More than 800 students from second-level schools throughout Ireland will explore RCSI's state-of-the-art facilities at 26 York Street while learning about life as a medical, pharmacy and physiotherapy student at the RCSI Open Day 2019 today.

The daylong event provides Leaving Certificate students with the opportunity to hear about what it is like to study and work as a healthcare professional from doctors, pharmacists and physiotherapists. Students can explore RCSI's new building at 26 York Street, which opened in 2018, before breaking out into interactive workshops that will give them the unique opportunity to get hands-on insights into what it would be like to be an RCSI student.

In the medicine workshop, students will experience a delivery by a birthing mannequin and perform surgical stitching on dummy patients. The physiotherapy workshops will use hands-on practical methods to show students the role of a physiotherapist in the management of people with lung conditions and rehabilitation of ankle injuries. Students will also get the chance to experience the art of drug formulation and delivery in the pharmacy workshop.

Speaking ahead of the Open Day, Professor Hannah McGee, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, RCSI said: "The annual RCSI Open Day is a great opportunity for second level students to get a sense of life, both academic and social, at RCSI.

"We separately showcase our Medicine, Pharmacy and Physiotherapy degree programmes to give a more focussed insight into each of these three paths of study. We want attendees to leave with a good understanding of what a career in healthcare entails, so our hands-on workshops give these potential students a practical insight into what life really would be like, not just as an RCSI student, but in their future careers, whether that be as a doctor, pharmacist or physiotherapist.

"We are particularly proud to showcase our state-of-the-art healthcare education technologies to attendees, so they can see where RCSI students develop and practice clinical skills in a safe educational environment as part of Europe's most advanced simulation facility," Professor McGee concluded.

RCSI is ranked among the top 250 (top 2%) of universities worldwide in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings (2019) and its research is ranked first in Ireland for citations. It is an international not-for-profit health sciences institution, with its headquarters in Dublin, focused on education and research to drive improvements in human health worldwide. RCSI has been awarded Athena SWAN Bronze accreditation for positive gender practice in higher education.

For further information on the medicine, pharmacy and physiotherapy programmes at RCSI visit the Undergraduate section.