Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 13 May 2026
268. Deputy Naoise Ó Muirí asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science whether he will consider exempting applicants for a Professional Master of Education from SUSI eligibility criteria that require applicants to be progressing to a higher level of qualification than they already hold, in light of the significant demand for teachers across Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35586/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Student Grant Scheme, which is administered by Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI), provides fee and maintenance grants to all students who meet the qualifying criteria such as means, residency, nationality and progression. The decision on eligibility for a student grant is a matter, in the first instance, for SUSI to determine.
To satisfy the terms and conditions of the scheme in relation to progression, a student must be moving from year to year within a course, having successfully completed the previous year or be transferring from one course to another where the award for the subsequent course is of a higher level than the previous course.
Generally speaking, a grant will not be paid to a student for a repeat period of study on the same course, or for a different course at the same level, irrespective of whether or not a grant was paid previously. The objective of this policy is to help as many students as possible to obtain one qualification at each level of study and there are no current plans to make an exception to this long-standing principle of the Scheme.
Students undertaking a Professional Master of Education (PMEs) may apply for SUSI and may be eligible for the following supports:
• A student maintenance grant which was restored for postgraduate students in September 2024 for the first time since the financial crash. The annual rates and the income thresholds for maintenance grants are the same for undergraduate and postgraduate students.
• A postgraduate fee contribution of €4,500 or a postgraduate fee grant, up to a maximum of €6,270 towards the cost of fees is available.
• To be eligible for the postgraduate fee contribution grant of up to €4,500 plus a maintenance grant, the total household income must be within the [income thresholds].
• To be eligible for the postgraduate fee grant up to a maximum of €6,270, the student must be eligible for a maintenance grant at the special rate.
This is dependent on the level of a student's reckonable income and meeting all other eligibility criteria including progression.
In Budget 2026 I was very pleased to increase the Post Graduate Fee Contribution Grant by €500 from €4,000 to €4,500. In addition to this, I have increased to all non-adjacent maintenance grant rates effective from September 2026 - with a pro-rata benefit for students this academic year. This benefits Postgraduate Students, Undergraduate and PLC students whose normal residence is 30km or more from their institution.
