Student Part-Time Fee Scheme for Specified Undergraduate Courses 2024 - Information Q & A

Minister for Further & Higher Education, Research, Innovation & Science Patrick O’Donovan T.D. is today announcing details of a new part-time fee scheme for specified undergraduate courses.

This is the first time any grant is being provided for part-time education under the Student Support Act 2011.

The scheme will provide fee support to eligible part-time students attending specified undergraduate courses leading to a major award with a minimum average of 30 credits and maximum of 50 credits per academic year.

The National Access Plan to Higher Education highlighted fees as a barrier to education for priority groups, namely students who are socio-economically disadvantaged, students who are members of the Traveller & Roma Communities and students with a disability.

The part-time fee scheme has been developed to provide support for more flexible forms of learning to students attending specified undergraduate course who are considered underrepresented in Higher Education, in particular students who are socio-economically disadvantaged.

This new initiative aims to open access to higher education to many underrepresented groups who may not be in a position to participate in full-time programmes, such as students from low-income families, lone parents, teen parents, widows and carers.

A full list of eligible courses and the institutions providing them will be published in the Regulations (Student Part-Time Fee Regulations for Specified Undergraduate Courses 2024). These are listed at the end of this document for ease of reference.

SUSI will open for applications for the new Part-Time Scheme on the 1st of August 2024. Students should apply via the SUSI website www.susi.ie.

• Eligibility will be subject to meeting all criteria of the Student Part-Time Fee Scheme for Specified Undergraduate Courses 2024. These include:
• An applicant must be attending one of the approved part-time courses listed in the Student Part-Time Fee Regulations for Specified Undergraduate Courses 2024.

Eligibility will be subject to meeting nationality, progression and residency criteria, similar to the existing Student Grant Scheme. A maximum period of grant assistance is available to students at each level of study.

• This Scheme is means tested and a student’s total reckonable household income must fall below specific income thresholds. The threshold for the 2024/25 academic year is €55,924. Similar to the current Student Grant Scheme, there are many types of income which are disregarded when calculating reckonable income, for example: - Disability Allowance where paid to the Applicant, Working Family Payment/Family Income Support, Carers Allowance, Child Benefit & Housing Assistance Payment. Students should apply to SUSI to confirm whether they are eligible.

The maximum overall limits for a part-time undergraduate fee contribution for the 2024/25 academic year are set out in Schedule 2 of the Scheme, as per the table below:

It is not intended that there will be any expansion to the current course list for 2024/25. However, there may be opportunities for new courses to be included for the 2025/26 academic year.

No. The Student Support Act 2011 only allows part-time support to be provided for undergraduate courses.

If a student has already started an approved part-time course, will they be able to apply for fee support or is it limited to new entrants?

Students on any year of one of the approved part-time courses can apply, subject to meeting all other eligibility criteria.

At present, the scheme is limited to in-person courses and blended/hybrid courses which have an element of meaningful attendance beyond for the purposes of registration or enrolment or any examination. An expansion to fully online courses may be considered in the future.

This scheme is limited to fee support only. Eligible students will receive a contribution towards their fees based on credits in the academic year.

The Student Assistance Fund provides financial support to full-time or part-time students who are experiencing financial difficulties while attending college. Students experiencing financial hardship can apply for the Student Assistance Fund to help with either temporary or ongoing financial difficulties.

The Department of Social Protection provides income support through a range of various schemes, many of which have no restrictions on taking up education. In the case of jobseeker’s payments, a person may retain their income support when participating in part-time education where a person continues to satisfy the conditions of the Department of Social Protection’s scheme. A person in receipt of a jobseeker’s payment is advised to engage with their local Intreo Centre if they plan to take up one of these part-time courses.

Below is the full list of approved courses as contained in the Student Part-Time Fee Regulations for Specified Undergraduate Courses 2024.

University of Galway

Technological University Shannon

Technological University Dublin

South - East Technological University

Munster Technological University

Dundalk Institute of Technology

Atlantic Technological University

For more information on any of these courses, students should contact the college in question directly.

The Student Part-Time Fee Scheme and Regulations for Specified Undergraduate Courses 2024 can both be found on www.irishstatutebook.ie at the following links:

Scheme

Regulations