“Higher Education Institutions across Ireland are being invited to submit course proposals for the 2021/2022 Springboard+ programme. Springboard+ 2021 will provide an estimated 10,000 places across approximately 250 courses and will be offered to people wishing to reskill/upskill or return to education …” (more)
[Maura O’Shea, HEA, 21 January]
“Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT) is to increase its offering of targeted courses in areas of high workplace demand by almost 30%, to meet the skill needs of growth sectors across the Midwest …” (more)
[Limerick Leader, 14 July]
“The Minister for Education and Skills Joe McHugh TD, Minister of State for Higher Education Mary Mitchell O’Connor and Minister of State for Training Skills, Innovation, Research and Development John Halligan today announced almost 17,000 new places to be made available to people seeking to upskill or reskill …” (more)
[Department of Education and Skills, 17 June]
“The 2020 Call for proposals is being launched today, 16th January. The Springboard+ Call is being run in conjunction with the Call for applications under Pillar One of the Human Capital Initiative. The Human Capital Initiative (HCI) will deliver an investment targeted towards increasing capacity in higher education in skills-focused programmes designed to meet priority skills needs …” (more)
[Maria Cross, HEA, 16 January]
“The Government has been criticised for running a ‘scandalous’ unspent surplus of about half a billion euro in a State training fund. Latest figures show the projected underspend for the National Training Fund – an employers’ levy aimed at supporting the training of those in employment – this year will be almost €200 million …” (more)
[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 1 July]
“The Minister for Education and Skills Joe McHugh TD and the Minister of State for Training, Skills Innovation, Research and Development John Halligan TD today launched a new suite of courses under Springboard+ 2019. This brings the number of courses to 285 and the number of places available from this academic year to over 9,000 …” (more)
[Maura O’Shea, HEA, 15 May]
“CAO courses taken by thousands of school leavers every year are ‘losing their attractiveness’, a new paper warns as it calls for a makeover. The paper, ‘The Future of Undergraduate Technological Higher Education’, says if no remedial action is taken, ‘”it is not impossible that both qualifications will gradually disappear’ …” (more)
[Katherine Donnelly, Independent, 6 May]
“Trinity College Dublin has begun reaching out to the regions by offering its first course that will be taught in Cork, Limerick, and Galway as well as Dublin. The level nine postgraduate certificate in innovation and enterprise development will be marketed to job-seekers and aspiring entrepreneurs …” (more)
[Michael Cogley, Independent, 17 February]
“Focus on skills for the workplace of the future. The Minister for Education and Skills Joe McHugh TD together with the Minister of State at the Department of Education and Skills, John Halligan TD today issued a competitive call to all higher education providers for course proposals which will be funded under Springboard+ 2019 …” (more)
[Department of Education and Skills, 14 January]
“Thousands of free or discounted higher-education courses are being made available to workers seeking to upskill in areas where there are skills shortages such as the technology and biopharma sectors. The Springboard+ initiative has until recently been targeted at unemployed people to help them to re-enter the labour market …” (more)
[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 4 June]
“Thousands of free or heavily subsidised third level courses in areas where there are skills shortages are to be made available to people in employment for the first time. The Springboard+ initiative has until now been heavily targeted at unemployed people in need of upskilling to help them to re-enter the labour market …” (more)
[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 25 January]
“Hundreds of homemakers have signed up for free higher education courses as part of an initiative aimed at filling skills shortages. The Springboard+ scheme provides access to courses at certificate, degree and masters level in areas such as advanced manufacturing, business and entrepreneurship and ICT …” (more)
[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 31 October]
“The Minister for Education and Skills, Richard Bruton TD, together with the Minister of State at the Department of Education and Skills, John Halligan TD, launched over 6,400 new free education places under springboard+ 2017.The courses are targeted at jobseekers and those in employment or self-employment who wish to upskill, reskill or cross skill in the Biopharma/Med Tech and ICT sectors …” (more)
[Department of Education and Skills, 25 May]
“Free third-level courses are to be offered to homemakers for the first time to combat skills shortage in parts of the economy. Up until now, thousands of free third-level courses have been directed mainly at unemployed people in need of upskilling to allow them to re-enter the labour market …” (more)
[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 28 February]
“The Higher Education Authority (HEA) which manages Springboard+ on behalf of the Department of Education and Skills has issued a competitive Call to all Higher Education providers for course proposals which will be funded under Springboard+ 2017. Springboard+ forms part of the Action Plan for Education, our plan to make the Irish education and training system the best in Europe within a decade …” (more)
[Department of Education and Skills, 27 February]
“Government-backed training courses saw 80% of those who participants leave the live register over four years, a new report has found. Meanwhile, Skills Minister John Halligan hailed the number of women in Springboard+ linked technology training schemes …” (more)
[Cormac McQuinn, Independent, 29 December]
“The Government has announced more than 5,800 free higher education places for jobseekers. Almost 700 are part-time, two-year ICT Conversion Courses …” (more)
[BreakingNews.ie, 15 June]
“In advance of the CAO change of mind deadline on 1st July, the Minister for Skills, Research and Innovation, Damien English TD, encouraged students to consider a career in technology. Vacancies in the sector have increased by 89% since the start of 2011 …” (more)
[Department of Education and Skills, 22 June]
“Springboard+ 2015 is the largest offering of free part-time and full time higher education places to provide reskilling and upskilling opportunities for up to 9,000 jobseekers. Springboard+ 2015 which incorporates part-time Springboard courses and full-time ICT skills conversion programmes will provide for 285 courses at 42 higher education institutions across Ireland …” (more)
[Department of Education and Skills, 7 May]
“A government directive that prevents lecturers from being paid for extra teaching hours could jeopardise college courses for hundreds of Limerick jobseekers …” (more)
[Kathy Masterson, Limerick Post, 25 September]
