Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 28 February 2013
111. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will clarify that students who have previously completed a postgraduate course and who are now returning to college to undertake an undergraduate course (details supplied) in a new discipline are eligible for higher education grant funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10863/13]
View answerTo satisfy the terms and conditions of the student grant 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.
The objective of this policy is to help as many students as possible to obtain one qualification at each level of study. Given the level of demand on the student grant budget from first time students and students that are progressing with their studies to a higher level, there are no plans at present to change the arrangements in place.
In the scenario presented by the Deputy, a student who already holds a Masters qualification and intends to pursue a undergraduate degree at a lower level is not considered to be progressing and cannot be considered for funding, regardless of whether grant aid was made available to pursue the previous qualification.
However, tax relief at the standard rate of tax may be claimed in respect of tuition fees paid for approved courses at approved colleges of higher education including approved undergraduate and postgraduate courses in EU Member States and in non-EU countries. Further information on this tax relief is available from the Revenue Commissioners.
