The student maintenance grant is the main source of financial help available from the Irish State for students in full-time higher education undergraduate, postgraduate and Post-Leaving Certificate (PLC) courses.
There are three main support schemes for students in third-level education:
- Higher Education Grants Scheme
- Vocational Education Committees' Scholarship Scheme
- Third Level Maintenance Grants Scheme for Trainees
There is a similar scheme for students in PLC courses - the Maintenance Grants Scheme for Students Attending Post-Leaving Certificate Courses.
Initially the online application facility for students, which also has a full Irish language version, is being used for 11 grant-awarding authorities. These authorities are:
- City of Cork Vocational Education Committee (VEC)
- County Cork VEC
- County Donegal VEC
- City of Dublin VEC
- County Dublin VEC
- County Kildare VEC
- County Louth VEC
- City of Limerick VEC
- City of Waterford VEC
- Dun Laoghaire VEC
- Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council
The new system will be rolled out to all grant awarding authorities over the coming months. It is also still possible to apply for a student maintenance grant in hardcopy.
The studenfinance.ie portal also provides information on course fees. Users can find out about other sources of assistance for students, such as the Fund for Students with Disabilities, the Back to Education Allowance and the Student Assistance Fund. They can also find answers to possible questions they may have by accessing the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) section. Lastly, the portal provides details and links to a range of other organisations and websites that may be of interest and/or assistance.
Further information:
- Original news article - Citizens Information website
- Additional information and grant application - studentfinance.ie
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Quelle/Source: epractice, 13.10.2010
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