Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 20 May 2021
78. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the work carried out by his Department to date to increase access for students with disabilities to postgraduate courses. [27380/21]
View answerInclusion is one of the core strategic goals for my Department, and my ambition is to ensure that we provide supports and opportunities for learning to all, recognising the needs of vulnerable learners and the most marginalised, and to assist people in access to and progression through higher and further education and training.
Considerable progress has been made in recent years in meeting the targets for students with a disability as a percentage of new entrants to higher education. The target of 8% that was originally set for the lifetime of the National Plan was exceeded by 2018 and a new target of 12% set for 2021. The latest data shows the percentage of full-time new entrants in higher education with a disability is 12.3% in 2019/2020.
A range of access supports and initiatives are critical to supporting progression to postgraduate study for students with a disability.
The Programme for Access to Higher Education (PATH) is a fund operating under the National Access Plan which supports students from targets groups including students with a disability. PATH 1 is supporting progression to the Postgraduate Masters in Education for students wishing to enter the teaching profession. PATH 2 1916 Bursary Fund support students with a disability who are the most socio-economically disadvantaged. Bursary holders who successfully complete an undergraduate course can renew their bursary for postgraduate studies for a maximum of 4 years. I secured an additional €1m in Budget 2021 to support the provision of postgraduate bursaries under the fund. Approximately 150 of 600 bursary awardees in the first three year since 2017 were students with a disability.
The Fund Students with Disabilities provides funding to further and higher education institutions to assist them in offering supports and services to eligible students with disabilities so that they can access, fully participate in and successfully complete their chosen course of study, including at postgraduate level. A total of 987 students in 2019/20 academic year were supported at Level 9 and Level 10. This was up from 818 in 2018/19.
I have put in place additional supports for postgraduate study and research, which are relevant to students with disabilities. As part of Budget 2021, I announced enhanced postgraduate supports and an increase in the postgraduate research awards stipend which will increase from €16,000 to €18,500 for 2021.
We have made significant progress in supporting students with a disability, but I want to maintain a high level of ambition, and this will be reflected in the next National Access Plan, which is currently being developed.
