Ninth Level Ireland

“Third Level institutions across the country have been condemned by the Higher Education Authority (HEA) as new figures revealed that women in senior positions are under-represented. New measures implemented by the HEA will see State funding being linked to each Third Level institutions’ performance in overcoming the ongoing issue of gender inequality and has resulted in mandatory gender quotas to decrease the gender gap at senior levels …” (more)

[Niamh Haskins, Campus.ie, 31 July]

“Queen’s University Belfast’s consent classes will be based on the successful Trinity model when they run for the first time in October. The pilot programme, which will run in Queen’s residential accommodation, could see nearly 1,500 first-year students take part …” (more)

[Dominic McGrath, University Times, 31 July]

“With the news that the minister is considering the introduction of a UK-style TEF (Teaching Excellence Framework) it is worth considering some of the quality process that currently exist in the third level sector, specifically my university, DCU …” (more)

[educationandstuff, 31 July]

“NUI Galway, which for years has been at the centre of the storm when it comes to gender inequality, is actively headhunting a female president. Apparently convinced this will be the solution to the institution’s problems, the university is more likely to learn a different lesson: tackling the symptom without addressing the root cause is always going to be to some extent futile …” (more)

[Niamh Haskins, University Times, 30 July]

“Sir, – Missing from your opinion debate (Letters, July 28th and 29th) is the question of how and why NUI awards honorary doctorates in the first place. Chancellors of NUI have been political persons serving lengthy terms: the incumbent Maurice Manning, his predecessor Garret FitzGerald …” (more)

[Letters, Irish Times, 31 July]

“The presidents of Irish universities have spent the last few years preoccupied with the higher education funding crisis. Meanwhile, their UK counterparts have spent the last two years brooding over a similarly prickly development: that of the Teaching Excellence Framework …” (more)

[University Times, 30 July]

“University of Limerick is launching a campaign inviting homeowners and landlords to come forward and advertise available accommodation on the university’s accommodation list, in response to ‘unprecedented’ demand for student housing …” (more)

[Fintan Walsh, Limerick Leader, 31 July]

“The University of Limerick spent over €2 million in legal fees in the past decade, with Dublin-based firm Arthur Cox receiving nearly €1.5 million. Figures released to the Limerick Leader under a Freedom of Information request show that …” (more)

[Anne Sheridan, Limerick Leader, 28 July]

“When I told my graduate supervisor that I wanted to join his lab, he blinked at me and said, ‘Do you think you can handle it?’ I was overwhelmed by self-consciousness as a wave of cold anxiety rushed through me. My inner voice screamed, ‘I thought I could, but maybe I can’t?’ Outwardly, all I could muster was a small, squeaky, ‘Yes, I think so’ …” (more)

[Guardian, 28 July]

“Sir, – On Thursday I wrote to the chancellor of the National University of Ireland (NUI) expressing my amazement at the decision of his university to grant Brian Cowen an honorary doctorate and asking how I proceed to have the NUI honorary doctorate I received in 1998 rescinded …” (more)

[Letters, Irish Times, 29 July]

“UK higher education is about to experience a period of turbulence, as the consequences of the UK leaving the European Union (EU) become clearer. Higher education institutions are bracing themselves for what will no doubt be a period of substantial change, uncertainty and challenge, but also opportunity. This briefing outlines some of the consequences of Brexit for UK higher education institutions …” (more)

[Ludovic Highman, IOE London Blog, 27 July]

“The founding president of University of Limerick (UL) plans to hand back his honorary doctorate from the National University of Ireland (NUI) in protest over its decision to honour former taoiseach Brian Cowen. The NUI has faced a wave of public criticism following its awarding of an honorary doctorate to Mr Cowen on Wednesday …” (more)

[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 29 July]

“Sir, – I realise it is prime silly season, but how sickening is your Front page picture (July 27th) of one-time taoiseach, Brian Cowen, replete with cap and gown receiving his honorary doctorate from National University of Ireland …” (more)

[Letters, Irish Times, 28 July]

“Sir, – I have followed with interest the recent coverage of the under-representation of women at senior level in Irish universities (‘Too few women at top levels in colleges, report shows’, Carl O’Brien, July 20th). Despite the initiatives taken to encourage greater recognition of women at senior level, it would be optimistic to think the current culture can be changed easily to allow a recalibration …” (more)

[Sarah Alyn Stacey, Irish Times, 28 July]

“There is a new trend in town. The ‘trigger warning’ has taken on a new lease of life with the increased usage of social media. Following the release of the Netflix drama 13 Reasons Why, based on the novel by Jay Asher, newsfeeds were flooded with demands for more trigger warnings to be included in cinema, TV and literature …” (more)

[Margaret Madden, Irish Times, 27 July]

“The Union of Students in Ireland (USI) is today calling on IT Tallaght to reverse the decision to close the créche on campus, or parents will be forced to dropout of college. IT Tallaght announced their campus créche would close after public tendering did not locate a new provider meeting the college’s criteria this month …” (more)

[Daniel Waugh, Union of Students in Ireland, 27 July]

“While open access is all about setting research ‘free’, the transition towards it can feel to academics like just another facet of the ever-stricter assessment regimes to which they are becoming subject. A recent example in the UK is the Higher Education Funding Council for England’s announcement that all articles and conference papers submitted to the next research excellence framework exercise will have to be available on an open-access institutional or subject repository …” (more)

[Marilyn Deegan, Times Higher Education, 27 July]

“It may be hard to believe, but there was once a gentler era when universities were administered rather than managed. How times have changed. As higher education has grown in size and complexity so institutions have felt the need to strengthen their management arrangements …” (more)

[Sue Shepherd, Guardian, 27 July]

“Sir, – Your article (Concerns over quality of third-level tuition prompts review, Home News, July 25th) reports that Minister for Education Richard Bruton is considering a UK-style Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) as part of a proposed review on standards in higher education. This is both incredible and exasperating …” (more)

[Mike Jennings, Irish Times, 27 July]

“In 1984 I took up a position as principal of a newly opened second-level school in a severely disadvantaged area. Unemployment among parents was in excess of 60%. A survey carried out two years previously found that nobody living in the catchment area had a third level qualification. So, as the school approached full cycle in 1989, the question of third level access became a priority issue …” (more)

[Brian Fleming, Education Matters, 26 July]