Ninth Level Ireland

“Internal Queen’s University Belfast (QUB) documentation highlights senior university officials expressing concern at the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact on international student recruitment. This documentation, seen by The Detail, also shows how the university values just eight international students as having an economic impact equivalent to £1 million …” (more)

[Rory Winters, The Detail, 24 February]

“Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if international travel for foreign third level students is deemed essential travel …” (more)

[Dáil written answers, 17 February]

“Modeling kept under wraps by the British government for nearly two years estimates that Brexit could cost the nation’s universities nearly two-thirds of their European Union student enrollment and £63m ($87m) in one year, but that the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge will boost their income …” (more)

[John Morgan, Inside Higher Education, 12 February]

“While Trinity has announced its continuation of online classes, many international students elected to return to accommodation in Dublin even in face of travel restrictions …” (more)

[Audrey Brown, Trinity News, 10 February]

“The University of Limerick says more than 100 international students who have arrived in Limerick in recent days ahead of the Spring semester are complying with all public health guidelines and regulations. The PhD students, who travelled from Algeria on a specially chartered flight, quarantined for 14 days and tested negative for Covid-19 before their departure …” (more)

[David Hurley, Limerick Leader, 20 January]

“One hundred-and-forty students will jet into Limerick from Africa tomorrow, to study at the University of Limerick, and will have to isolate on UL’s campus for 14 days as part of international covid-19 travel protocols. The Algerian government is funding the PhD students to study at UL under a deal estimated to be worth over €10 million to the university …” (more)

[David Raleigh, BreakingNews.ie, 18 January]

“Irish colleges can get an unexpected boost this year, thanks to Brexit. Ireland South MEP Sean Kelly says over 100,000 EU students came to Britain last year to study under the Erasmus programme …” (more)

[Radio Kerry, 18 January]

“Joyce Zhao flew from Shanghai into Dublin on a wintery night in February 1999 at around 11pm, and realised there was no-one at the airport to meet her. ‘My arrival was actually forgotten by the college’, says Zhao. She had enrolled in a private college, settling for Ireland after two failed attempts to get a US study visa, she says. A rep was supposed to pick her up …” (more)

[Shamim Malekmian, Dublin Inquirer, 13 January]

“Waterford Institute of Technology’s income dropped by €844,000 as a result of a significant drop in the number of new international students beginning their studies at WIT. In the 2020-21 academic year, Waterford Institute of Technology had 125 total international students, 68 of whom were new entrants, as opposed to 227 in the 2019-20 academic year, of whom 172 were new entrants …” (more)

[Jade Wilson, Waterford News and Star, 9 January]

“With less than two weeks left of the Brexit transition period, one of the key issues still on the negotiating table is the UK’s future in the EU’s Erasmus+ study abroad scheme. The Independent reported this week that, with talks going ‘nowhere’ and Michel Barnier’s insistence on an all or nothing approach, the UK is set to forfeit access to the scheme altogether …” (more)

[Sofia Lewis, Independent, 17 December]

“Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if his Department has finalised the agreement with colleges in the UK to ensure that Irish students do not have to pay higher fees or be considered as international students if they apply to UK colleges for courses, including postgraduate courses for 2021 to 2022, due to Brexit …” (more)

[Dáil written answers, 15 December]

“Sir, – It was dismaying but not surprising to see the RTÉ investigative report last Thursday (December 3rd) on overcrowded living spaces. For international students, this is a familiar reality of living in Ireland …” (more)

[Laura Harmon, Irish Times, 9 December]

“Every year students from all over the world attend the University of Limerick for a semester as part of the Erasmus program. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Universities throughout Ireland have adopted online teaching methods this semester, which has resulted in many international students being unable to travel to Limerick for the year …” (more)

[Luyao Liu, Limerick Voice, 29 November]

“Since its inception, the Erasmus programme has been hailed by students and academic institutions across Europe as being a rite of passage. One of the programme’s centrepieces is its support network between students and the institutions involved, be it through the flagship Erasmus grant, networking events for overseas students or language learning opportunities directly from the programme itself …” (more)

[Adam Balchin, Trinity News, 28 November]

“International student enrolments in United States universities declined by 16% in autumn 2020 and drops in new student enrolments were more than twice as steep, at 43%, according to data from a snapshot survey designed to understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on US higher education. A drop was expected, and researchers anticipate a surge in enrolments after the pandemic has ended, fuelled by pent-up demand and aggressive ongoing recruitment of international students …” (more)

[Mary Beth Marklein, University World News, 16 November]

“Universities risk reputational damage due to ‘extravagant’ fees being charged at a time when most learning has shifted online, a seminar organised by the Irish Council for International Students has heard. While domestic undergraduate students pay fees of up to €3,000 a year, the cost can rise to €25,000 for international students or €55,000 for medical students from abroad …” (more)

[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 17 November]

“A company which recruited students from Saudi Arabia for the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland is suing the college in the High Court over the level of fees paid by the students. The Nahj Company for Services is in dispute with the college over whether the €16,000 fee for participation in the medical commencement programme was inclusive or exclusive of a €5,000 commission said to be payable to the recruiting company …” (more)

[Mary Carolan, Irish Times, 13 November]

“As the university campus and accommodations emptied on March 12th upon the announcement of a global pandemic and college closure, the international student population had more decisions to make than the average student – how to get home, and how to return to UCC when or if the need arose. Students from overseas make up 15.6% of the overall UCC student population …” (more)

[Maeve McTaggart, University Express, 10 November]

“Concerns about exams, accommodation and travel during the Christmas period have been highlighted by the first responses recorded in a survey of international students on challenges posed by Covid-19 regulations. Last week, international students were alerted to the release of a virtual, anonymous student survey in order to determine the status and response of international students amidst Level 5 restrictions …” (more)

[Audrey Brown, Trinity News, 8 November]

“The number of non-EU applications to Trinity dropped this year, after climbing by 70% between 2017 and 2019. Some 9,034 international students applied for a place in Trinity this year, down from 9,453 in 2019, according to figures released to The University Times under the Freedom of Information Act. There were 6,869 such applications in 2018, and 5,469 in 2017 …” (more)

[Emer Moreau, University Times, 7 November]