Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Will the Minister tell Members what is his estimate of the likely annual cost for a person to transfer from a job in STEM and to retrain as a teacher for primary or secondary education? How many years is that likely to take? How long must the person wait to get on a course? At the moment the indicative cost of postgraduate courses, I understand, is €5,000 to €6,000 a year. Can the Minister confirm that? Can he suggest how people are meant to give up well-paying jobs in STEM to follow a career in teaching that they really want to go into? These people are desperately needed. In fact, a significant element of our whole economy in regard to IT could hit the rocks if we do not have enough people qualified in this area.

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