Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 April 2026
909. Deputy Jen Cummins asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the assessment that has been carried out on the likely impact of ending the Postgraduate Scholarship Programme on PhD stipend levels across higher education institutions; and whether he is concerned that the removal of this benchmark may lead to downward pressure on PhD stipends. [28090/26]
Amharc ar fhreagra910. Deputy Jen Cummins asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he has considered the impact of the proposed funding changes on the working conditions and employment status of PhD researchers; and his plans to introduce employment rights or worker status for PhD candidates. [28091/26]
Amharc ar fhreagra911. Deputy Jen Cummins asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the status of the 2023 review recommendation to increase PhD stipends to €25,000; and the way in which this recommendation will be upheld in the absence of the existing scholarship programme. [28092/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 909, 910 and 911 together.
Research Ireland currently supports around 3,800 of the estimated 10,000 PhD students across public research bodies, through the Government of Ireland Scholarship Programme, Centres for Research Training, large scale Research Centres and initiatives such as the Investigator and Pathway programmes.
PhD students supported by Research Ireland currently receive a stipend of €25,000 per annum.
I wish to be clear that there are no plans to reduce this funding level for PhD students, nor to reduce the number of individual PhD students in receipt of supports.
Research Ireland recently published its first strategy, and one of its key actions is to review and improve existing PhD-funding programmes, in partnership with Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and the research community. The goal is to develop an enhanced suite of PhD programmes with the ambition to make Ireland the leading location in Europe for PhD training.
As such, I understand that Research Ireland have been engaging with individual researchers, HEI Research and Innovation leadership, and wider stakeholders on possible changes to the current model in operation with regard to the Government of Ireland Programme with the intention of improving programme design and delivery, and the impact of this funding.
These proposed changes are aligned with commitments to the research community to increase stability and predictability through annual and regular calls, and to streamline and simplify the agency's programme offering.
This improvement to programme design and delivery further complements the work of my Department in recent years to secure a substantial increase to the Research Ireland PhD stipend level, from an historic baseline of €16,000 to €25,000, representing an increase of over 50%.
