Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The City of Dublin VEC commissioned an external review of Student Universal Support Ireland, SUSI, to identify the causes of the processing difficulties experienced in 2012 and to set out a specific programme of action to address them. The review contains a series of recommendations, many of which are already being implemented by SUSI. In line with these recommendations and in preparation for the 2013-14 academic year, both the online application system and the application assessment process are being further developed to enhance their effectiveness to deal with the difficulties experienced in year one.

A number of new initiatives will make the application process more efficient this year, including the following: information sharing between SUSI and Government agencies such as the Revenue Commissioners, the Department of Social Protection, the General Register Office and the Central Applications Office. These links should significantly reduce the number of documents required from applicants themselves, and it was the requirement of this set of documents that caused part of the problem.

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