The Higher Education Authority administers two programmes on behalf of my Department which involve support for post-graduate students.
Under the programme for research at third level the support for postgraduate students ranges from £7,000 to £12,000 per annum and clusters around £8,000. In seeking funding under this programme institutions have the freedom to seek allocations at the level they consider appropriate.
The council for the humanities and social sciences awards Government of Ireland scholarships of £8,000 per annum to post-graduate students in the humanities and social sciences.
In the institute of technology sector, supports for post-graduate research programmes vary between approximately £4,200 and £7,000.
My Department has not conducted an assess ment on how this level of funding compares with such funding in other countries.
I would also mention that postgraduate students can apply for fee and maintenance grant awards under the terms of the higher education grants scheme and the vocational education committees scholarships scheme.