“Mayo Sinn Fein TD Rose Conway-Walsh has welcomed specific funding to support third-level institutions reopening but has said that students are still ‘in the dark’ about how blended learning will work …” (more)
[Connaught Telegraph, 23 July]
“Brendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the reason some colleges are charging a repeat exam fee and most other colleges are not (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter …” (more)
[Dáil written answers, 21 July]
“Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the details of students who were successful in their applications to the national alternative entry schemes for students with disabilities and students from low socio-economic backgrounds, DARE and HEAR, for the past two years in tabular form …” (more)
[Dáil written answers, 21 July]
“Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will raise the threshold for postgraduate SUSI grants to allow for the economic uncertainty due to Covid-19 …” (more)
[Dáil written answers, 21 July]
“Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if mature applicants to third level colleges living at home with their parents due to lack of affordable housing options can be means-assessed independently for the SUSI grant and not as dependents on their parents’ household income; and if she will make a statement on the matter …” (more)
[Dáil written answers, 21 July]
“The government will consider reducing registration fees for third level students, who are potentially facing extra costs and challenges when classes return in the autumn, higher education minister Simon Harris said …” (more)
[Juno McEnroe, Irish Examiner, 22 July]
“Higher Education Minister Simon Harris has announced a €168m package for third-level institutions and students to cover costs incurred during the coronavirus pandemic and to support students returning to college in September …” (more)
[Aine McMahon, Independent, 22 July]
“Education Minister Norma Foley has been accused of breaching the ministerial code after she failed to tell the Dáil last week that the Leaving Cert results would be delayed until September 7 …” (more)
[Hugh O’Connell, Independent, 21 July]
“A reduction in course fees for the next academic year is not being considered by the University of Limerick. However, in response to the Covid-19 pandemic the university has announced a number of changes in relation to accommodation for the forthcoming semester …” (more)
[Aine Fitzgerald, Limerick Leader, 21 July]
“Leaving Cert students have less than a week to register online to opt-in to receive their calculated grades. Minister for Education Norma Foley has confirmed that the deadline to opt-in for results online will expire on Monday July 27th at 4pm …” (more)
[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 21 July]
“A €500 reduction must be made to the Student Contribution Charge immediately to ease some of the financial pressure caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Union of Students in Ireland. Government must also support students who will be expected to work remotely for much of the new academic year by creating and investing in a new scheme that provides access to devices and better WiFi …” (more)
[USI, 21 July]
“Minister for Education Norma Foley TD today announced that Calculated Grades results will issue directly to students through the student portal on 7 September at 9.00am. Results will also issue simultaneously to students’ schools. Schools will be asked to provide support to students in an appropriate way on the day, through enabling students to come to the school if they wish at a scheduled time, or to making guidance or other teaching staff members available by phone for students to discuss their options following their results …” (more)
[Department of Education and Skills, 21 July]
“A chief of the Choctaw Nation has welcomed University College Cork’s commitment to fostering Irish-Choctaw relations by awarding a second scholarship to a student from the Native American tribe in recognition of the historic links between the two peoples …” (more)
[Barry Roche, Irish Times, 20 July]
“The father of a Limerick student has described as ‘morally wrong’ the refusal of a student village to refund rent which was paid for accommodation that his son had to subsequently leave due to the Covid-19 pandemic …” (more)
[Aine Fitzgerald, Limerick Leader, 19 July]
“The suggestion is that this year’s Leaving Cert results are delayed because they need to be able to stand up to scrutiny, but students are still in the dark about what ‘standardisation’ entails. And now it would seem they could remain in the dark about the particulars of this process until after they receive their results …” (more)
[Jess Casey, Irish Examiner, 18 July]
“The COVID-19 pandemic impacts the landscape of transnational higher education (TNHE) in three dimensions: student mobility, economic recession and international political tension. As a health catastrophe, COVID-19 affects cross-border mobility, opening up opportunities for TNHE to absorb the demand for international qualifications …” (more)
[Agustian Sutrisno, University World News, 18 July]
“The mother of a student hoping to begin his third level studies at the University of Limerick in September says she felt ‘a sharp shot’ when she read the details of how the new academic semester will play out. The woman from Leinster who is remaining anonymous at the request of her son is now contemplating alternative options for her son …” (more)
[Aine Fitzgerald, Limerick Leader, 18 July]
“Students, parents, and colleges have been left scrambling as the fallout from the decision to delay publishing this year’s Leaving Certificate results added to the chaos and confusion engulfing the education sector …” (more)
[Jess Casey, Irish Examiner, 18 July]
“Some third-level colleges are delaying the entry of first years by a further week after confirmation that Leaving Cert results and CAO offers won’t now be released until September …” (more)
[Katherine Donnelly, Independent, 18 July]
“Even in normal times the Leaving Cert is a stressful time for tens of thousands of candidates. For this year’s students, the challenge is greater. They have had to deal with anxiety over school closures, changes to assessment plans and a dramatic government U-turn on holding exams ‘by hook or by crook’ …” (more)
[Irish Times, 17 July]
