Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 18 April 2023
620. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Education the funding that will be in place for the 2023/2024 academic year for bursaries for the education of trainee educational psychologists who have already commenced their training in the present academic year; if these bursaries are conditional on successful applicants working for NEPS for three years after qualification; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18331/23]
View answerAs the Deputy may be aware, a working group in the Department has been examining the matter of how the National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) can continue to recruit adequate numbers of suitably qualified staff and continue to respond to the educational psychological needs of children in recognised primary and post-primary schools across the country.
The Department of Education introduced, as part of an immediate short-term measure, a bursary to support Trainee Educational Psychologists currently in their third year (or third year equivalent) of professional training in University College Dublin (UCD) and Mary Immaculate College (MIC), who expect to graduate in 2023.
The working group referred to above has also been asked to make some interim recommendations in Q2 of this year regarding any other short-term measures required in advance of their final report. Funding supports for students on the educational psychological doctorate programme will be considered as part of this process.
