University College Cork (UCC) is the latest Irish university to offer a sleeping pod on campus, with the newly-installed station opening to students.
UCC Library announced the new addition to its facilities on Twitter , saying that napping is now “officially encouraged” in the library. It advises students to visit the new sleeping pod to be “more productive” after their nap.
Speaking to Trinity News, UCC Students’ Union President Alan Hayes said that the Library “clearly understand the need for resting places in college, especially for those who are commuting to college”.
“Some college days can be very long, especially when it comes to exam time. This is a step forward encouraging sleep and rest when it comes to study. It will be really interesting to see how it’s perceived and used around exam time but I’m sure it will be a very positive asset to the university,” said Hayes.
The reclining pod is semi-enclosed and allows users to take a 20 minute nap, after which music and lights inside the pod automatically adjust to wake the user.
The new pod is a collaboration between UCC’s Disability Support Service and the Library, and is located on the third floor of the Boole Library in the Arts, Humanities, and Multimedia section.
Earlier this year, Maynooth University became the first academic library in Ireland to introduced sleeping pods, which were well received by students.
Brian Crinion, a Robot and Intelligent Devices student in Maynooth, won an award last year for his idea of installing sleeping pods in the library, devised as part of a competition organised by the Maynooth University Library and Maynooth Students’ Union (MSU).
The World Health Organisation (WHO), recommends getting eight hours of sleep a night, while sleeping for fewer than six or seven hours a night has been shown to negatively impact the immune system.