“Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the percentage of SUSI funding that goes towards covering the student contribution charge in each year since 2011; and if he will make a statement on the matter …” (more)
[Dáil written answers, 29 April]
“Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will consider amending the Student Support Act 2011 to support Irish students studying within the EU who would qualify for SUSI support if they were studying in Ireland; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that third-level education fees are lower in most other EU states than they are in Ireland; the estimated cost of such a change; and if he will make a statement on the matter …” (more)
[Dáil written answers, 28 April]
“The Society of St Vincent de Paul have joined calls by the Union of Students in Ireland to reform the SUSI grant scheme ahead of a full return to college. The funding model has been described as ‘not fit for purpose’ and no longer in line with the cost of living …” (more)
[Teresa Mannion, RTÉ News, 23 April]
“Emails sent to Further and Higher Education Minister Simon Harris have revealed some of the barriers facing third-level students when it comes to accessing financial support for their studies. Students who are unemployed, homeless, or parents of young children are among those who wrote to Mr Harris last summer about the Susi grant for third-level education …” (more)
[Jess Casey, Irish Examiner, 21 April]
“Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if his attention has been drawn to the data provided on foot of a recent freedom of information request (details supplied); the analysis his Department has carried out across third-level institutions which fall under the responsibility of his Department into the fining of students for the late payment of registration fees; if this issue will be examined as part of the ongoing review of Higher Education Authority legislation; and if he will make a statement on the matter …” (more)
[Dail written answers, 1 April]
“Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the post-Brexit treatment of Irish students attending UK universities in terms of funding and State support; and if he will make a statement on the matter …” (more)
[Dáil written answers, 31 March]
“Renewal applications for the student grant scheme for the 2021-22 academic year will open on Thursday, while a number of improvements have been made for the most disadvantaged students, Minister for Further and Higher Education Simon Harris has said. These include an increase in the postgraduate fee grant and an increase in the income threshold, while a number of Department of Social Protection and other payments are to be included as income disregards …” (more)
[Colin Gleeson, Irish Times, 1 April]
“An overhaul of the student grant scheme is to be announced today. Among the changes are an increase in the postgraduate fee grant and qualifying income threshold. The scheme opens for renewal applications today. The changes to the SUSI scheme are effective for the coming 2021/22 academic year …” (more)
[Jess Casey, Irish Examiner, 1 April]
“The Department of Higher Education has launched a public consultation reviewing SUSI, with submissions closing on April 16th. The terms of reference of the public consultation include reviewing SUSI eligibility criteria, reviewing income thresholds, review of the SUSI maintenance grant, comparison of student supports with other European countries, examination of costs for postgraduate students and determining the real cost of attending higher education in Ireland …” (more)
[Sárán Fogarty, University Times, 18 March]
“Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris today welcomed the start of a public consultation on the review of the Student Grant Scheme. This Review was committed to under the current Programme for Government and announced as part of Budget 2021 …” (more)
[gov.ie, 12 March]
“Brendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if pandemic unemployment payments will be assessed as reckonable income for special rates of SUSI grants in 2021; and if he will make a statement on the matter …” (more)
[Dáil written answers, 10 February]
“The IUA welcomes today’s announcement by Minister Simon Harris TD, of an investment of €3.2m in 2021 to address the funding gap for Irish Research Council (IRC) postgraduate students and post-doctoral researchers. IRC postgraduate students will now receive a stipend similar to that offered by other national funders. For IRC postdoctoral researchers, this now brings their salaries in line with those agreed under the National Researcher Career Framework, recently published by the IUA …” (more)
[IUA, 29 January]
“Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science Simon Harris TD has today (29 January 2021) announced an increase in the value of the Irish Research Council’s research scholarships and fellowships. The enhanced funding of €3.2 million to the Council will better support postgraduate and postdoctoral researchers in Ireland across all disciplines …” (more)
[gov.ie, 29 January]
“Student budgets, like the rest of the world, have been thrown upside down by the pandemic. For some, the costs of living have increased because they’re out of work, still paying rent and paying higher broadband, heat and electricity bills as a result of working at home …” (more)
[Peter McGuire, Irish Times, 12 January]
“Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science Simon Harris TD has confirmed that almost 71,000 students will receive an additional €250 in their student grant payment starting today (Thursday). As part of Budget 2021, Minister Harris secured a €250 payment to all full-time EU students in publicly-funded higher education institutions to acknowledge the impact this pandemic has had on third-level students …” (more)
[gov.ie, 17 December]
“Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills when students who do not avail of the SUSI grant will receive the €250 Covid-19 payment; when arrangements for payment to students who do not avail of SUSI will be finalised; and if this cohort of students will receive it before Christmas …” (more)
[Dáil written answers, 16 December]
“Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide additional information on the €20 million in budget 2021 for SUSI that will see the funding returned to 2019 levels; the projections on demand upon which this is based; and if he will make a statement on the matter …” (more)
[Dáil debates, 15 December]
“Annie Hoey (Labour): I am raising the need to address the issue around higher education funding being potentially lost to students who withdraw from their courses and the knock-on consequences that this will have not only for free fees – a term I use lightly – but also for their access to Student Universal Support Ireland, SUSI, grants …” (more)
[Seanad debates, 15 December]
“Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science Simon Harris TD has announced Government approval to conduct a review of the Student Grant Scheme administered by SUSI. The review’s terms of reference include examining the value of the maintenance grants and income thresholds, the availability of grants for part-time students, adjacent and non-adjacent rates, supports for postgraduates and how Ireland compares against other jurisdictions …” (more)
[gov.ie, 14 December]
“A review of the student grant scheme for third-level students has been approved by the Cabinet, the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris, has said. The terms of reference for the review include examining the value of the maintenance grants and the income thresholds, the availability of grants for part-time students, supports for postgraduates and how Ireland compares against other jurisdictions …” (more)
[Colm Keena, Irish Times, 14 December]
