Limerick IT

A list of houses apartments and digs is currently available from the accommodation office at Limerick Institute of Technology, with similar prices and availability to the UL lists.

UL

The University of Limerick has three student villages. Plassey with 424 rooms, Kilmurry with 525 and, new this year, Dromroe with 250. A further 200 will be available in this complex in January 2002.

In Plassey, first-year students live in eight-bed houses, which cost £1781 per person for the year, in Kilmurry it's £1900 and in Dromroe, six-bed houses, with all rooms ensuite, are £2310.

Digs cost £65-£70 for five days and houses are around £45 per person. "We've never had a shortage of either type of accommodation," says accommodation officer Frances McNamara, "and there are lots of private rented and lodging places again this year".

The college organises an accommodation open day on August 24th when they ask all landlords to be at their houses to meet students.

Carlow IT

Section 50 student accommodation is still under development in Carlow, so it's not an option for this year's first years.

Housing lists are currently available from the college with rented accommodation averaging £35 and digs at about £50-£55 for five days and £70 -£75 for seven.

Head of student services Chris Chapman says housing availability "seems tighter" than usual, but says there should be enough to meet demand.

"I would encourage people to come and look at accommodation before booking it as it might not be as good as it sounded on the phone or it might just be further from the college than they realised," he says.

Tralee IT

IT Tralee is currently in the process of moving campus and will be at it's new location 1.6 miles away from the old campus at the start of the academic year.

The college's spokesman on accommodation, Father Pat O'Donnell, says this will have an impact on the accommodation situation in the town.

"The north side of the town used to be the last to fill, but that's where the new campus is and a lot of the existing students have been clever and booked their housing early. So the new students will probably end up living a bit further away from college."

First-years should contact the accommodation office for a list of places and maps. Digs should cost £50 for five days, flats and apartments cost £50 a week on average and houses are about £25-£30.

"Contact a number of places before you come and bring a mobile as a priority," says O'Donnell. "Come as soon as you can, a lot of people leave it until a Saturday which isn't necessarily a good day to look."

Sligo IT

Sligo Institute of Technology has student accommodation at Yeats Village at £1,900 for the year. Madeline Finan of the accommodation office said they've had a good number of responses from people offering digs, which cost around £45 for five days.

Houses are less plentiful and can cost up to £45, which Finan says is expensive for Sligo. "Everyone wants self-catering, but there's not a lot coming in any more."

She advises students to get the Sligo Champion on a Wednesday for house and flat listings.

Waterford IT

Michelle Hannon, Waterford IT's student union accommodation officer, says she has "pages and pages" of available housing. "The lists are updated every day and students can come in and pick up a listing at any time."

Digs cost £65 for five days and flats go for £35-£45.

"Start looking now, because everyone wants a single room, but there'll be less as time goes on."

Another option, she says, is to rent an apartment in Tramore, which is seven miles from the college but has buses running every 15 minutes.

Letterkenny IT

There are 100 places in Celtic Apartments, Letterkenny Institute of Technology's purpose-built student housing. The college also has housing lists and availability is not a problem, says Vicky O'Rourke of the accommodation office.

"There's no shortage really, there's more than enough to go around. The cheapest flat would be about £25 a week, £40 would be the most expensive and if you are paying that, you must be living in a palace."

Digs are available at about £10 a day, but are more popular with international students, she says.

Dundalk IT

Dundalk IT's accommodation listings are available now online at dkitsu.com, with a rundown of digs and private rented accommodation in the area. Flats and houses should cost £30-£35. The college has new purpose-built accommodation this year, which will cater for 192 students. It is geared towards first years and costs about £40 a week.

Athlone IT

Athlone IT has two student complexes, Wellmount at £53 a week and Cro∅ ╙ige at £45, excluding bills. The Willow Park estate across the road from the college is also very popular with students and the average weekly rent there is £37 per person.

Digs are available within a mile radius of the college and cost about £55 for five days. Self-catering places, living with the landlord, run at about £38.