Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 57: To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the financial supports available to postgraduate students for the academic year 2012-13; the way financial supports can be accessed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13049/12]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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The Deputy will be aware that, in the context of the necessary but difficult expenditure reduction measures announced in Budget 2012, new students entering postgraduate courses from the 2012/13 academic year onwards will not be entitled to maintenance payments under the Student Grant Scheme. However, those students who meet the qualifying conditions for the special rate of grant will be eligible to have their post-graduate tuition fees paid up to the maximum fee limit under the Student Grant Scheme.

Existing postgraduate students will not be affected. In addition, a further limited number of students who would previously have qualified under the standard grant thresholds will qualify to have a €2,000 contribution made towards the costs of their fees. My Department estimates that this will help an additional 4,000 postgraduate students. There will be a new income threshold for this payment which will be lower than the standard grant threshold. The income threshold for this level of grant is currently being determined in the context of the formulation of the student grant scheme for the 2012/13 academic year.

In access terms, the requirement to pay a fee is considered to be a greater obstacle to entry than lack of maintenance support at postgraduate level. This is why I opted to maintain the fee-payment ahead of maintenance payments for postgraduate students. My priority as Minister for Education and Skills is to preserve access to undergraduate higher education courses despite the difficult circumstances in our public finances. As a result, no changes were made to the eligibility criteria for undergraduate students in the recent Budget. It is also worth emphasising that 41% of all undergraduate students currently receive a grant and pay no student contributions.

In relation to the way that these financial supports may be accessed, all new student grant applications from the 2012/13 academic year onwards will be dealt with by the new single grant awarding authority, Student Universal Support Ireland (a division of City of Dublin VEC). Students will be able to access the online application facility through www.studentfinance.ie to have their eligibility for a grant assessed. In the case of the renewal of applications for existing grant-holders, students should continue to apply to their local authority or Vocational Education Committee in the area where they live.

In addition to the above means-tested supports, this year my Department is providing some €38 million to support research activities across a range of programmes, including schemes managed by the Irish Research Council for Humanities and Social Sciences (IRCHSS) and the Irish Research Council for Science, Engineering and Technology (IRCSET). These schemes specifically focus on providing funding support to postgraduate students and early-career post doctoral fellows. It is anticipated that the Councils will make over 300 new postgraduate awards this year, which is an increase on the previous year. These awards include funding for tuition fees and an annual stipend of €16,000. Funding is also available from other research funding agencies, including Science Foundation Ireland. Additionally, places are being made available free-of-charge on postgraduate courses across the country to unemployed people under my Department's Springboard initiative.

The Student Assistance Fund will continue to be made available through the access offices of third-level institutions to assist students in exceptional financial need. Tax relief is also available on postgraduate tuition fees.