Results 34,761-34,780 of 46,522 for speaker:Simon Harris

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Accommodation (15 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: Under the Universities Act 1997, universities are autonomous with regard to their administrative and academic affairs. This includes in relation to their on-campus student accommodation. While UL does have student accommodation available for student with special needs, the eligibility criteria for this accommodation and how it is allocated are a matter for the university itself. UL...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Accommodation (15 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: The advice the Deputy refers to regarding visitor and student accommodation is from the "Implementation Guidelines for Public Health Measures in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs)" published on August 5th. This document was produced by public health exerts within the HEI sector and the recommendations in it were endorsed by the Health Protection Surveillance Centre of the HSE. The...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Support Schemes (15 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: As part of a package of COVID-19 supports for the higher and further education sectors, my Department has allocated €15 million to higher and further education providers for a once-off COVID-19 Grant to support disadvantaged students in accessing ICT devices. This initiative addresses concerns regarding the digital divide in the context of the shift to online and blended models...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Fees (15 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: In line with the Memorandum of Understanding on the Common Travel Area, which was signed by the Irish and UK Governments in 2019, I am committed to ensuring that students from Northern Ireland will continue to be treated on the same terms as an Irish student for fees purposes. The Common Travel Area will apply, notwithstanding of the outcome of the Brexit negotiations.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Support Schemes (15 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: As part of a package of COVID-19 supports for the higher and further education sectors, my Department has allocated €15 million to higher and further education providers for a once-off COVID-19 Grant to support disadvantaged students in accessing ICT devices.   This initiative addresses concerns regarding the digital divide in the context of the shift...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Projects (15 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: The Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science is not currently overseeing any individual Exchequer-funded project in excess of €1 billion.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Admissions (16 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: The CAO system is a system that works on the assumption that grades obtained in the Leaving Certificate by candidates determine their points. It is on this basis that the CAO system allocates places to applicants including those from different years. For the 2020 CAO system to proceed to pave the way for entry to higher education for the majority of applicants within the current...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Admissions (16 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: My Department does not collect figures on the number of students from Ireland who choose to pursue their third level studies abroad, and as such has no basis to make a prediction on the number of students choosing to do so this year. The number of students who accept CAO offers depends on a wide range of factors, such, and the full picture will not be known until all places are filled at...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Admissions (16 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: In order to help mitigate the impact of the changes to the grading system, I announced the creation of an additional 2,225 places on high-demand courses in Higher Education Institutions. These places have resulted in the highest ever number of applicants receiving a CAO offers, with 53,815 CAO applicants receiving round one offers on Friday. A summary of the additional places provided, by...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (17 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: To reply to Deputy Conway-Walsh's question, as the Deputy will know, on 5 August, a very detailed implementation advice regarding public health and the return to third level education was published. A huge amount of work has been undertaken by the sector, including by the Union of Students of Ireland, which sits on a group that meets every Friday that I attend also. It will meet again in...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme (17 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: Under the terms of the Student Grant Scheme, grant assistance is awarded to students attending an approved course in an approved institution who meet the prescribed conditions of funding, including those relating to nationality, residency, previous academic attainment and means. To satisfy the terms and conditions of the Student Grant Scheme in relation to progression, a student must be...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Admissions (17 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: In order to help mitigate the impact of the changes to the grading system, I announced the creation of an additional 2,225 places on high-demand courses in Higher Education Institutions. These places have resulted in the highest ever number of applicants receiving a CAO offers, with 53,815 CAO applicants receiving round one offers on Friday. It is not envisaged that any places further to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Institutions (17 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: Statistics of this nature have not historically been collected on a systematic basis from the higher education sector. However, in 2019 information was collected which highlighted the following data in respect of 19 institutions, where information was available.  The specific actions adjudged necessary and taken as a result of any such incident are matters...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Admissions (17 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: The CAO is a company established by Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to process applications for undergraduate, and some postgraduate, courses on their behalf.  Decisions on admissions are made by the HEIs who then instruct the CAO to make offers to successful candidates. Therefore application and offer data is held by the CAO, not by my Department, and the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (17 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I would like to thank USI for it's submission and outlining student priorities. The recommendations outlined in the submission along with other relevant submissions received in advance of budget 2021 are being considered as part of the overall budgetary discussions on higher education provision for 2021. To date significant progress has been made in increasing investment in Higher...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Ministerial Briefing (17 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: My Department provided a briefing document to me on my appointment as Minister.  In line with established practise, the document will be published on the Department's website shortly.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Admissions (22 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 599 and 611 together. The CAO system is a system that works on the assumption that grades obtained in the Leaving Certificate by candidates determine their points. It is on this basis that the CAO system allocates places to applicants including those from different years. To ensure impartiality, the automatic CAO points systems have been created in a way that...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme (22 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: It is not possible to definitively calculate the cost of the various adjustments that have been made to the student support system since 2008, particularly in light of the demographic changes that have taken place. To put it in context, in 2008/09 there were 57,261 students who benefitted from grant support at a cost of €264m, whereas in 2019/20 there were over 71,000 students in...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (22 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: The CAO is a company established by Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to process applications for undergraduate, and some postgraduate, courses on their behalf. Decisions on admissions are made by the HEIs who then instruct the CAO to make offers to successful candidates. Therefore application and offer data is held by the CAO, not by my Department. According to data released by the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Support Schemes (22 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: The HEAR and DARE schemes are operated by the Irish Universities Association (IUA) who set the policy criteria for the schemes. Admissions under the schemes are regulated by the higher education institutions themselves. Each institution determines its own admissions policy in relation to the schemes, the number of places they reserve and the allocation of those places. Applications to both...