Study Ireland – Stories & Guides from International Students

When first looking at UL’s timetables, there’s a lot to take in. Once you know what modules you want to take, how do you begin to plan what your schedule will look like? Well, this post is here to help! I’m going to try to give enough of an overview of terms you need to know, where to look, and what to do if any issues arise. But, once it is time for you to make your schedule, do know that there are many people who can help you, such as the Study Abroad Office team! 

Course – This is what UL students are getting their degrees in, such as Biology or Mechanical Engineering. 

Module – Class, a semester-long learning opportunity. 

Lecture (LEC) – This is when a lecturer will talk to the class, and you are required to go to all of these each week for each module. 

Tutorial (TUT) – These don’t happen for every module. This may also be with the lecturer or another person, where the content from class will be covered through another method, like problem sets or reviewing quizzes, and you will be assigned to go to one set of these (For example, if there is a 2A and 2B tutorial, you would only go to one. But if there are multiple 2A tutorials in the week, then all of them are required). 

Labs (LAB) – These also don’t happen for every class. A set further from the tutorials, even more application of knowledge gained from the lectures. These are often similar to labs in the US, if you are familiar with chemistry or biology labs. It is also scheduled the same as tutorials, with 2A and 2B.  

Module Coordinator – This is the person who is responsible for the module, and the one to email if you have any questions. Their email address will be listed in the Book of Modules, you just need to search for the module. 

Now that you have a basic understanding of the terms, how do you start to put together a schedule? Keep in mind that the times for each class aren’t available long before the start of the semester, and this will all be covered during orientation as well.  

For international students, you do not get an assigned timetable automatically. The courses in your application are not what are you are required to take; I’m currenting in a module I didn’t put on my application. You pick your classes and show up for the first two weeks, then at the end of the first week till the end of the second week you have the opportunity to fill out a form which will allow you to be registered for your module selections. Until that form is submitted, there is nothing to officially show your schedule. You can email module coordinators before starting to get added to their Brightspace pages (the online home for classes where lecture notes and assignments are posted, similar to Blackboard and Canvas), but it does not mean you have to take that course.  

To start to plan out your schedule, you should go to UL Timetable, shown below.

Once you get here, do not log in! As I said earlier, anything there, if there is anything, is not official and you do not have to follow it. To see what times modules are offered, click on Module Timetable in the upper right of the menu. Once there, type in the code or name of the modules you are interested in. Do keep in mind that all modules are here, not just the ones available to international students.

This is an example of what a module will look like. There is one lecture, Wednesday 12-2pm, and the five times are for tutorials. You’ll only go to one tutorial, so this class meets twice a week!  

Once you figure out one class, you can go through the rest of the modules you are interested in taking! I recommend using a spreadsheet or calendar app to put in the times, as that will help you make sure there isn’t overlap, and you can get to building! If there are any overlaps, say one tutorial overlaps with the lecture of another module, then you can always email the module coordinator to ask to be placed in a specific tutorial. If there are any other issues, also feel free to email the module coordinator and ask. They are super helpful, and I emailed one module coordinator and was able to fit in a module I needed to take even though I had a conflict. 

Making your timetable may seem daunting at first, but once you get going it is nothing to be afraid of. There will be many info and help sessions, and everyone is super understanding. Just make sure you give yourself options and take the time to look through all of them, and everything will work out great! 

A note to those who didn’t pre-register in October will need to build their own timetable by checking the module timetables. You will need to cross check your module timetables to make a timetable for yourself and email the module leaders to sign up to those time slots.