Ninth Level Ireland

“Deputy Fergus O’Dowd asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Education and Skills the date and the way in which her attention was drawn to the fact that some universities were sanctioning allowances and bonuses without her sanction; the action that she has taken on this matter; the action her predecessors took on this matter; if she will take steps to recover these moneys; if she will ensure that all future third level sector funding will be administered to the laws governing same; and if she will make a statement on the matter …” (more)

[Dáil Debates, 29 September]

“Deputy Jack Wall asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Education and Skills if she has altered the 2010 rules governing the higher education grants scheme which resulted in mature students becoming unable to re-enter college until a three year period has elapsed since their study; the date and location at which this decision was announced to the public; if she will consider reversing this change in view of the way it has been introduced and the level of disappointment by mature students who have only now discovered that they cannot continue their studies; and if she will make a statement on the matter …” (more)

[Dáil Debates, 29 September]

“… Fine Gael’s Fergus O’Dowd said the university was ‘getting away with murder and the money should be paid back’. But Minister Haughey said there are legal problems with recovering the funds …” (more)

[BreakingNews.ie, 29 September]

“Tom Murphy the freelance cameraman (shown on the set of Lapps Quay at right) returns to our Tipperary campus to deliver the first guest lecture of the new year. We have worked with Tom on several creative multimedia projects before, one involving a professional broadcast camera with footage that aired on PBS in the States …” (more)

[Bernie Goldbach, Inside View, 29 September]

“Science is Vital (a new UK organisation opposed to cuts in the science budget there) offer a very interesting economic rationale for investing in research on their site [post reproduced in full]. Many of these points are just as important here in Ireland …” (more)

[Shane O'Mara, Irishscience, 29 September]

“There are lots of Irish science blogs nowadays where you can keep up with what’s happening in the world of science and find out what issues people are discussing …” (more)

[Science.ie, 29 September]

“I respect peer review as much as the next person and have done my share of publishing in peer-reviewed outlets. But I question the belief, expressed often in academic, media, and policy circles, that ‘not peer reviewed’ means ‘worthless’ and ‘peer reviewed’ means ‘should be accepted without question’ …” (more)

[Peter Klein, Organizations and Markets, 29 September]

“A long-awaited analysis of the state of US research programmes has resulted in controversy after it arrived three years late and produced a novel form of ranking …” (more)

[Sarah Cunnane, Times Higher Education, 29 September]

“The Union of Students in Ireland (USI) has urged the Government to pass the Student Support Bill as a matter of urgency in the first session of the Dáil tomorrow (Sept 29th). The Student Support Bill has been continuously sidelined since it was published in 2008 …” (more)

[Irish Press Releases, 29 September]

“Minister for Health and Children, Mary Harney T.D., and Minister for Labour Affairs and Public Service Transformation, Dara Calleary T.D., have welcomed the announcement today of a partnership agreement between Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) and the Health Research Board (HRB), with the Wellcome Trust, a global charitable foundation based in the UK …” (more)

[HT: Shane O’Mara]
[SFI, 29 September]

“It has been 12 years since Dr Edward Walsh left the university he founded, but yesterday he was finally presented with an honorary doctorate from UL …” (more)

[Limerick Leader, 29 September]

“The story about Andrew Croskery, from County Down, applying for a judicial review of the grade he received from Queen’s University in Belfast has been covered quite extensively in the news recently …” (more)

[Student Stew, 29 September]

“… This current Report underlines the significant role that the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences (AHSS) play in our economy and society both directly and indirectly. It recognises that while the AHSS provide skills for specific economically important occupations and sectors, they also enhance quality of life generally and help to make Ireland an attractive place in which to live and do business …” (PDF, 7Mb)

[IRCHSS and HEA, 29 September]

“The Government is in danger of losing up to €10m a year in EU funding because it imposed pay cuts on top university researchers who are funded entirely by Brussels. Around 70 Marie Curie scholars – mostly from overseas – have had their awards cut in line with reductions in salaries throughout the public service. But the decision has angered the European Commission, which has accused the Government of breach of contract …” (more)

[John Walshe, Independent, 29 September]

“Madam, – While not demeaning the merits of the discussion on gender inequalities created by the introduction of bonus points for mathematics (Kathleen Lynch, Opinion, September 24th) the fact remains that such a strategy is unfair to all students, both male and female, whose interests, passions and career aspirations lie in areas other than the mathematical field …” (more)

[Orla McCormack, Irish Times, 29 September]

“The founding father of the University of Limerick was among five people honoured at a conferring ceremony yesterday. An honorary doctorate was conferred on Ed Walsh, the founding president of the University of Limerick, the first new university established in the history of the State …” (more)

[Kathryn Hayes, Irish Times, 29 September]

“OK, I know many of you are tired of league tables, but bear with me on this one. What would you say is being measured by a UK university league table in which London Metropolitan University and the University of Greenwich come out on top, and the stragglers right at the bottom include the Universities of St Andrews, Oxford and Cambridge? …” (more)

[Ferdinand von Prondynski, University Blog, 29 September]

“1. ‘Your mailbox is nearly full’ warnings appear with increasing regularity; 2. Walking up / down a corridor takes longer than usual, particularly within five minutes of the top of the hour …” (more)

[Pennybridged’s Weblog..., 28 September]

“The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit granted a stay late this afternoon, allowing US government funding of human embryonic stem cell research to continue unimpeded while a lawsuit challenging its legality works its way through the courts …” (more)

[Meredith Wadman, The Great Beyond, 28 September]

“Female college students appear to be binge-drinking at least as often as their male counterparts and sometimes match them drink for drink, according to research published in the latest edition of the Irish Medical Journal …” (more)

[Alison Healy, Irish Times, 29 September]