmines.

site reports

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crumbs- tasty news tidbits

tHe BiG BasH:looMinG larGe...

The last final blowout of the year. . . we’ve been working on acts for a while. You wouldn’t believe the amount of people we’ve approached and the amount of ‘unavailables’ and ‘nos’ and ‘not interested’ and so on. We’re cooking up something good though. Without being Trinity or UCD and having our own campus venue life is very tough in this regard but we’re soldiering on and we’ll pull it off!

Posters should be up when ye all come back from your well-deserved Easter Break so be on the lookout for them!

exaMs:is it tHat tiMe aGain?

I hope this doesn’t come as a shock to any of you but exams are on the horizon. We’re looking at a load of different things that we want to do in and around the build up to exams just to help ye take your minds off them for a while. Obviously, study time is needed, but we’re worried you may not be factoring in enough downtime in the midst of it all so keep an ear to the ground and an eye to the walls for what randomness might be appearing on your site to distract you ever so slightly, of a lunchtime. . .

tHe e teaM:in action...

The Events Team proved invaluable during RAG Week helping out with everything from rolling zorbs to selling T shirts to distributing RAG Mags and putting up posters. Fun was had by all and we’re all interested in expanding the team! So if you’re interested drop an email to [email protected] with ‘Events Team’ in the title and we’ll get back to you. Oh, and there’s a little party coming up for those of you already on the team. . . we’ll be in touch!

Grad Balls:Get sent off in style!

For those of you in final year here in DIT, we’ve been working on the Graduation Balls to send you off in style. These will be held in Oct / Nov 2010. Once DIT have finalized the schedule of actual graduation ceremonies, we confirm the dates for each Ball. The Graduation Ceremonies take place over 5 week-ends on the Saturday, and we throw 3 Graduation Balls on the Sunday of 3 of those weeks.

We’ve been visiting venues and investigating options for the past few months and should be in a position to announce all details, except the actual date as per above, in advance of you disappearing for the Summer. We may also be able to sell tickets in advance of the summer which would save you having to buy through Ticketmaster in Sept / Oct / Nov.

raG cHarity 2011: noMinations open

There have been enquiries from people interested in nominating a RAG Charity for next year. Nominations were opened at Governing Council on the 24th March, and will be closing at 5pm on Tuesday 13th April 2010. So – Take Note -There will be an EGM of Govern-ing Council in or around the 26th April to vote for the Charity. The Charity needs to be proposed and seconded by a registered DIT Student, so if any charities approach you in regards to this, can you please explain that to them. If you are interested in proposing a charity, you can download a Nomina-tion form on www.ditsu.ie

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BiG day out & tHe BiG BasH:april 21st

Celebrate the end of year (almost) in style with a Day at the Races in Punchestown Race Course for a special Student Social . Students from the Dublin colleges and beyond will be bussed in for the day – Wed 21st April, which features the Guinness Gold Cup, Best dressed lady competition and lots of fun and games to keep you entertained.

And to top off the day in style the BIG BASH 2010 will be held that night. Acts and details to be announced but mark the day in your diary as it’s going to be a good one.

Membership packages will be available for purchase from Monday 15th February 2010

www.ditsports.ie So to find out more about this or any other sports and clubs information check our website:

DIT

pro

ud t

o be

par

t of

or contact one of the Sports Team.

We will be laying on buses to and from Punchestown for the DIT contingent. Tickets for the day inc bus will be sale from the SU. There will be a few options including the combo package of tickets for the Day and the Races with entry to the BIG BASH inc bus to the day time Race Day option.

Posters with full details will be up by the time you are reading this and there will be high demand for the BIG DAY OUT so get your ticket early. Check ditsu.ie for details.

new president of usi:Gary redMond

USI are proud to announce that a new President for the forthcoming year has been elected. Gary Redmond, who is currently president of UCD Stu-dents Union, is the new man at the helm.

Mr. Redmond, from Arklow in County Wicklow, will lead the USI in lobbying education minister, Mary Coughlan, in the coming year on important topics such as the implementation of the Student Support Bill and the regulation of the college registration fee.

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DIT staff and students celebrate the reopening of the FIT 2 GO facility with a quick dip...

feature: elections 2010 Words:Orna Cunningham

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an election picnic

thursday the eleventh of february saw a kick off to hustings, and a kick off to the most exciting and contentious student union elec-tion of recent years. the debates were mired in controversy and fierce competition had been ongoing- campuses, friends, lovers divided by political affiliation. there were a few good answers, some utter bull, some interesting dialogue and some inappropriate questions but it ran relatively smoothly.

The presidential debate between candidates Sean Campbell and Ciarán Nevin was interesting, if a little pre-prepared and evasive on both parts. Whatever happened, it was clear that DIT was going to get a worthy President for 2010/2011. At all the question and answer sessions the candidates seemed fairly satisfied with their answers and as Sean said, “We have to fight tooth and nail for everything DIT deserves.” The candidates were definitely fighting. It was, in fact, pretty rough.

The campaign teams have all been hugely dedicated (maybe a little too dedicated, many voters seeking protection from aggressive cajoling by proudly displaying “I Have Voted” stickers). The candidates and teams alike have fought valiantly but heavy heads and weary eyes belied their exhaustion. By the weekend of the first week of campaigning they were all knackered, the poor lambs, and someone on high decided they needed a break.

election fever gripped dit during the last week of february. Now that the votes have been cast and counted, and the dust settled, Orna Cunningham shares her election experience with us...

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On Sunday the 21st of February hair was let down, swords were swallowed, faces were mashed into glass, snakes constricted the prettiest of girls and there was nary a campaign t-shirt in sight. And of course, High King Breffni (of “The Apprentice” fame) oversaw the nonsensical carry-on.

One and all tumbled into D2 on Harcourt Street, expecting to be wowed and awed. Not everyone was enjoying a drink (or four), for there was campaigning to be done the next morning but at that moment all rivalry was forgotten. I mean, Breffni off of The Apprentice was there. Nobody wanted to embarrass themselves.

The Breffmeister enjoyed some water (he was driv-ing), some snake charming delights and was happy to pose for star struck fans, but eventually the big man himself had to roll on out, no doubt to a glitter-ing party somewhere in the night. Thanks to the intrepid questioning of a Ms. Cullen we discovered that snakes do in fact fart- a fact unknown to the Toast team, and one confirmed by the beautiful Emma Quinlan, our snake charmer on

feature: elections 2010

retainer. Accompanied by some brawn the lovely little lady let one and all pose for photos with the ten stone python. Your brave reporter held the snake all alone, and we can confirm that that thing was heavy. As if huge reptiles weren’t enough to make squeamish girls shriek a heavily tattooed young gentleman then proceeded to ask them to stand on his stomach. It probably wouldn’t have been so bad if he hadn’t been lying on a bed of nails at the time. It was topped off by a similar trick with his face, a plastic bag full of broken glass, a boy who didn’t look too heavy and some rather impressive simultaneous unicycling and juggling. We asked him what the trick was to swallowing swords.

“Don’t gag.”

Good life advice, really. We wonder if the hardcore candidates followed it when they continued onto Coppers later that evening but your moonlighting reporter turned in for the night at that point- elec-tions were starting the next morning and poll clerking was beginning.

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From our poll clerk vantage points in Temple Bar and Rathmines we saw good voter numbers- even beating previous bests. The turnout on all the sites was impressive considering that last year’s was only sixteen percent of the student body. The voters were fired up though- they were informed, they were interested and they were discussing the policies and the changes. Voters seemed to respond best to candidates who personally approached them for a chat and few voters voted without at least some prior knowledge of candidates’ manifestoes. Poster campaigns, which can be such a driving force in college politics didn’t seem to play a massive role here, although Clare Cullen’s “tits n’ ass” (specifically, her head superimposed on Jordan’s voluptuous rack) scheming did seem to be paying off.

It was only four days of folded ballots. Eleven o’clock on Thursday morning came like a slap in the face and Bolton Street campus buzzed with nervy whispers as the ballot boxes were hoisted in. Your reporter had gladly agreed to do the count, obviously for the broadest sense of what was happening (and not for the nine euro per hour, I swear) and spent the day counting voraciously on DITSU’s live feed on ditsu.ie. The votes were poured onto the table in the most dramatic of fashions. A sea of red, blue, orange and mint green assaulted the eyes of hand wringing

onlookers- DIT’s political future expressed in thin slips of paper. And the count started.

Hands flew furiously, distinguishing colours and dividing candidates from one another. The counts started with the campus Convenors. This was the first year the Convenors had been decided by election and the tension as palpable, even for those running uncontested. Whispers of a secret RON campaign accompanied Gareth Walker Ayers’s un-contested slide into the role of Rathmines Convenor with 41 RONs to 62 yeses. Graham Hayes was elected to Kevin Street, Seóna Dunne to Cathal Brugha, Suzann Tutty to Bolton Street and Kieran Keane to Mountjoy Square. All were uncontested and passed with very comfortable margins.

The only contested Convenor election was for Aungier Street with three very strong candidates running- Siobhán Abrook, Darren Bates and Conor Thompson. The mood in the room changed and focus shifted to the counting table- this was serious stuff. Bates came third in the first round and when his votes were redistributed Conor Thompson had 401 to Siobhán Abrook’s 304. There were some happy faces, a few disappointed faces and even a few tears (but nothing a midday trip to Bodkin’s couldn’t sort out).

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Once the Convenors were sorted out and filed away it was time for some meatier stuff- Vice Presidents. We can’t emphasise the work that went on behind the scenes enough- these guys were hungry. Rumours abounded of campaign teams meeting in December, of dirty poster play, but it seemed to be the consensus that John May had the stronger campaign team between himself and Clare Cullen. It was a massive surprise then, when Cullen, the only female sabbatical candidate was deemed elected to the role of Vice President of Academic & Student Affairs, with a campaign team of only four people behind her. May looked disappointed but under-standably- there were only two hundred votes in the difference.

Vice President for services and trading was a differ-ent affair entirely. Eric Fitzgerald, Barry Drake and John Wade paced the floor agitatedly while the counters flipped through nos and yeses. Patience was wearing at this point- the sky was darkening outside and everyone was eager to see what the final outcome would be. Unfortunately for Drake he had the least votes in the first round and when his ballots were redistributed Eric Fitzgerald just tipped it with 1467 to John Wade’s 1337, showing that his work as Aungier Street Convenor over the past two years had not gone unnoticed. He goes on to be-come Vice President of Services & Trading, replacing the out-going Sean Campbell.

Sean wasn’t taking a back seat this year however- he and Ciarán Nevin had their sights set on the presi-dency and the battle had everyone talking, and no one able to call it. In the end it was easy to see why no one had been able to- as the counters fumbled their way through piles of ticks, spoils and RONs it became apparent that it was a hell of a tight margin. The counters, candidates and supporters flicked their eyes over piles of hundreds, no one sure what the count was.

The presiding official drew a deep breath and announced that there was only eighteen votes in it. And just like that, the new DITSU President was Ciarán Nevin.

feature: elections 2010

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Campbell took the shockingly small margin in his stride and graciously congratulated Nevin. However, with a margin so small a recount was to be expected and after a night of what can only be described as utter madness involving guitars, champagne, yards of ale and sing songs we reconvened in Bolton Street for a recount. The assembled could scarcely believe their ears. Two candidates, worthy opponents, slick campaigners and approachable guys- and the difference was six. And again, Nevin was the man the voters chose.All things considered it was almost unbelievably close- six votes being the deciding factor in a valid poll of nearly three and a half thousand (up seven hundred from last year), the phrase “every vote counts” was highly applicable. Complaints of apathy in the student body could be remedied ten times over with the attitude displayed on the day and throughout the campaigns. Political fervour was the soup du jour for a few weeks and we can honestly say that we haven’t been as excited about anything for a long time as we were about the elections. And the elections were exciting. See you next year.

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Ciarán Nevin SU President Elect

To think I thought I was finished writ-ing for Toast. Its good to be back. First

things first, as the recent issue of the DIT News will be the last of the semester,

I would like to take this opportunity to clarify the final result of the election. There were only six votes between Sean and myself in the end, and I think it’s important to acknowledge the hard work by both teams in fighting such a close race. Congratulations also to all my future colleagues, for their hard fought campaigns.

In truth, for me, the result of the election has not really sunk in yet. Almost as soon as it was over I was back to the wonderful world of academia, trying to catch up on a months work. However I have found the result to be very well received. Students regularly congratulate me, tell me they supported me, or indeed that they didn’t, but most importantly there is an interest in it.

I want to build on that interest. In my year as DITSU president I want to create a culture of demanding bet-ter. Change really is possible. Change happens all the time. We just have to work to ensure we are the people directing that change. I don’t want every student to agree with me, I just want every student to enter the debate. In return for the trust you have shown in me by electing me president, I would like to reiterate my promise that I will listen to your needs and work towards achieving them. We’re not taking on DIT, we are DIT. DIT would be noth-ing without its 20 000 students.

This Union is the machine designed to make DIT better for students, you have chosen me to work the controls, but I need all of you to provide the power. Looking forward to serving you all.

Eric Fitzgerald SU VP [S&T] Elect

Elections – they’re a funny old game. They were simultaneously the best,

and worst, two weeks of my life. Never again will I experience the all-consuming

nerves and sheer exhaustion that elections brought upon me. Similarly, never again will I have the dizzying elation that comes with hearing your name followed by the words,”is deemed elected.”

February’s behind us now, though, and it’s time to start looking towards the future. Personally, I can’t wait to get started. I’ve been chomping at the bit since the day after results were announced and my mind is full of ideas for the forthcoming year.

Next year will be about putting power back in the hands of students and re-establishing student ownership within DITSU. From a facilities perspective, your basic needs must be met and I’ll fight tooth and nail to achieve that goal – by whatever means necessary.

My manifesto is my bible next year – I’m not just going to throw it out the window now that I’m elected. It’ll made available to everyone who asks for it and if I’m not delivering upon it, I’ll be the first person to show you how you can go about holding me accountable.

I’m really looking forward to working with Clare and Ciarán next year and I’ve no doubt that we’ll combine to form an effective, hard-working trio that’ll give it our all representing you, the students.

Clare Cullen SU VP [ASA] Elect

Hey guys, Clare here, the Vice-Presi-dent of Academic and Student Affairs

Elect! Thank you to everyone who voted for me. I am looking forward to next year

and being the VP. I have lots of ideas and am very excited about the sabbatical training at the start of the term, where I will learn how to best implement them. The elections were good fun; all the candidates got to know each other and I think the resulting team will work well together. - Sure we were running from campus to campus together like headless chickens for almost three weeks! It was hard to stand up in front of each campus- well done to every candidate, the effort they all put in was immense. I’m excited to start- June, here I come!

power of threewe spoke to the three sabbatical position winners about their election experiences and future plans...

feature: elections 2010

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Photo: Orna Cunningham

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spotliGHt: art & desiGn week

For the past number of years Art and Design Week has been a local event held in Mountjoy Square with relatively small prizes and uptake but always good fun for those involved. This year however, the week was an unprecedented success and entries more than doubled from last years 42 entries to this years 88 entries.

On Monday 1st Feb. in the canteen area there was a now famous “Design Your Own Fairy Cake” stand to promote the week and raise awareness. The official exhibition opening that night was in the Mountjoy Square canteen with students present, DIT staff, Students Union Offic-ers and more. There was a wine reception and prizes to be won. Lisa Heavey won 1st place and €250, Seth Culley came 2nd and got €150, Aisling Dowling came 3rd and got €100, Adebowale Wilson came 4th and won a €50 voucher for Evans and Patrick Walsh came 5th and got the highly sought after Art and Design Week hoody.

Throughout the week there were workshops in the can-teen area of Mountjoy, a caricaturist was in doing pictures of all the students and a balloon modeller came in to teach the students to make balloon animals which then littered the canteen for days much to their amusement.

a look back at the recent Art & Design Week, which spanned the city for the first time...

art & design week

On Wednesday the 3rd, the Art and Design Week society members lead by Kathryn Payne took the exhibition to Aungier St. This is the first year the exhibition was moved to any other site. There was another opening that evening and Melda Slattery, head of DIT’s P.R. Dept was there,

as was Prof. Brian Norton, President of DIT and Tracey Flinter, President of DIT Students Union.

On Thursday the 4th then, a graffiti party was held in Panama on the quays. €2 from every ticket sold went to the RAG charity and it was a great success. A pho-tograph taken from the night was even been entered in to the Societies Awards for the “Best Picture” category.

We would like to give a huge thank you to the sponsors of Art and Design Week, who are Rise Creatives and Evans. Thanks to the DIT Societies Office and to the DIT Students Union. The week would not have been made possible without

the help of the people in Art and Design Society so thank you all for helping out, setting up, getting work in, moving to Aungier St and doing everything you did! Finally, the biggest thank you to the students who submitted work and came to the events, you guys are the ones who really made the week. So keep your eyes out for it next year and get your thinking caps on

Words:Kathryn Payne

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Photo: Maebh Horan-Murphy

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adVice: eXams

so, wHat are tHe issues Here?

For some it meant that they had no idea of how many marks they needed to pass the module; many new students in this situation were particularly anxious as they faced into their first college exams not knowing how they stood; similarly several final year students were equally annoyed at the lack of marks and feedback in their award year. While this failure to give results in a timely manner is not as widespread now as previously, it remains a concern for us and one which we regularly raise at the faculty board meetings and other committees.

The bottom line is that students are entitled to get marks and feedback on the marks within four weeks of handing in an assignment; this is stated very clearly in the DIT Student Charter (2004). Results from an assignment done in March, for example, should be given (as well as feedback) well before the semester 2 exams. Work submitted later in early May is more problematic in that it may not be possible to release the marks before the exams begin. Nonethe-less, students in cases like this should receive some form of guidance on their performance so that revision for exams is as productive as possible.

Many students have been complaining to us about the fact that they didn’t get their marks for Semester 1 continuous assess-ments back before they sat Exams in January despite repeatedly asking their lecturers.

wHat can you do if you are not GettinG MarKs / feedBacK in tiMe?

Ask your Class Rep to email lecturer on behalf 1. of the class requesting marks/feedback.

If your class hasn’t got a Class Rep you can do 2. this yourself once you advised the class that this is your suggestion.

If this doesn’t work get in touch with Jen in the 3. SU ([email protected]) who will investigate on your behalf.

As a last resort, you should use the DIT 4. Freedom of Information Act procedure to get the details. Again if you contact the SU we will help you with the application process .

The DIT FOI Officer is contactable at [email protected] 5. and the DIT website has a fairly useful section at http://www.dit.ie/services/records-manage-ment/foi/frequentlyaskedquestions/

your right to know...

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DIT Students’ Union Welfare Power days are rolling around again - a sure sign that the exams are not far away. We will be visiting each site with a bundle of tea, coffee and useful exam information as a reminder to you that we are here if you need support or advice during the exam period. If you have a question of any sort or if you simply need to have a chat with someone, we can help or put you in touch with someone who can. And remember you can always contact us via the ditsu.ie website. Jen Jordan, your Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs is contactable at: [email protected] or 086 603 1075. We are working alongside Pleasetalk.ie again to promote their important message of support and promotion of useful information that is available to students in third level. So if you are experiencing problems at home, college, or in your private life, you can log on to www.pleasetalk.ie, select your col-lege and identify the services that are available that you may wish to access.

DIT Students’ Union Welfare Power Days:

Mon Apr 26th: Aungier St.

Tue Apr 27th: Cathal Brugha St. Wed Apr 28th: Bolton St.

Mon May 03rd: Rathmines

Tue May 04th: Kevin St. Mon May 05th: Mountjoy Sq.

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Both Cheating and Plagiarism are huge issues every year in DIT,

with serious consequences for those who found guilty of either.

In response to the number of cases we’ve been dealing with in the Students’ Union this year we’ve decided to run an awareness campaign on the two issues.

Cheating and Plagiarism is a serious breach of the General Assessment Regulations. If you’re not sure of the rules contact the Students’

Union or read the regulations.

Procedures for dealing with these accusations are no joke and have serious consequences.

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Hosted By dit students learninG witH coMMunities tHe cars (colleGe aware-ness of road safety) sHowcase is HappeninG durinG tHe cars road safety proMotion tHe weeK of april 19tH – 23rd 2010.

The initiative involves the combined resources of DIT Students’ Union, BAM Society, An Garda Road Safety Unit, SLWC, Societies, Dublin City Council, Order of Malta and the Students Learning with Communities office.

The highlight of the week will be the RSA (Road Safety Authority) Interactive Shuttle which will be on site in DIT Bolton street from April 20-22. Be sure to visit and discover more about road safety, from beginner drivers to those more advanced. Test your reaction times, try the simulation experience and a number of other exciting activities.

DIT students using their subject skills to explore different aspects of road safety and design will pres-

ent new and effective ways to communicate with young drivers. Visit the display of projects at the CARS showcase taking place in DIT Bolton street this year on Wednesday the 21st of April. There will be a number of other Road Safety related activities happening across the other DIT sites such as Crashed car displays, Demon-

strations by the Order of Malta and Drama Society – there will even be the Nintendo Wii Mario Cart circulating between sites, with a pair of Beer goggles- so if you’re game have a go.

So, get involved and go along to the event or volunteer with us – we would be delighted to have you on board to help out. If you think you might be interested contact Jen or Aimee through your local DIT Students’ Union office.

college awareness of road safety

upcominG: cars

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feature: raG 2010

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rag week:a review

at the time of going to print we were approaching 10k and still counting so as the posters say – tHanKs . you are making a dif-ference to our lady’s Hospital crumlin. and what better cause to throw yourself into the freezing irish sea in a babygro/toga/notihng at all, or roll around in a plastic ball, wax your hairy bits or sing your heart out on Grafton st (sober). none. so if you did any of those or shook buckets, or went to any of the gigs or just put your change into the box – tHanK you.

Big thanks also go out to our sponsors and supporters who make the week what it is. Ulster Bank, Go4less.ie, Bodkins, Living Room, Corner-stone, the ETeam, everyone in Societies & Sports, Melda, Yvonne and Brian and all the other DIT staff who row in behind us (and our whacky schemes every year). Apologies to anyone we may have left off the list.

Enjoy this review of the week, and if there are any more photos out there you think should be on the web send them to [email protected]

Well, the sun has long set on another RAG Week but the raising and giving continues.

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raG picture special

day one: daytiMe- 40ft swiM & dive:Monday saw only-as-many-as-will-legally-fit-on-the-bus-honestly-Garda plus a couple of locals and a few car loads of DIT students head out to the 40ft to take to the freezing Irish Sea to launch the week. This sponsored swim and dive has become a staple element RAG week and grows year on year. We’re still amazed at the numbers willing to both raise money and then plunge into that water! BRAVO! Thankfully, unlike years gone by, there were no rescues needing to be made – except for that hat that tried to escape to the UK – and the whole event passed without in-cident. Tea, coffee and soup was deservedly enjoyed and then it was back to college! niGHttiMe- dj woody:Monday night had DJ Woody rocking Twisted Pepper with his AV show. Always going to appeal to a niche crowd, a few hundred people gathered to enjoy the stylings of the amiable 32 yr old from Burnley –Woody actually ‘scratched’ the visuals too which you don’t see happening too often, so when we say AV show it very much was. Dancing was done inside while entertainment outside was provided by the 5 bored Gardai, delighted to see something happen-ing on their beat on a Monday night. Here’s hoping the guy who got arrested for assaulting the Garda man has learned his lesson. . . silly boy. . .not one of ours, I might add!

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day two:

daytiMe- scad freefall:Tuesday daytime was meant to see the SCAD Freefall

take place in Aungier St. It was to be the first time the SCAD Freefall event would have visited Ireland,

as they are UK-based and have been doing this event for charities and local authorities and colleges over

there. Long long, long story much shorter, all the SCAD Freefall company’s insurance is in place and

submitted, but DIT’s insurers still deemed it too risky an event to do on site. This despite the company

being in operation for over 12 years, having had no accidents or claims, being fully insured, providing an

indemnity to DIT’s insurers and so on. . . WE HAVE NOT GIVEN UP ON THIS ONE. We are working hard

to come up with a solution, the most likely of which will be that we do the event in April off campus.

We apologize to those of you who’d signed up and raised money and are disappointed it didn’t happen but we are determined to make it happen. Keep the

faith!

niGHttiMe- doctors & nurses 90s niGHt:Tuesday night we hot-stepped it through a plethora of 90s hits in D2 thanks to the Smash Hits 90s Band. One of the highlights of the week, we’re still having people come up to us marvelling at how good they

were. With the added attraction of being able to dance on stage WITH the band, there was a bunch

of students who pretty much collapsed straight afterwards, having danced up there for the band’s

entire set! Bless them. That’s the spirit!

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raG picture special

day tHree: daytiMe- street collection:Wednesday daytime was the bucket collection in O’Connell St and Grafton St. We wish to thank everyone who signed up and was willing to help on the day! Given the high profile locations we secured for the collection, we were legally restricted in the numbers of collectors we could have at any one time so we were in the enviable position of having more people looking to collect than we could allow to collect. Savage, That’s how it should be. We raised a lot of money on the day and didn’t even get our cars clamped, despite some ‘interesting’ choices of parking location. . . say nothing. . . niGHttiMe- HeadpHones & Heels:Wednesday night we were in Dandelion with the Headphones & Heels girls djing up a storm! I think they spent as much time meeting and greeting and signing autographs, chatting to students and having photos taken as they did djing and it all amounted to a fun night. There were some fantastic outfits on display – you know who you are!

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day four:

daytiMe- zorBinG & sports day:Thursday daytime was Zorbing in Grangegorman

as well as a Sports Day with a lot of Northside V Southside matches taking place up there. There was a constant queue for Zorbing with the Events Team

working their socks off getting the zorbs back to the top of the ramps as quickly as possible. Of course

one of them did have to go spring a leak which we had to mend on the fly to get it back in action

but that was only a temporary setback. There were impromptu ‘skip bag’ races which needed to be seen

to be believed! There was free food and drink and fun and games and it was a good day. Definitely

something to build on for the future we think!

niGHttiMe- farMers Ball:I’m not sure when the last time there was a tractor

and 3 sheep and so much straw on Harcourt St., but the Gardai based right across the road said they’d

never seen the likes of it! The sheep were happy as, well, sheep in straw, I guess, while they posed for photos and lapped up the attention outside the

main door. The tractor parked on the other side of the door was a hit for photos too with everyone fan-cying themselves as the next Old Macdonald. There

were toy animals and inflatable sheep... And then there was Bluemoose. Talk about getting into the

spirit of things? The lads were all dressed up in their finest farmer / southern finery and even treated us to some ‘country’ versions of some ‘not-so-country’ songs. They did over 2 hours of a set. The place was

heaving. The craic was had! The question remains, however, how do you better a Farmers Ball that had live animals and a tractor in attendance? We’re on it!

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fasHionGoVerninG council update

well we’re HeadinG down tHe slippery slope towards tHe end of our deMo-cratic year, witH only 1 MontH left to Get tHrouGH a MaGnitude of worK! Easter holidays brings with it the Annual USI Congress running from the 30th March till the 1st April 2010, in Ballinasloe. There was a large amount of students who applied to be delegates at the Congress, but unfortunately numbers were very limited. Delegates were chosen by a scoring system based on their applications, and ratified by the Governing Council. There are some “old heads” who will be attending, as well as some greenies, who will be getting their first taste of the Congress floor. DIT has submitted 9 motions to the Congress, and our delegates will be fighting to get these passed. All motions and details on USI Congress can be found under the USI section of the DITSU website.

At the Governing Council meeting held on the 24th March, nominations opened for the DIT RAG Charity 2010-2011 and two student reps to sit on the board of DITSU Ltd (one 1 year term, and one two year term). Nominations close on the 13th April at 5pm, and the student reps will be chosen on the 21st April, whilst there will be an EGM of the Governing Council held on the 27th April to meet with the pro-posed charities, and select one for the coming year. Bob Coggins, representative on the Grangegorman Development Agency was invited to the Governing Council to update councillors on what work the

GDA has been doing this year, and what it plans to be doing over the coming months. Councillors were then given the opportunity to ask questions relating to Grangegorman.

USI Sabbatical Hustings were also held at this meeting. Each candidate was given time to address the council, and then take questions from the floor. Governing Councillors then held a vote by secret ballot, as to whom DIT would be supporting at the Elections, which take place at USI Annual Congress. All democratic meetings are taking place around the various colleges, with very productive Class Rep Meetings and Local Programme Implementation Teams (All Part-Time Officers and the Class Rep Con-venor) on a local level. All Governing Council sub-committees have been meeting regularly for the first time since the new Constitution was adopted, and I would like to thank all members who have given up their time to make these meetings so successful. The last Governing Council meeting of the year will be held on the 21st April 2010, followed by an EGM, which will take place on the 27th April. There will be a special sitting of the Governing Council on the 29th April, where the President and Vice Presidents elect will sign their contract of employment. All are welcome to attend this Inauguration Ceremony, and details will follow closer to the time.

As always, if you have any queries about democracy in DIT please contact Claire Healey on 01 402 2940 or [email protected]

Words: Claire Healey Governing Council Clerk

governing council report

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Photo: Cherry Morgan

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feature: erasmus Words: Ivan Privalko

DIT is a very well connected place. Colleges everywhere just love us, so if you’re studying a language or you decide to spend some time abroad, then DIT has got you covered. Dozens of DIT students travel to partnered universities all over Europe; including Spain, France, Germany and Austria. DIT even has connections with Argentina and most recently St. Petersburg. In a nut shell, the Erasmus programme allows students to spend between 3 to 12 months studying in another country. If your course includes a work placement you may even have the chance to carry it out in another EU state. Because I was studying Spanish my trip to Spain, was in the pipeline for a long time.. I decided to stay in Murcia, a great city in the south and because the Uni there is part of the Erasmus Student Network (www.esn.org), they had an entire team of people organising trips all around Spain, to Granada, Toledo, Salamanca and Barcelona and made sure we saw as much as possible in our 1st semester. For this semester, they have already lined up trips to Seville, Valencia and Cordoba as well as 4 days in Ibiza with all the other Erasmus students across the country.

The ESN people also ran many, many cheap nights out and made sure we all got to know each other quickly. Murcia is a great city but the best about it is that it’s incredibly cheap. The cost of living here is maybe half of Dublin. It has a reliable bus service so you’re never too far away from the beach.

an erasmus adventure

we Here at toast liKe to looK at all aspects of student life Here at dit. studyinG aBroad Has always proven popular aMonGst you Guys. Here ivan Gives us an insiGHt into tHe life of tHe erasMus student.

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One other thing I did right was to move in with Spanish people, which seemed like a burden at first but worked out great. This year Murcia took in over 350 Erasmus stu-dents, and others from Asia and America. Most of us want to practice our Spanish which proved difficult as we all know English (more or less), and so we all had to branch out a bit and find Spanish drinking buddies.

If you’re going you’ll need to keep a few things in mind. Firstly, start saving money. You’re going to need it; although each student receives a mobility grant it’s not nearly enough to keep you going during the entire trip. Find out which cities are open to the DIT Erasmus programme and check out the cost of living in them. None will be as expensive as Dublin so if you live in town, the year abroad will bring a sigh of relief when you pay your rent each month. (A gent is currently renting a 4 bed apartment in Alicante city centre for €510 per month, between 4of them).

Second, keep the deadlines. Going away means having to fill in some paperwork and stamp a few things, several times. Although the Erasmus office in DIT has most of your problems covered you still need to help the lovely folks out by meeting deadlines, especially for the grant. No one wants to lose out on a hearty sum of cash because they forgot to get a form stamped.

Thirdly, let your lecturers know what your plan or idea is, they may be able to give you some advice on the best places to go and how to get there, for example if you’re studying Chinese you’ll have to live there for a while but you’ll also need a visa to enter China, which they’ll be able to help you with. If you don’t have an EU passport but you want to travel to an EU country for the programme, you’ll need a visa and so on.

When you’re looking for a place to live, keep one fact in mind; living with someone who speaks English is a bad idea. Most of us chose to ignore this advice (like every other year before us) and now we’re learning what a hor-rible idea it truly was (like every other year before us). Living with a bunch of international students is a great way of learning a language & getting to know people. When it comes to living arrangements, you need to part ways with your friends from home. Some colleges have placement services which will help you get sorted, but if they don’t there’s lots of helpful Erasmus websites like www.erasmusu.com full of information and accom-modation offers, not to mention nights out and drink promotions, (esp here in Spain). Once you’ve sorted everything out, it’s well worth it. If only for the weather and the cheap booze!

Living with someone who speaks English is a bad idea...

Firstly, start saving money - you’re going to need it...

International & Erasmus Students:Day trip to Causey Farm & the Hills of Tara.Celebrate Irish heritage and culture. Try some Bog

walking, Milk a cow, Bake some bread, Learn to play the Bodhran and celebrate through some Irish dancing. Would you like to experience a real life traditional Irish

family farm?

Yes? Then this trip is for you!

Date: Saturday 24th April

Tickets: Cost €10 from your local SU Office

Bus departs: 8.30am from DIT Cathal Brugha Street on Saturday 24th April

Any questions? Contact Jen: 086 603 1075 or Aimee:

086 815 1468

All DIT International and Erasmus Students Welcome!

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36

fasHionfeature: international students

trip one: croKe parK Well, well, well - it’s St Patrick’s day and we are in Croke Park for the afternoon with the international students. DITSU have been bringing interna-tional students here for this special day for the past number of years now and its been a great success. Thanks to Aimee O’Callaghan – without her help this event wouldn’t have taken place. Fifty international students and a few staff went along on the day to ensure that Paddy’s day isn’t just about the parade. The All-Ireland Hurling and Football club finals are held on the day and the craic is only mighty. As you can see there are some groovy photos of the event and it was a great success. So thank you to all who got involved.

trip two: tHe arlinGton Hotel Dinner, Irish music, and a spot of the auld Irish Danc-ing. Sure where would you get it eh, savage stuff for the international students to enjoy. To be fair, taking a step back and looking at what DITSU work on for the international students, they wouldn’t get to see the real Irish experience, granted they can head off on their own but this our way of showing students around and having a bit of fun too. We are heading to a farm in April to cook a bit of bread, footing a bit of turf and heading around the hill of Tara, savage eh! Check out the details on page 33 to find out how you can come along.

dit goes international

Words: Sean Campbell

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When the Minister of Education Batt O’Keefe tried to re-introduce Tuition Fees, The Union of Students in Ireland (www.usi.

ie) took to the streets with thousands of students to say NO! Now that Batt O’Keefe has moved to a new department in a recent

government reshuffle, we have decided to sell our ‘Batt Head’ and use all the proceeds for our National Charity - which this

year is the Crumlins Children Hospital.

The ‘Batt Head’ was a focal point of the student protests in 2008 and 2009 and was at protest marches in Dublin, Waterford,

Sligo, Galway, Cork, Dundalk, Tralee, Limerick etc!

The head was made by a member of a street theatre company for USI and can be worn easily on a persons head, is light and

comes with a lot of history! It shows a remarkable resemblence to the new Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation.

We are looking to reach a considerable sum for our National Charity and a good home for a piece of student movement history!

38

windows 7: what a sham

opinion: mcGinGs musinGs Words:Deirdre McGing

“Damn you, Windows 7”: I screamed as I was hurled through the pathway of utter software calamity, yet again. Up until this weak point I had remained cool, calm and poised about matters concerning Windows 7 – partly due to Microsoft’s talents of brainwashing, like a religious cult or similar.

Yes, I admit to you that I was shamefully drawn in by the advertisements of babies using the product (god, I’m such a loser). As though my life could be that care free and easy as a two year old.

Allow me to explain; I had been promised an infallible computing system, so deliciously alluring that it would even put the likes of the Mac to shame. I expected to see God’s fabulous face when I turned the screen on. I anticipated sophistication and class. I was wrong.

It suddenly dawned on me that the new ‘sleek’ version of Windows, that supposedly ended the shoddy snail like performance of its predecessor Vista was all a sham. I was shocked (well, to be honest, more pissed than shocked).In 2007 (basically the day after Windows Vista was released) Microsoft promised us a flawless system, free of the displeasing complications that haunted computer systems ‘blessed’ with the notorious Windows Vista. Not long after I had hit the on button it soon became evident that installing my software on this beast of a system could only be compared to the atrocious agony one feels whilst walking across a field of shattered glass while barefoot, or similar.

There were seemingly hundreds of messages, popping up left, right and centre with the aim to instil the shock one

I expected to see God’s fabulous face when I turned the screen on...

microsofts newest release has our girl McGing all in a tizzy, and not in a good way...

39

feels when a villain appears out of nowhere in a horror flick, or worse. Each saying that my precious piece of software or hardware was “incompatible” with the newer, more pain in the arse version of Windows.

Every time I saw the word “error” I felt the urge to run away, find a duvet to climb under and sob my eyes out whilst cradling a bottle of vodka.

I would also like to add that this new piece of malicious software, created by Microsoft to urge people to stop their persistent bitching about Vista treats the user like a brain-less dupe. Windows 7 makes computer illiterates feel like bloody Einstein, and makes us computer nerds feel like a crowd of dim-witted gobshines.

Beware students of DIT – should you use this system prior to an exam or whilst writing a smarty pants essay, it may (actually certainly will) create the illusion of light headed brainlessness as it throws you messages designed for the fragile intellect of a toddler.

The greatest horror of all came when it dawned upon me that my Vodafone broadband modem i.e. my gateway to the world at large, did not include the necessary drivers required for Windows 7, despite being designed for Vista (which is practically identical in its uselessness).

I was henceforth obligated to spend a total of two and a half hours on the phone (I kid you not) chatting to an overly pretentious, rather flirty Vodafone Customer Care team male, who was not nerdy enough to fix my problem. He might as well have left my issue hanging on a string. One word: STRESS.

However, I do not blame Vodafone for this mishap, even though they are dense enough to buy snow machines during the coldest winter in thirty-something years.My blame lies with the so called ‘genius’ who sits on his arse at the Microsoft headquarters, scheming against us students, forcing us to buy more software that is compat-ible with the new version of Windows. The poor gobshite – I bet not even his own mother loves him anymore. So what to do in this computing conundrum? My life will miserable for the next few years due to the ridding of my previously and may I say perfectly fine computer out of the window (in a violent manner that can only be compared to Sid Vicious).

And with all the effort Microsoft are making to disconcert us to the point of crying, chances are when windows 7 has been ‘perfected’, there will be a Windows 8. Some-thing new for us to gush about, then later, sadly uncover its hideous unforgiving truth.

My blame lies with the so called ‘genius’ who sits on his arse in Microsoft HQ...

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spotliGHt: societies awards 2010

GUITAR SOC.

Best BST Soc.

DJ SOC.Best Poster

PANCAKE TUESDAYBest Site Event

CAFABest CBST Soc.

FASHION SOC.

Best Online Presence

JAMES, ANITA & TERI

Socs Team 2010

PHYSICS SOC. Best KST Soc.

LIAM STEWARTCivic Contribution

SIGN SOC. Best MSQ Soc.

CIRCUS & JUGGLING

Most Improved Soc.

thursday the 25th of March saw the 10th annual societies awards night. and a great night was had by all.

Best of luck to all those Societ-ies going forwards to the BICS Awards to represent DIT Societies. Check out the pictures to find out who won what!

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GUITAR SOC.

Best BST Soc.

JOURNALISM SOC.

Best AST Soc.

CAFABest CBST Soc.

FASHION SOC.

Best Online Presence

PHYSICS SOC. Best KST Soc. ARTS APPRECIATION

Best RATH Soc.

FASHION SHOWBest Event (BICS)

STEVEN PIERCE

Best Fresher

IAN FOX Best Individual

SIGN SOC. Best MSQ Soc.

ART & DESIGN SOC.Best New Soc.

CIRCUS & JUGGLING Best Photo

CIRCUS & JUGGLING

Most Improved Soc.

LGBT SOC.

Overall Best Soc.

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DIT STUDENTS’ UNION IS ELECTING CLASS REPS FOR NEXT YEAR NOW.

MAKE SURE YOUR CLASS HAS A VOICE.

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over 100% increase in nuMBers of students looKinG for Help and advice froM ditsu in feBruary 2010

The month of February saw a significant rise in the amount of students coming to the Students’ Union officers and staff for assistance across a wide range of areas. Figures compiled show a 103% increase in comparison with the same month in 2009, with almost all categories of queries showing an increase. The summary table below shows the student issues that were dealt with in February 2010 and in the same month in 2009 as well as the total so far this academic year.

Financial queries in February continue to be the highest category, indicating that students are still suffering the ongoing effects of the economic circumstances that the country is in. There was an unprecedented demand for all the various funds (Student Assistance, Rent Allowance, etc.) through-out this year and this was exacerbated by the dread-ful delay in the processing of grant applications and late payments made by many local authorities.

Queries on exam results and complaints about the late publication of exam results on some sites are reflected in the Exams & Assessments category and Quality Assurance and Class Issues. The new ‘Re-mark’ option now available to students unhappy with their marks was of great interest to many.Problems arising from the impact of the Staff Embargo on the running of classes, labs and other facilities totalled 14 in February – double the 2009 figure and while this figure is not as high as in Se-mester 1 it is obvious that it is still causing problems for students on all sites.

So if you or your Class have any issues/queries about anything you can contact us and we will try to get it sorted out.

Remember it’s your Union; we’re here to help and advise. All you have to do is ask.

off the charts...

Contact details:-Jen Jordan, VP Academic & Student Affairs –

[email protected], Aimee O’Callaghan – [email protected]

Mary Scally – [email protected]

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clicK on ditsu entry and Help us win €3000 for our lady’s Hospital cruMlin.

Check out the DITSU entry in the babyskip video competition and click on it to help us win for Crum-lin. On the Wednesday of RAG Week the residents and staff of Grangegorman were treated to the spectacle of students rollong around in giant balls and attempting the World’s first Skip races. Teams of 8/9/10/however many could fit in the bag showed off their co ordination (or lack of ) in this spectacular feat of dexterity and teamwork.

Be sure to check out the hilarious results on youtube.com/thebabyskip and click for Crumlin.

help us win €3000 for charity!

update: babyskip

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Both Cheating and Plagiarism are huge issues every year in DIT,

with serious consequences for those who found guilty of either.

In response to the number of cases we’ve been dealing with in the Students’ Union this year we’ve decided to run an awareness campaign on the two issues.

Cheating and Plagiarism is a serious breach of the General Assessment Regulations. If you’re not sure of the rules contact the Students’

Union or read the regulations.

Procedures for dealing with these accusations are no joke and have serious consequences.

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BEFORE:Clare prays fo

r a winner in

the 3.10 at Cheltenham...

BEFORE:He really should have been more

careful coming down thise steps...

BEFORE:

Eric instantly regrets eat

ing

that jalipeno...

AFTER:Get in! Dark Destroyer takes it by a nose!

AFTER:But not for long!

AFTER:

Oh come on, I

know his tattoos

make him look l

ike a rug, bu

t...

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The Breffmeister is delighted

with his new adhesive jacket!

On days like there Maura knows it’s all been worthwhile...

New RAG collection technique

working well in Aungier Street!

Jen is prepared for the long wait ‘til DIT Grangegorman opens...

Orna wishes she had just worn

her other scarf!

Gareth is still in Grangegorman searching for that lost contact lens...

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fasHionfun for your luncHtime

we’re all dit and we’re all in it toGetHer, and God Help tHe poor trinity student wHo wanders across our Boundary line and dares attacK any fellow dit-er, But we also Have our differences and our stereotypes of one anotHer, and soMe-tiMes tHey’re just as aMusinG!... Aungier Street:Traditionally the Aungier (pronounce Awn-jer Street by the locals) is seen as the DIT version of UCD, just a little closer to the Liffey than they’d like. The guys are generally seen as ‘jocks’ and often spend as much time and money on their hair as any of the girls. The cailini are sometimes referred to as the ‘Barbie Dolls’ of DIT (not my words, I’m just the impartial observer!). They are generally quite nocturnal creatures needing to get up at the crack of dawn in order to GHD, fake tan and gel nail them selves into perfection so they can tell people that they’re big fans of the ‘natural look’. The uniform generally consists of canterberry tracksuits bottoms, Ugg boots, rugby jerseys and Velor tracksuits, (real not the Penney’s type). Bolton Street:‘The names Ferguson, Massey Ferguson’...If ever one of the DIT’s had the association of Culchies its fair to say its Bolton Street. The fine producer of some of the best Engineers this side of Dubai, Bolton Street was known for a long time as the ‘Boys college’. There were a few girls who wandered in, but often they were lost, so the lads drew maps to help them find their way out. A Bolton ‘Pack’, (they rarely travel alone) can be spotted any night of the week out for the craic and girls (girls is pronounced as having two syllables). If theres a County Colors or Farmers Ball within a ten mile radius, thats where you’ll find the Boltoner.

Cathal Brugha Street: Smells great. No sooner are you in the door than the waft of various foods assaults your senses particularly if you’re a starving student. The Brugha is the home of hospitality, and food! Although a relatively small campus, it pulls the students from all around with the promise of meals you can’t hope to pronounce never mind afford! The average

Brugha Student can be easily identified by the fact hes carrying knives. (Not in a violent way, in an artistic way!) The favored of all the CBST students is the trainee barman, theres nothing like a cocktail class on a Friday afternoon to make you the most popular guy in town!

Kevin Street: Kevin Street, the oldest DIT. The locals refer to the two conjoined buildings as the ‘old building’ and the ‘new building’, (we didn’t say it was clever). Realistically this is a blatant lie, it’s the ‘old building’ and the ‘older building’. Kevin street is stereotyped as home of the Science and computer students. Essentially the nerds of DIT. Girls are a rarity in Kevin Street and the boys know it so they take it in shifts to hang out with them. They can often be recog-nized by the fact they carry ‘gadgets’ and wear t-shirts that no-one else understands but they find hilarious. They’re often known to deal with problems by asking people if they’ve tried turning it off and then back on again, it is of no consequence whether the problem is a fecked up com-puter or a crying girl, the question is deemed appropriate in all situations.

Mountjoy Sq: The stereotypical view of a Mountjoyer is that of a young free-aged hippy type people. Mountjoy Square is the sort of campus if you leave an inanimate object down for longer than 5 seconds it will end up in a sculpture or as a representation of someones inner turmoil. They have the ability to make anything art and the sheer will to do so. Easily distracted they are recognized by their traditionally ‘arty’ type attire, piercings, tattoos and hemp trousers are all commonplace. As are pirates. I have no idea or explanation as to why. Rathmines: Essentially Rathmines is the DIT equivalent of the Fame Academy. A day with the Miners is like being in a musi-cal, even a simple request like ‘can you pass the milk’ can provoke a vocal onslaught and rather than be embarrassed the rest of the room will join in. A trip to the bathroom can involve anything from leg warmers to a ukulele, sometimes both. They don’t do assessments, they just act like they’ve passed their exams and then it is so.

Words: Ivana Tinkle

dit stereotypes

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This year Skill Masters is back and bigger than ever. Dublin will play host to the baddest event yet featuring a lineup that will blow you away. This year you can expect a range of the world’s finest bboys , judges and djs to participate in Ire-lands most reputable 1 on 1 battle!

Date: April 17 Venue: TBC

Time: Registrations 12pm-1pm Starts: 1pm - 9 pm

Registration fee E10 .Tickets pre sale E20 on the day E25 ( tickets in pre sale will be available soon)

3rd level students and kids E10 in pre sale. E15 at the door

Categories:1v1 bboy (max 64), 1vs1 kid’s battle (max 16), popping contest (max 16)

Prizes:1vs1-1st place E300, gear + tro-phy-2nd place E100, gear + trophy1vs1 kids battle- E100, gear + trophyPopping contest- E100, gear + trophy Do not miss this event!

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We are proud to announce the Inaugural DITSU Student Recognition Ceremony, to be held in

Gleeson Hall, Kevin St on Mon 26th April 2010.

This evening event will celebrate and reward the efforts of those students who volunteer their time and energy, and use their skills for the good of their fellow students, Students’ Union, Society, Club and the wider commu-

nity. These people are an inspiration and we felt it was high time they were recognised for their achievements.

As part of the evening DIT Governing Body will for the first time present the Chairpersons Medal to students.

Full details on ditsu.ie

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We are proud to announce the Inaugural DITSU Student Recognition Ceremony, to be held in

Gleeson Hall, Kevin St on Mon 26th April 2010.

This evening event will celebrate and reward the efforts of those students who volunteer their time and energy, and use their skills for the good of their fellow students, Students’ Union, Society, Club and the wider commu-

nity. These people are an inspiration and we felt it was high time they were recognised for their achievements.

As part of the evening DIT Governing Body will for the first time present the Chairpersons Medal to students.

Full details on ditsu.ie

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