Ninth Level Ireland

“A number of students in Limerick have been forced to hold up in hotels because of a lack of student accommodation in the city and its suburbs. Students, including some who have travelled from abroad to study in the Treaty City, say the government and universities need to step up to solve the housing crisis and meet demand for affordable and suitable housing …” (more)

[David Raleigh, Limerick Post, 14 September]

“International students are worth about £260m to the Northern Ireland economy, a just-published report suggests. Two higher education bodies have analysed the economic effect of international students in the UK prior to the coronavirus pandemic …” (more)

[Robbie Meredith, BBC News, 11 September]

“Unvaccinated Trinity students arriving from any of the seven countries on Ireland’s list of designated states must pay their own hotel quarantine fees, College has confirmed. Currently, these countries are Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, with students from Ecuador required to enter hotel quarantine as of 4am today …” (more)

[Jody Druce, University Times, 9 September]

“Queen’s University is planning to charter two flights from China to bring students to Belfast ahead of the new academic year. The university will be one of several flying in students to the UK this month …” (more)

[Mark Bain, Belfast Telegraph, 1 September]

“Irish higher education institutions (HEIs) are providing a free ‘greet and transfer’ service at Dublin airport for international students arriving for the upcoming semester. Announced by the Irish Universities Association (IUA), the service began at Dublin airport on August 1 and is provided by Club Travel, a travel management company contracted by the HEIs …” (more)

[Sarah Emerson, Trinity News, 11 August]

“Re: Urgent need to support the Health Insurance (International Students) (Amendment) Bill 2021. Dear Minister Donnelly, On behalf of the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) and our members this is an urgent appeal to you to support the Health Insurance (International Students) (Amendment) Bill 2021 …” (more)

[USI, 28 June]

“Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if further details will be provided on the public health advice in relation to the resumption of English language education and the restrictions on international travel; and if he will make a statement on the matter …” (more)

[Dáil written answers, 24 June]

“James O’Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will report on the return of English language schools in view of the reopening of international travel; and if he will make a statement on the matter …” (more)

[Dáil written answers, 17 June]

“Thousands of international students are calling for their visas to be extended because they have not been able to fullfil ‘a vital part’ of their reason for studying in Ireland – the chance to work in graduate level employment. The Third Level Graduate Programme allows Irish educated non-EEA graduates remain here after their studies, for the purpose of seeking graduate level employment. The graduates are generally permitted to work here for between one and two years …” (more)

[Sharon Tobin, RTÉ News, 15 June]

“Third level institutions will find it difficult to cater to the demand from Erasmus students who are opting to study in Ireland instead of the UK due to Brexit, the Seanad Special Select Committee on the Withdrawal of the UK from the EU has heard …” (more)

[Aine Kenny, Irish Times, 31 May]

“The ‘lion’s share’ of this year’s 7,000 additional CAO applicants are coming from the EU, according to Prof Pól Ó Dochartaigh, the chair of the CAO. Approximately 5,000 of the additional applications have come from the EU. The increases may be related to Brexit, as the UK, in comparison, has seen a major drop in EU applicants …” (more)

[Cormac Watson, University Times, 31 May]

“Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his plans to ensure justice for international students who have had their education in Ireland affected by the Covid-19 crisis but who are being refused refunds on any fees by the university, specifically in the case of a university (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter …” (more)

[Dáil written answers, 27 May]

“The annual jamboree-cum-auction around third-level places is underway and a combination of the pandemic and Brexit has moved the goalposts spectacularly. A 31% increase in overseas applications, most of them from the EU means an extra 4,500 suitors for a place at an Irish college. That may not translate into students, as EU applicants’ final enrolment rate is generally below 50% …” (more)

[Irish Examiner, 16 May]

“A new international student exchange scheme will provide more opportunities for US students and be more inclusive than its predecessor, according to the UK’s universities minister. The EU’s long-running Erasmus program gave students the chance to study abroad, as well as running an exchange scheme for staff …” (more)

[Nick Morrison, Forbes, 7 May]

“Applications from the United Kingdom’s number one overseas student market have plummeted by 40% for undergraduate courses starting in 2021-22, but it is Brexit and not COVID-19 that is to blame for the fall …” (more)

[Nic Mitchell, University World News, 14 April]

“About 500 Irish college students studying in EU countries which have been added to the mandatory hotel quarantine list are set to have their accommodation paid for by the State under new plans. The move to add five EU member states – Austria, Belgium, France, Italy and Luxembourg – to the quarantine list has sparked alarm within higher education due to the costs facing returning Irish students …” (more)

[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 12 April]

“The future of fees for international students is likely to be determined by which of the three candidates in the race to be Trinity’s next provost is successful in the April election. Professors Linda Doyle, Linda Hogan and Jane Ohlmeyer took different standpoints on whether fees for non-EU students would increase under their provostship at a hustings this evening hosted by Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) …” (more)

[Lauren Boland, Audrey Brown and Shannon Connolly, Trinity News, 29 March]

“Brexit has fuelled the huge leap in demand for college places this year, and is likely to contribute to driving up the points for some courses. Almost half the extra 6,268 CAO applications are from students living outside the Republic …” (more)

[Katherine Donnelly, Independent, 8 March]

“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]