Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 21 September 2023
110. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science what his plans are in relation to including graduate entry medicine within the free fees initiative; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40588/23]
View answerGraduate Entry Medicine (GEM) is one of the pathways to study undergraduate medicine. Graduate entry courses require applicants to hold a level 8 qualification prior to entry and completion of a graduate entry medicine degree confers a further level 8 qualification.
As the Deputy will be aware, the Free Fees Initiative (FFI) provides tuition fee funding for eligible first time undergraduate students and therefore students pursuing second level 8 degree courses, including graduate entry programmes, are not eligible for the FFI.
The total level of fees charged to graduate entry students is a matter for the higher education institutions, consistent with the principle of their institutional autonomy.
Development of a scheme or the adjustment of exiting schemes to provide for graduate entry medicine tuition fees would require a specific engagement with providers to agree terms and conditions, including funding arrangements and student numbers. In this regard it is not possible to estimate potential costs associated with introducing a specific scheme or amending the FFI to provide for free tuition fees for all graduate entry medicine students.
The Deputy may be aware that the State currently provides supports for broadening access to Graduate Entry Medicine (GEM) programmes through the part-subsidy of places for EU students, with the fees payable by the student determined by the higher education institution, taking the availability of this subsidy into account.My Department has been working to address the cost of GEM provision by increasing the subsidy paid to higher education institutions for provision of EU places. In this regard, Budget 2023 saw a significant increase in the amount the State pays for medicine places, including graduate entry. As part of this agreement:
• The State contribution for new GEM places is €14,500 for 2022/23; and
• For existing places, the State contribution towards GEM places is gradually being increased from a rate of €11,950 in the 2021/22 to the new rate of €14,500 over the coming years.
The fees payable by the student will continued to be determined by the institution attended.
