LAST year I wrote an article about the British Council's opportunity for students at further education colleges and university in Northern Ireland to apply to study in the States.The British Council study application process remains open until January 5.
This is a great opportunity – and not just for students attending university. The lovely part of this programme is that FE college students can apply. Students of Belfast Metropolitan College, Northern Regional College, North West Regional College, South Eastern Regional College, Southern Regional college and South West College can apply. So if you have a family member that fits the bill why not encourage them to look up the information and get their application in?
If successful they will attend a college in the United States for a full academic year.
They must be studying at a Northern Irish institution and be classified as having 'Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland or Great Britain residency for tuition fee purposes'.
For more information about the £50,000 scholarships to be given to each of sixty students, go directly to the British Council website at https://nireland.britishcouncil.org/opportuities/study-usa
Meanwhile, it was interesting to hear that all of the dancers in the current production of Michael Flattery's 'Lord of the Dance' were not born when it actually started thirty years ago. They have been at the Waterfront for that in-between time of Christmas and New Year and while not all shows were sold out, they did come pretty close.
The energy and spectacle is still there and it's great that the show has given hundreds of Irish dancers the ability to go professional. 60 million people have seen it worldwide, which is an amazing tally. But it's also starting to look a bit dated. Do we really need to see female Irish dancers in their underwear? Or have a line of men stripped off to the waist?
The stage show will continue touring and dedicated fans will follow it wherever it goes – and I'm sure the dancers were happy to be home for Christmas.
