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[qrypt]

There's a job at TCD that might work well for me (and it isn't completely implausible to think they might be interested in me for it).  But: Ireland??  Everyone is leaving -- again. 

House prices in Dublin are no longer completely insane, at least.  But it really does seem like a bad time to go there in other respects -- what a disaster they seem to be having, politically and economically.  And even if I would be okay on an academic salary, I find myself wondering what kind of future my kids would be likely to have there.

Am I being unreasonable in having these concerns?  I wouldn't mind hearing that I am -- I'm pretty unimpressed with various goings-on where I am. 

[larryc]

I was recruited to apply for a job in the UK once.  What it came down to for us was we were unwilling to permanently leave the country.  Dublin sounds great though. Are you in field where you can realistically relocate back to the states in 5-10 years?

[neutralname]

This would be a move from the UK to Ireland, I take it.

[obprof]

How much time have you spent in Ireland?

I hate to bring this up, but I have the impression that many people have an idealized view of it and the people there.

Could you take a leave of absence for a year or two or go there on sabbatical first?

[qrypt]

I've been in the UK longer than I had imagined I would be -- I failed to think through the "return" aspect when I moved over here (larryc you were right of course to make that a key consideration) and it has been proving difficult.  I'm not desperate for another job, nor am I desperate to move back to the US (leaving the NHS for the US health care system scares me half to death), but I do regret the distance from family.  Anyway the point is that I'm already on the other side of the Atlantic, so that's not an obstacle.

I wasn't so impressed with Dublin when I went a few years ago.  I don't have it idealized at all -- rather the opposite, really.  As a place to live it would be an improvement over where I am now in certain respects -- but perhaps only if I ignore the woeful state of the Irish economy.  

[neutralname]

Being in the converse position (being from the UK, living in the USA) a factor about where to live is how easy it is to travel between the two.  Being within easy reach of NYC is a big factor for me, so I can get to JFK or EWR.  So one issue for me would be what the flight situation between Dublin and the USA is. 

I don't know much about Dublin, apart from that it's a dirty old town.

[the_walrus]

Since no one else is biting...

I think maybe you're being unreasonable.  How would it affect you negatively?  You'd be, presumably, in a good (presumably) secure (as any can be these days) position with, I assume, a good salary.  Is the worry that you wouldn't like living around people who are having a tough time due to the economy?  In terms of impact on your children, I can actually think of more positive consequences of that than negative.  Middle class kids these days, IMHO, need a bigger dose of reality than they generally get.

So, yeah, I'm not seeing what there is to be afraid of.  Social unrest?  I'd have thought that if Ireland was going to go the way of Greece, though, that that would have happened already.

[theblondeassassin]

I probably wouldn't, although TCD would be the only place that would tempt me to move, as I'm relatively well-off where I am now.

I think Ireland's economy still has a long way to fall before it hits the level where it ought to be. It will be painful.

But it depends on the outlook for where you are now -- TCD will be preferable to lots of places in the UK over the next five years.

[the_walrus]

But it depends on the outlook for where you are now -- TCD will be preferable to lots of places in the UK over the next five years.

Good point.  Are you in a strong department in a strong university right now?

[expatinuk]

Apply.... and look into all the possibilities when/if you get an offer. I'd say dump the kids for a long weekend and you and wifely wife go over to Dublin and check out what it's like just as a visitor, but I know you won't dump the kids.

[science_expat]

Personally, I would only apply for a job if I thought there was a serious chance of accepting it if offered.

In terms of Ireland, the economy is worrying but I think the "blueprint" for the next 4 years is fairly well laid out and higher ed is reasonably well protected. However, I would insist on fairly serious talks about money and the future with the Dean and VC before accepting a post.

My one concern would be about Dublin itself. Trinity has a lovely campus and is very good academically although University College Dublin is better is some areas (such as mine). But Dublin is still quite expensive and commuting any distance would be unpleasant (congested) and expensive.

Now if NUI Galway were advertising...

[kaysixteen]

On this St. Paddy's Day week-- just had corned beef and cabbage with all the fixins tonight with me mom-- let me remind you all that there are only two types of people in the world, those who are Irish and those who wish they were!

[taltalim]

I would move tomorrow.

Interviewed for an entrance level lecturer position at University College Dublin a few years ago while still ABD (the interview was in late spring and I was to submit my thesis a few weeks later). Loved the city, loved the university though TCD has, of course, the more beautiful campus and better library. I cannot remember any of the details but teaching load and research support were very attractive. It was one of the friendliest and best organized interviews I ever had, from HR to department administrator to faculty.
A friend did his postdoc at TCD and still speaks highly of the university and city, too.
Compared to England, Ireland seemed to be more European and less insular. This was all towards the end of the Celtic Tiger years, but the HE situation in the UK for the coming years does not look too rosy.
I would apply and see what happens.

[totoro]

As far as your children's future is concerned -  moving to Ireland won't change. If they are citizens of the EU they're still citizens of the EU and can study work in the UK and elsewhere just the same as if you stayed in the UK.

[snape]

My colleagues in Nothern Ireland envy their salaries and the absence of the REF.