In line with Government guidelines, all events were delivered online and the institute transformed its traditional open day format to make it compatible for digital users. The programme was extended to include five 2-hour live events which provided attendees with an opportunity to meet virtually with lecturers and support staff across the college and get answers to questions they have about degree pathways, how to apply and other aspects of DkIT life.

The Institute also launched new open day features such as an interactive digital campus map with lots new video and imagery to showcase DkIT facilities, buildings and equipment. There was also a series of student-led webinars which provided real-life student perspectives on what to expect as a student at DKIT, in addition to individual webinar guidance sessions for mature applicants, further education applicants and students with disabilities

Speaking today, Thomas Redmond, Head of Marketing & Communications at DkIT said:

“We launched our first ever digital open day last year however, they were always intended to compliment our physical events rather than replace them.  In 2020 due to COVID-19 this all changed and as such, we really wanted to raise the bar in terms of the user experience for our attendees. We developed a suite of new interactive features and video content to give students the best possible online experience and enable them to get true sense of what it’s like to study at DkIT. The live Video Q&A sessions with lectures were extremely popular because they provided much-needed face-time with course experts who were kept very busy with more than 720 questions submitted across the week.”

Also speaking today, Diarmuid Cahill, Schools Liaison Officer and NEFHEA Development Project Manager added:

“Open Day is a very important event for prospective students and is traditionally one of the best ways for CAO applicants to research their preferred courses and higher education institutes. In adapting our approach for the Digital Open Day events, we were conscious of the need to facilitate opportunities for attendees to hear directly from lecturers and current students. I’m pleased to report that we have had a fantastic response from our schools with attendance from more than 200 schools across the region. Feedback to date from Guidance Counsellors has been very positive and we look forward to launching a series of more focused digital events over the coming months in advance of the CAO application deadline of 1^st February.”

In case you missed the Virtual Open Days, you can still register to watch content on-demand by visiting: https://virtualopenday.dkit.ie

DkIT’s next online open day takes place on Saturday 23^rd January 2020 and the Institute will soon announce details of its CAO course taster webinar series. All information is available at www.dkit.ie/opendays