Vol. 554 No. 5
641 Mr. O'Shea asked the Minister for Education and Science his proposals to provide grants for students pursuing the foundation course for mature students at Waterford Institute of Technology; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16514/02]
A one-year access foundation course is not an approved course for the purpose of considering eligibility under my Department's maintenance grants schemes.
The report of the action group on access to third level education, which was launched in July 2001, however, recommended that the scope of the schemes of maintenance grants and of the free fees initiative should be extended to validated access courses. Implementation of this recommendation is a matter for consideration in the light of available financial resources.
