Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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Question 499: To ask the Minister for Education and Science further to Parliamentary Question No. 172 of 11 October 2006, if a decision has been made; if a grant will be awarded to a person (details supplied) in County Louth; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36698/06]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The matter referred to by the Deputy is currently under review by officials in my Department and they expect shortly to be in contact with the awarding body in this case.

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick East, Labour)
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Question 500: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if she will give a considered reply to a request that she re-examine a decision to refuse a higher education grant to a person (details supplied) in County Limerick; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36699/06]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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Under the terms of the Department's maintenance grants schemes, and in accordance with the Local Authorities (Higher Education Grants) Act 1992, a mature student is defined as a candidate who is at least 23 years of age on the 1st January of the year of entry or re-entry to an approved course.

Under the terms of my Department's 2005 Third Level Student Maintenance Grant Schemes the position is that, generally speaking, students who are entering approved courses for the first time are eligible for grants where they satisfy the prescribed conditions with regard to age, residence, means, nationality and previous academic attainment. A mature student is defined for the purposes of the schemes as a candidate who is at least 23 years of age on the 1st January of the year of entry or re-entry to an approved course.

Mature students are categorised as either independent mature students or mature students dependent on parents or guardians. An independent mature student is defined as meaning a mature student who was not ordinarily resident at home with his/her parents or guardians from the October preceding their entry to an approved course. Independent mature students are assessed without reference to either their parents' or guardians' income or address.

When assessing the means of students other than independent mature students, the means test provision of the scheme specifies that the students' means and those of their parents or guardians must be below a prescribed limit. This provision requires that parental income be taken into account irrespective of the individual circumstances in any case where the student is not an independent mature student.

Generally speaking, candidates continue to be assessed under the terms and conditions of the Scheme appropriate to their year of entry. Accordingly, candidates who where not classified as Independent Mature Students at the time of entry, or re-entry, to an approved course may not generally be assessed as such for the duration of their course.

When the candidate in question commenced her Taught Graduate Diploma in Advanced Materials in 2004/05 academic year she was re-entering the third level education system under the 2004 grant scheme. As the candidate did not have a break in study between that course and the Research Masters, commenced in 2005/06 academic year, she continues to be assessed under the conditions of the 2004 Scheme. As the candidate did not qualify to be assessed as an Independent Mature Student under the 2004 Scheme her status will not change for the 2005/06 academic year.