For programmes described as Online Blended, the programme will be delivered online with opportunities for classroom-based learning and interactions at certain pre-scheduled times.

For programmes that have self-paced learning hours attributed. These are online directed learning course; meaning that time will be split between live online classroom sessions and tutorials/ videos on the College’s e-learning system. This split allows for class time to be interactive, practical, and focused, with theory-based content being covered outside of class time with self-paced tutorials/videos, and practical content being covered in live online classes with support from lecturers and lab assistants. The self-paced hours will not show up on your timetable.

Career Bridge classes will be delivered one day per week in Semester 2 from 17.00 to 18.00. Day to be confirmed.

Higher Diploma Programmes

Postgraduate Diploma Programmes

Certificate in Computing

Active engagement with your Work Placement Advisor is essential as placements are subject to application and interview process. Relevant Employment/Placement can be undertaken within the course timeline or commenced within 3 months of course completion. In order for our Career’s team to determine if work placement is applicable to you (depending on your employment status and the job position that you hold) you will need to register for the Career Bridge module on Moodle in January when you start. No action necessary at this time.

Attendance at all classes is compulsory and is electronically monitored

The Springboard+ and ICT Skills scheme allows for 100% funding of the tuition cost of these programmes if you fall into one of the below categories

• Unemployed and in receipt of an eligible DEASP payment or signing for credits
• Returners
• Formerly self-employed (this being your most recent status)

A student contribution fee of 10% of total course fee is applicable if you are in employment.  More information can be found in Step 1 below about how to pay your fees.

Recent graduates who are unemployed are eligible to enrol on the one-year full-time programmes and two-year part-time programmes but they are liable for the 10% contribution fee.  Any subsequent costs such as travel and course materials must be borne by the participant. 

This course and funding for it is guaranteed for the original duration of the course only.

Refund Policy: If a student withdraws before the commencement of the course the full amount that they have paid is refundable. No refund will be processed once the student commences the course.

Continued Eligibility for Funding: Please note that documentation supporting an applicant’s status will be required as part of the application process. Further proof confirming an applicant’s continued eligibility will also be required at the time of course commencement. Please note you will be asked to reverify your status and provide updated verification at the time of course commencement before activating your Springboard+ funding. If it becomes apparent at this point that you are not eligible for a Springboard+ course we will not be able to draw down funding from the HEA on your behalf. In addition, if your employment status/social welfare payment changes from the point of application to course commencement we advise that you declare this to the Springboard team as a matter of priority who will need to reassess your funding eligibility.

Eligible DEASP clients who are accepted on a course should immediately contact their local social welfare office.

HCI Pillar 1 / ICT Conversion Courses (Higher Diploma programmes): 

Our 1 year Higher Diploma programmes are classed as full time mode of study run in the evening and those who secure a place on a 1 year Higher Diploma course must transfer to 'Back to Education Allowance' (BTEA). It is the responsibility of the applicant in receipt of a DEASP/PUP payment to discuss transferring to BTEA payment with their case officer in their local INTREO office when their offer is accepted and before they complete first registration for the course through www.springboardcourses.ie. The 10% course fee will be waived for applicants in receipt of BTEA. You must be in receipt of BTEA at the time of course commencement to be eligible for funding.

Two Year Part-time Courses: 

If you are in receipt of a Covid-19 PUP/DEASP payment (including Farm Assist and Qualified Adults of Working Age) or signing for Social Insurance Contribution Credits you are not eligible for the two-year ICT Conversion Courses. Please also see Springboard+ Participant Eligibility. 

Level 9 Postgraduate Courses & Certificate Courses

In regards to our part time courses (Postgraduate courses and Certificate Course) prior to commencing a Springboard+ course participants in receipt of Job Seekers payment/COVID 19 PUP should contact their local social welfare office to make an application to retain their payment under the PTEO. The relevant Springboard+ PTEO 2021 form can be downloaded here. Please do not return this form to NCI. Participants in receipt of other forms of income support payment other than Job Seekers/COVID 19 PUP must contact their local Intreo Office to confirm if they may retain such payments while enrolled on a Springboard+ course

Level 9 courses are open to both the employed and the unemployed however NCI must prioritize those in receipt of a social protection payment and those as ‘returners’ so that they can upskill and reskill and re-enter the workforce. Therefore, a number of places will be reserved for these on our Level 9 Postgraduate Courses. Please note that to participate in NFQ Level 9 (postgraduate) course, a period of at least one year must have elapsed since completing a full-time undergraduate degree course leading to a major award at level 8 on the NFQ.

Restrictions Regarding Previous Applicants: 

For more information click here. Please also see Springboard+ Participant Eligibility. 

2020 & 2021 graduates 

An applicant who has completed the academic part of their FT & UG course (NFQ level 8) no earlier than January 1st 2020. These applicants have to pay 10% of the course fee and would not be able to retain any benefit for the duration of the course.

Please note that certain courses (particularly ICT courses) may have specific laptop requirements. You are asked to consult your course information page where any further requirements will be specified. Please note these are recommendations and should be seen as guidelines only.

It is recommended that your laptop should have:

Processor:

• Intel 7^th (or higher) generation processors (Core i-3, i-5, i-7,i-9-7x)
• or AMD Ryzen 3rd Generation Processors , running at 2.0Ghz and above.

(Intel Atom/Celeron or AMD Athlon/Sempron Processors may cost less, but may not meet your requirements.

Random Access Memory (RAM):

• 8 Gigabytes minimum

Solid State Drive (SSD) Capacity:

• 256 Gigabytes minimum

Wireless Card:

• 802.11 a/b/g/n compliant with Bluetooth Capability
  (incompatibilities have been noted with the Qualcomm Atheros Wireless Adapters and software device drivers)

Graphics Card:

• Direct X9 or later

Supported Operating Systems

• Windows 10 Pro

As part of the package of COVID supports for higher and further education institutions, the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science has allocated funding for a once-off COVID-19 grant to support disadvantaged students in the higher education sector in accessing ICT devices.

This, cash limited, grant will allow NCI to provide eligible students with a laptop to assist them in completing their chosen course. Visit our Laptop Loan Scheme page for further details. 

Any queries around this should be directed to laptopfund@ncirl.ie.
 

The Springboard+ and ICT Skills scheme allows for 100% funding of the tuition cost of these programmes if you fall into one of the below categories*

• Unemployed and in receipt of an eligible DEASP payment or signing for credits
• Returners
• Formerly self-employed (this being your most recent status)

*Note; In order to receive 100% funding, you must fall into one of these categories upon course commencement. The Springboard office will be contacting students to ensure the employment/unemployment status upon application remains the same at course commencement.

For those in employment a student contribution fee is required. This is payable by the participant or their employer and must be paid in full by 18th March 2022.

Certificate in Computing February Cohort - fees must be paid in full by 1st April 2022.

Certificate in Computing May Cohort - fees must be paid in full by 1st July 2022.

Recent graduates who are unemployed are eligible to apply for one-year full-time and two-year part-time ICT Skills Conversion courses; however, they are liable for the 10% fee 

Action Item: Please review your Springboard application form, if you have indicated that you are in employment or if you are applying under the status student, then this 10% contribution fee is applicable. The course fees that are applicable are outlined below.

Please note: Documentation supporting your employment status will be provided by you as part of the application process, however, please be advised that the HEA will request further proof confirming your continued eligibility at the time of course commencement. A change in your employment status from unemployed to employed will mean that a student contribution fee is applicable. 
 

Payable by the Student

An online payment link will open over the coming weeks for our cohorts who commenced in January and February and students will be notified of this link once it is live and payment can then be made online. Please note that as a Springboard+ student you are permitted to start class before these fees are paid. Once the link opens please follow the instructions on the below link regards to paying your fee. Please note that this link will not be open before 1st July for the Certificate in Computing May cohort.

Link: Pay My Fees
 
Employer-Sponsored

If your fees are being paid by your company you will need to complete a sponsorship form and return it to fees@ncirl.ie within 2 weeks of accepting your place on the course. When the form has been received, the company will be issued an invoice within 5 working days. Please note that as a Springboard+ student it is permitted to start classes before these fees are paid. 

Refund Policy

If a student withdraws before the commencement of the course the full amount that they have paid is refundable. No refund will be processed once the student commences the course the week beginning 24th January 2022 (14th February 2022 for the Certificate in Computing Feb cohort and 24th May 2022 for Certificate in Computing May cohort)

You can set your login details using the Password Management section of the website.

Please select RESET PASSWORD (Springboard students do not need to select the 'REGISTER BUTTON'

The Setting your Password guide will give you a step-by-step guide of how to reset your password to allow you access to your NCI email account.

To reset your login details you will need your Student No. This number will be on the 'Confirmation of Enrolment' email that you will receive from NCI shortly after you accept your offer on the Springboard Courses Website.

Please note that you cannot proceed to Step 3 'Getting your student card' until you reset your login details first.

NCI offers a service which allows students to download a photo app to their smart phone or desktop/laptop and take their own Student Identification Photo. This photo will then be used to print your student card.

New students must submit their ID photo via the app in order to receive their student card. Please follow our step by step guide to downloading the app and taking your student card photo. 

Student cards will be posted to students shortly after the commencement of their course subject to government guidelines. 

(Please note photos uploaded during the application process will not be used for your student card).

A registration email will be sent to your student email upon course acceptance.  You will need your NCI student number and course name when completing the HEA Equal Access Survey - details of this survey are outlined on the registration email. (Note: Please ensure that you have actioned Step 2 above in order to get access to your student email)

Please note that Springboard students are not required to attend the college in person before their first class. Registration and Orientation is conducted online.

Orientation

You have already been provided with an indicative timetable for your course. However, please note that timetables are never confirmed until they are published on the NCI website. You will be able to view your timetable 2 -3 days before classes commence: You can access your timetable online by using the dedicated timetable section of the website. Simply search for your course then choose your week & day range.

Please check your timetables regularly as they can be subject to room changes.

In order to access your online classroom please follow the steps below. This guide is for Windows 10 users. A mac guide will be available shortly

Download Teams

Please follow the steps below or watch the informational video which will go through some handy hints and tips.

• Follow the steps below;
  • You do this opening your browser and searching for "Microsoft teams download"
  • Click into the Microsoft link
  • Click the "Download for desktop" option
  • Click "Download Teams"
  • Once the application is downloaded and installed you will need to login using your NCI username (e.g. x12345678@student.ncirl.ie) and password. To set your logins please refer to Step 2 above.
• Next you need to check your timetable to see what lecture is scheduled. 
• Then go to Teams and click on the Calendar icon
• You should see your class has been scheduled and you will be able to join by clicking into the event and pressing "Join".

NCI staff, in collaboration with representatives from the Students' Union, have put together a protocol for students ahead of your return to campus. The document outlines the measures the college has put in place for your safety and it is a requirement that you read through the protocol before returning to campus. 

Return to Campus Safety Protocol for Students (PDF 676KB)

It is mandatory for students to complete a COVID-19 Questionnaire and to receive a response confirming that you may return to campus. You may be asked to show this email confirmation at the entrance of the College. If you receive an email saying that you must not attend a campus, be assured that the COVID Manager will contact you within 48 hours to explain why or to better understand your circumstances.

Please check out our Covid-19 update page where we will regularly post information about the return to campus. 

Please refer to the Springboard website for funding eligibility rules https://springboardcourses.ie/eligibility and for a list of FAQs please visit https://springboardcourses.ie/faq

For upcoming open evening please register on https://www.ncirl.ie/Events

Here are some helpful videos for getting started in NCI.

How To Change Your Password

How To Login to Moodle

How To Access Cloud Services

How To Login to MyDetails

How To Download Office 365

How To Download Citrix Receiver

How To Login to MyApps

How To Access OnTheHub

How To Top-Up and Check Printing Credit

How To Register for a Password

How To Access Student email

How To Access Eduroam Wifi on iOS

Programme Co-ordinators administer the daily management of all courses in the college.  The school administration offices are located in Room 3.03 on the 3^rd floor.   Please follow signs provided.

The programme co-ordinators can help you with course information, queries around timetables and any issues or concerns you may have while completing your studies with NCI.  You will be assigned a specific programme co-ordinator depending on your course of study.

All students should enrol on the School of Business or School of Computing information page on Moodle. Here you will find all required details for your programme such as your Programme Director, Programme Co-ordinator, Continual Assessment schedule and Programme Handbook.

You can contact a Programme Co-ordinator by emailing:

School of Business - SOBoffice@ncirl.ie

School of Computing – SOCoffice@ncirl.ie

The Library – we have a range of services and all the information is just a click away from the front page of the college website.

The Library Essentials – starting out as a new student, the best place to find the information you need to know is our Library Essentials guide.

Opening Hours & Access – take a look at when we’re open and how best to access the library.

Finding Books – once you start looking at your reading lists, you’ll need to know how to find a book in the library.

Borrowing & Renewing Books – how you can borrow books, how they are renewed and how you can keep an eye on your library account.

Computers, Printing & Photocopying – all you need to know about using the PCs or your own devices in the library and how to use the printers and photocopiers.

Library Online Resources – instead of just searching the internet, we highly recommend you use the library's online resources to help you discover the best information for your assignments.

Discovery – another way of accessing the library’s online resources is by using the library search engine Discovery.

Referencing & Avoiding Plagiarism – when writing your assignments, you will be asked to reference the information you use and avoid plagiarism; this guide helps you better understand what’s required.

Academic Integrity – check out our guide on academic integrity to get a better understanding of your lecturers’ expectations for your assignments.

Library Help Centre – you can get advice and assistance from the Library Help Centre to help you with your assignments and research.

International Students – if you are an international student, you may find adjusting to college life a little more challenging; this guide is designed to help you make that adjustment.

Contact Us - As you begin your course, please don’t hesitate to ask us for help; drop into the library, call us on 01-4498590 or email us at library@ncirl.ie

Part of the success of your Springboard course to meet your career goals is the Career Bridge module which is integrated into your programme. 

Practical career management classes take place in your 2nd Semester one day a week between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. 

In addition, employer events relevant to your course and career are organised throughout the year of your studies. This module is designed to complement the technical skills of your course and provide you with the skills employers seek such as identifying your strengths and addressing skills gaps, developing your online and offline brand, networking effectively and managing your career path. 
 

What Career Bridge will offer you:
• Individualised career counselling and development. 
• Individualised, strategic career planning addressing advancement and transition. 
• Professionalised, targeted CVs and high impact applications. 
• Expert interview coaching. 
• Career networking and personal branding strategies. 
• Practical skills workshops and one to one consultations. 
• Online effective career resources available 24/7. 
• Access to the NCI Weekly Vacancy newsletter and the LinkedIn Group Tech Network  for Students and Graduates for jobs and events.

The NCI Career Development and Employability office works in partnership with employers to support students  in both identifying and achieving their future ambitions. 

Our career service has won the National AHECS award  for Employability for 5 out of the last 9 years. 

The partnerships with employers are in the form of: 
• Interview marathons 
• Sector-specific mock interviews with key employers 
• Targeted On-Campus Careers Fair 
• Alumni networking events 
• Technical and whiteboard simulations 
• Employer presentations 
• Skill- and competency-focused workshops
 

Career Bridge, similar to the other modules on the programme, will have learning outcomes relevant to your career aspirations.
 

Employment and Placement 
We work proactively and collaboratively with you and industry partners to obtain relevant employment during or within 3 months of completing your course. A graduate or entry level position, or indeed relevant employment 
acts as the work placement requirement. If a work placement is required, your Careers Advisor will actively support you in identifying a suitable work placement through your network.

Active engagement with your Careers Advisor and with the Career Bridge module markedly increases the likelihood of a successful career transition or progression. We look forward to working with you to realise your career goal.

If you have questions relating to Career Bridge, you can contact:  

Orla O'Sullivan - orla.osullivan@ncirl.ie
 

In the Learning and Teaching Office you will find the Student Support team who are available to help you in a variety of areas. For more information please visit https://www.ncirl.ie/Students/Student-Services/Support-Services

If you are having a tough time and need someone to talk to, please contact the following services / helplines: 

• Hanover Medical 01 675 0040 
• Out of hours Doctor 1850 224 477 (DDoc) / 01 454 5607 (Dub Doc) 
• Aware 1800 804 848 
• Samaritans 116 123 or Text 087 260 9090 
• Pieta House 1800 247 247 
• Samaritans 116 123 or Text 087 260 9090 
• Pieta House 1800 247 247 

The Students’ Union is your voice in the college. Whether it’s issues concerning your course or the college entertainments, student welfare, clubs & societies or entertainments, the Executive team represent all NCI students and provide support for any problems you face throughout your time here.

The SU space is one of the social hubs of college. A great place to relax, here you’ll find pool tables, games consoles, casual seating space and the Executive offices. Events are held throughout the year and all students are encouraged to get involved.

You can find out all about the SU on their website.

Have a look at the published Academic Calendar to assist you with your planning over the coming year