“Provost Patrick Prendergast has admitted Trinity will take a ‘financial hit’ as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, but insisted College ‘won’t let our mission in education, research and innovation be derailed’ …” (more)
[Alex Connolly, University Times, 26 March]
“Trinity Provost Professor Patrick Prendergast has reassured Leaving Cert students that they will be starting college in the autumn. ‘It might be slightly later than in previous years. It might be under slightly-adjusted criteria. But we will be welcoming you’, he said. His comments reflect the ongoing uncertainty over the ongoing impact of the coronavirus crisis on the education system, with schools already not due to re-open until April 20 at the earliest …” (more)
[Katherine Donnelly, Independent, 26 March]
“Student nurses will be paid for working in the health service for the duration of the Covid-19 pandemic, Health Minister Simon Harris has confirmed. Around 4,000 student nurses and midwives will be offered a contract as a Healthcare Assistant – which commands a salary of around €28,000 per year – and be paid accordingly …” (more)
[Hugh O’Connell, Independent, 26 March]
“I’ve had the feeling that this blog is in danger of turning into some sort of plague diary so I thought I’d pass on a couple of examples of life going on. It’s not quite business as usual, but there’s no point in us sitting around feeling sorry for ourselves …” (more)
[In the Dark, 26 March]
“A large private student landlord firm is ‘adjusting its policies’, having previously refused refunds to students who left their accommodation during the Covid-19 crisis. However, Uninest, which manages some of the largest student residence complexes in the country, has still not confirmed if it will refund rent to students who felt safer returning to their family homes during the public health emergency …” (more)
[Eoin English, Irish Examiner, 26 March]
“Fianna Fáil Spokesperson on Housing, Planning and Local Government, Darragh O’Brien has called on third level universities and institutions to offer partial refunds for accommodation to students …” (more)
[Fianna Fáil, 26 March]
“Students and staff who have remained in residence after College’s closure have been told to register with a phone app that will allow Trinity to track who is living on campus at any given time. College instructed students to vacate its accommodation last week, but allowed some – who met specific criteria – to remain, in a move to limit the spread of the coronavirus on campus …” (more)
[Sárán Fogarty, University News, 26 March]
“Students at Letterkenny Institute of Technology have been told they will have no written exams at the end of this college year. The move comes after the government announced an extension of the closure of schools and colleges until April 19 in response to the Covid-19 pandemic …” (more)
[Highland Radio, 26 March]
“NUI Galway will hold the majority of summer exams online to avoid bringing thousands of students to exam halls around the city. The university’s exams are due to begin at the end of April and will continue up to the 15th of May – with results expected in July …” (more)
[Galway Bay FM, 25 March]
“Ulster University has agreed that students living in the university’s student accommodation who wish to return home will be released from their contractual obligations. The University operates a Student Support Fund which makes funds available for those students suffering from genuine financial hardship at this time …” (more)
[Derry Now, 25 March]
“When Ella Klahr Bunnell moved from Boston to Belfast last September, she wasn’t nervous about living so far from her family. A recipient of a Mitchell scholarship to study on the island of Ireland, Bunnell had already spent five years as an undergraduate student at Stanford University …” (more)
[Sorcha Pollak, Irish Times, 24 March]
