Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 16 April 2013
419. Deputy Ciarán Lynch asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will review the circumstances of a Student Universal Support Ireland grant in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Cork; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16619/13]
View answerOfficials in my Department have confirmed with Student Universal Support Ireland that the student referred to by the Deputy has had his application reviewed and a revised award letter issued on 6th December 2012.
The Deputy will appreciate that in the context of Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI) having received in excess of 69,000 applications that some errors may inevitably arise when handling a high volume of applications within a relatively short timeframe. While every effort is made by SUSI to ensure that applicants are processed correctly, SUSI accepts that, following its quality assurance procedures, it emerged that this applicant received an incorrect letter and it regrets any inconvenience caused.
Maintenance support is not available for students entering postgraduate courses in the academic year 2012/13. Students entering approved postgraduate courses who meet the qualifying conditions for the special rate of grant will be eligible to have their post-graduate tuition fees paid up to the maximum fee limit under the Student Grant Scheme.
If an individual applicant considers that she/he has been unjustly refused a student grant, she/he may appeal, in the first instance, to SUSI. Where an individual applicant has had an appeal turned down in writing by SUSI and remains of the view that the scheme has not been interpreted correctly in his/her case, an appeal form outlining the position may be submitted by the applicant to the independent Student Grant Appeals Board. The relevant appeal form will be available on request from SUSI.
