Impact and Engagement 2019-2020
DCU is a university of place and a globally connected institution. With a mission to “transform lives and societies”, it is a university that is highly engaged with society and the world.
Our ambition is to be known as Ireland’s University of Impact. The University received affirmation of its positive work, when it was ranked 84th in the world in the 2020 Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings, which capture universities’ impact on society and is based on institutions’ success in delivering the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).
The 2019-2020 period saw a range of initiatives and achievements that linked DCU more closely with its communities. With its partner institutions, the University launched the College Connect initiative, designed to ensure that the student population more closely reflects the diversity of our society. DCU students were recognised for their social engagement when they won the Enactus Ireland social entrepreneurship national competition with the Dyslex.ie project, which sets out to improve the reading skills of dyslexic people. The innovative Access to the Workplace scheme, which offers high quality paid summer work to access students at DCU, announced plans to double the number of places offered by employers and companies. And on the sporting front, DCU reached a partnership agreement with local GAA Club Na Fianna, and the University signed a three-year strategic partnership with Athletics Ireland.