Letters should be sent by email to letters@universityobserver.ie or by mail to
The Editor, The University Observer, Student Centre, Belfield, Dublin 4.
All letters are subject to editorial approval. The Editor reserves the right to edit any letters.

Campus Accommodation Rates

Madam,

I read the article by Claire Leyden (“Belfield the most expensive campus to live on”, 2^nd February) and was disappointed with the lack of explanation as to why students have opted out of living on campus, or even addressing the issues regarding the subpar living standards in residences compared to the price we have to pay.

As an international student living in Glenomena currently, the living conditions are horrendous and do not match the expensive price tag. Examples include mould causing health problems for many students in Glenomena, lack of sensible kitchenware (such as having only two small mini-fridges for six people in an apartment), electricity cards (two houses pay a flat rate while the others pay with cards, meaning a big difference in utility bills), and a lack of transparency in the residence and accommodation management. The list goes on.

Change needs to occur and I don’t know if it’s just Irish students who have become acclimatised to this kind of living conditions, but for international students the conditions are despicable and do not justify their price.

Yours, etc,
Andrew S. Lee

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Library opening hours

Dear Madam,

I am writing to you to express my annoyance at the changes made to the library opening hours. The cutbacks of opening hours during the weekend will, if not already, have a detrimental effect on those students who rely on this service during this period.

As some students would have to work part-time jobs or have other commitments during the week, studying during the weekend can be the only opportunity they have to keep up with their coursework. These cuts will cause a great inconvenience to those who avail of these services, be it conducting research for their thesis accessing secondary sources to complete assignments and essays or just simply having a quiet area to work.

While these changes mightn’t affect some students now, I fear that when the midterm assignments and end of year exams begin to loom, such a change will have a negative effect on the majority of students. An already stressful period of completing essays or studying for exams will be made worse because of this.

I am completely aware that the university is facing a difficult period financially and that cuts must be made somewhere. However, the way in which they’ve introduced these changes has left a lot to be desired. Simply introducing these cuts by stating they will only effect the month of January before implementing them for the entire term is one thing but doing all of this without even taking the opportunity to even notify students is disrespectful at best.

Students deserve to know about any changes that may occur since it is we that are availing of this service and rely on it constantly during the term for a multitude of reasons. A simple email to students, while it would not have made up for these cutbacks, would have at least meant that the library services acknowledged this fact.

I can only hope that the library services will take these issues on board later this year as sooner or later, the effects of these changes will be felt by students. I also hope that they would have the courtesy and respect to inform us about any further changes that may be made or perhaps they’ve cut back on those qualities as well.

Yours etc,

Matthew Soden

3rd Arts