Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 21 September 2023
95. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if, in view of the particular cost-of-living pressures at present, he will ensure that additional financial support will be provided to reduce undergraduate student contribution fees for this academic year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40698/23]
View answerUnder the Free Fees Initiative the State provides funding toward the tuition fees of eligible undergraduate higher education students. All students eligible for the scheme receive State support whereby the State pays the cost of tuition fees exclusive of the student contribution. In academic year 2022/23 over 141,000 students benefited from the scheme.
The aforementioned student contribution applies annually to all free fees eligible students and the current rate is €3,000 per annum. It is important to note that the State pays the student contribution, in full or part, on behalf of students who qualify under the student grant scheme (aka the SUSI grant). In 2022/23 almost 54,000 students, or approximately 38% of free fees eligible students, had all or part of their student contribution paid on their behalf through student support grants. The costs of these recurring tuition fee and student contribution grant supports are now well in excess of half a billion euro per academic year.
In 2022/23, as part of the cost of living measures agreed by Government, a once off reduction of €1,000 in the student contribution payable by free fees eligible students was applied. While this was a once off measure I have been clear that I want to see the student's contribution towards tuition fees in higher education reduce in a meaningful way through the Estimates process. In this regard, as part of Budget 2023, I was pleased to secure Government agreement to the introduction of a permanent new rate of student contribution support, through SUSI, from September 2023.
This new support is now available for students whose families have reckonable earnings between €62,000 and €100,000. It is estimated that up to 42,000 students may be eligible for this support grant of €500. I would encourage students to apply for this support for the current academic year.
I also increased the income limit for students to avail of the 50% student contribution grant which may benefit up to 8,000 students. Information on the new €500 student contribution grant and other student supports are available on www.susi.ie.
As I look to the next Budget, I am conscious of the financial challenges facing students and the need for the continued progressive implementation of measures to address cost as a barrier to education. During August, in advance of Budget 2024, I published an options paper setting out various possible measures to address the cost of education. The various options set out in this paper will inform the deliberations regarding cost of education measures in Budget 2024.
