Written answers

Wednesday, 16 November 2011

Department of Education and Skills

Higher Education Grants

9:00 pm

Photo of Mary Lou McDonaldMary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 47: To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the date on which he intends to forward funding to local authority higher education grant departments to enable the latter to pay out awarded student contribution fees to universities. [34857/11]

Photo of Ruairi QuinnRuairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Advance funding issued to grant awarding authorities in September of this year to enable the timely payment of student grants/student contributions and fees. Further funding will be made available, where needed, on foot of returns due from the grant awarding authorities later this month.

Photo of Pearse DohertyPearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)
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Question 49: To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the rationale underlying the residency eligibility criteria for third level grant schemes as contained in section 4.1.1 of the higher education grants scheme; his views that the current criteria unfairly exclude returning Irish migrants from taking up valuable educational opportunities in the State that will enhance their employability; if there is any impediment in national or European law to amending the existing criteria to enable provision for returning Irish migrants who do not meet the criteria from accessing grant aid to engage in higher education; if he will introduce the necessary amendments in the eligibility criteria of the higher education grants scheme to achieve this; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34853/11]

Photo of Ruairi QuinnRuairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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The issue to which the Deputy refers relates to the change in the residence requirement in the student grant schemes for the 2010/11 academic year. From the start of that academic year, the residence requirement to be met by a student in order to qualify for the maintenance grant was changed from a one-year requirement to have been living in the State directly prior to attending college, to a more flexible requirement of three out of the previous five years for the student.

I understand that the main purpose of the change was to ensure that persons applying for grants would have more established links with and integration into the State and, in many instances that the change provides greater flexibility for students who may be returning from abroad.

The residence requirement must be met by the student himself or herself in all cases and is no longer linked to the residence of the parent or legal guardian of the student. Save where a student has been studying abroad, there are no exceptions made for particular groups – the requirement is applied equally to all.

In addition to the increased flexibility introduced by allowing residence to be counted over the five years prior to entering college, a student may now also meet the residence requirement during the course of their studies in order to qualify for a grant. In the past, if a student did not meet the residence requirement on entry to a course, this could not be reassessed even if the requirement could subsequently be met during the course of their studies.

Now, all students are treated equally with regard to meeting the residence requirement. All students have greater flexibility in meeting the "three out of five" years requirement. And, even students who fail to meet the "three out of five" years at initial registration can now reapply in the course of their studies once they have met the residence requirement.

While I am not aware of any impediment to changing this arrangement, I have no plans to do so at present.

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