Housing State to pay €40m to help DCU build over 400 ‘unviable’ student bedsThe strategy marks the first time the state has provided direct financial support in the construction of student accommodation amid surging inflation
Higher Education Universities warn taxpayer funding needed to plug gap left by ‘golden visa’ scheme Trinity College Dublin has taken in at least €17 million from wealthy overseas investors since 2018 to fund capital projects
Morning Headlines Donnelly wrote to HSE in summer on overcrowding; State pays more to build homes than EU neighboursThe stories you need to read this morning in business, politics and current affairs
Pensions Universities given €139m pensions bailout as retirees live longerEmergency injection of state funds was approved by the Dáil last month and brought the total contribution to university pensions funds up to €224m
Education Harris aims to halve third-level education feesMinister says he wants to increase income thresholds so more students can benefit from the proposed cuts and increase grants
Education State lifts €3.7m funding penalties on University of LimerickKerstin Mey, UL’s president, told staff in memo that the decision was a ‘clear signal that UL has turned a corner in terms of addressing historic governance shortcomings’
education Intellectual capital: Can the government afford to cut fees, increase grants and provide hundreds of millions more for third-level funding?The government admitted last week that the third-level sector was underfunded to the tune of €307 million a year, and promised to rectify this over the next three budgets. But where will the money come from?
Former chief operating officer takes High Court case against University of LimerickReport into dispute which relates to purchase of former Dunnes Stores site is held up by legal proceedings
Universities say state funding a ‘fraction’ of what’s required to tackle investment gapUniversities association says government’s funding plans have done little to address the underlying core funding deficit in the sector
State withheld capital grant from Limerick university amid concerns over €8m site purchaseDepartment paused payment of €2.5m grant to UL after it was heavily scrutinised for the acquisition of a former Dunnes Stores site in 2019
John Walsh: Universities will fail without the reintroduction of feesIt’s painfully obvious that if the current funding model doesn’t change, then third-level institutions will remain starved of investment
Covid-19: Colleges lay groundwork for safe return of students to campus lifeIreland’s approach to reopening third-level education on campus is reportedly in step with most other countries, and our high rate of vaccination is a reason for confidence
Ireland’s top two universities bought almost €50m of property in five yearsTwo new buildings for Trinity College Dublin accounted for the bulk of the spending since 2015
Government to pilot rapid Covid testing in colleges as part of its reopening plan Rapid antigen tests will be trialled in third-level settings as Leo Varadkar encourages businesses to consider them as part of their reopening plans
Trinity could survive without state funding, provost saysOutgoing head of college, which gets 40 per cent of its revenue from government, says independence and autonomy of universities must be maintained
Careers app free to students raises more than €1m in fundingExit Entry uses algorithms it has developed to match second and third-level students, and has partnered with IBM, Chartered Accountants Ireland and Eir
Comment: Seismic shift needed in the relationship between Irish universities and enterpriseIf third-level institutions focused more on the needs of their stakeholders, it could result in an innovation pipeline which works in both directions
