“Northern Ireland’s outstanding student debt stands at almost £3.3bn. The total tuition fee and maintenance loan debt has risen 10% since last year when it stood at just under £3bn. Only about one in six people in Northern Ireland have fully repaid their student loans …” (more)
[Robbie Meredith, BBC News, 15 June]
“The Danish parliament is considering challenging a ruling of the European Court of Justice which states that students that work in Denmark should be eligible to receive Danish student funding. The EU has refused to help the Danish government claim back the unpaid student loans of other EU member states’ citizens …” (more)
[Ekatherina Gillen. University Observer, 4 February]
“Sir, – It is not well known that approximately one-third of Irish medical graduates now are self-funded via the graduate medicine entry scheme, which was enacted over 10 years ago to increase the number of medical graduates in response to an anticipated shortage …” (more)
[Erica Maguire, Irish Times, 28 November]
“Irish universities are facing an added financial challenge due to unpaid fees, fines and student charges, records show. More than €560,000 is owed to the State’s seven universities and DIT, Ireland’s largest institute of technology, in library rental and late return fees alone, according to documents obtained by The Irish Times …” (more)
[Ciarán D’Arcy, Irish Times, 12 January]
“I represent 17,000 students in Trinity this year in our students union. There are moments when you witness how difficult it can be to be a student in Ireland …” (more)
[Kieran McNulty, Irish Times, 26 October]
“Governments usually, and often quite correctly, come in for severe stick for lack of joined up thinking. In that regard it is quite pleasant to see the initiative from the Department of Social Protection on moneylenders …” (more)
[Brian M Lucey, 1 August]
“The Government is considering plans for a student-loan scheme – with graduates facing debts of up to €20,000. So, who should pay for college? …” (more)
[Kim Bielenberg, Independent, 17 July]
“Meeting repayments on the new student loan proposal would probably not push most graduates into destitution. But it could make life much tougher for many, particularly those with other debt, at the very start of their careers …” (more)
[Anne-Marie Walsh, Independent, 12 July]
“Students who have studied at Northern Ireland’s universities owe £2.7bn in tuition fee and maintenance loan debt. The 2015/16 total, calculated by the Student Loans Company (SLC), shows an 11% rise from the 2014/15 figure of £2.5bn …” (more)
[Robbie Meredith, BBC News, 7 July]
“Thousands of low-income college students who attend private colleges are running up major debts because they are not eligible for grants, campaigners have warned. While grants are available for eligible students in State-funded third-level institutions, no such support is available to those in so-called independent colleges …” (more)
[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 19 February]
“Over €5.2m is owed to the University of Limerick from more than 2,000 students in unpaid fees which have been accumulating for a number of years, writes Anne Sheridan. Of all the Irish universities, UL has the highest amount of fees owed – €5,214,947 – with some of this described as historic debt …” (more)
[Limerick Leader, 3 December]
“Universities across the country are owed more than €17m as students struggle to pay increased tuition fees. Seven of the country’s main universities are struggling to collect student fees and, combined, are in debt to the tune of €17,028,490 …” (more)
[Martin Grant, Independent 28 December]
“The general election result will mean a wider gulf between ‘top’ universities and the rest, and an end to widening participation. The trouble with the Conservative victory in the election is not only that we are stuck with a system of funding higher education that will burden graduates with debt …” (more)
[Peter Scott, Guardian, 1 June]
“Sir, – Felim Burke (March 23rd) raises an excellent and sadly oft-ignored point about the plight of graduate-entry medical students in Ireland. As a non-consultant hospital doctor who currently owes over €100,000 to the bank for the funding of my medical education …” (more)
[Erica Coughlan, Irish Times, 25 March]
“Irish medical students are facing a debt crisis which is contributing to the exodus of trained doctors from the State, according to a new study. Graduate students of medicine are taking out loans of up to €100,000 to finance their studies …” (more)
[Paul Cullen, Irish Times, 10 June]
“Students might be forgiven for resorting to binge-drinking as they are amassing an average £40,000 worth of debt …” (more)
[Nat Rutherford, Guardian, 28 May]
“Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: it’s unfair that some people graduate with debt, and others don’t. The ones that do tend to have started off poorer to begin with. And so instead of being a means of social mobility, tuition ends up being a means of perpetuating it …” (more)
[Alex Usher, HESA, 26 May]
“Debt collectors hired on behalf of NUI Galway to recover unpaid fees should be sensitive when dealing with people who are financially under pressure, student leaders have warned …” (more)
[Dara Bradley, Connacht Sentinel, 15 April]
“The country’s biggest university is using a debt collection agency to recoup outstanding fees that could amount to nearly €1m, the Sunday Independent has learnt …” (more)
[Sam Griffin, Independent, 16 March]
“Dozens of third-level students saddled with thousands of euros of debt are unable to graduate every year …” (more)
[Fiona Ellis, Independent, 28 December]
