The third level student support schemes, administered by the local authorities and vocational education committees on behalf of my Department, provide that where grant holders, as part of their approved course, are required to attend foreign universities for a period of up to one year, a maintenance grant may continue to be paid where the period abroad does not affect the normal duration of the approved course. In these situations, the higher non-adjacent rate of maintenance grant is payable for the duration of the grant holder's study abroad. If he has not already done so, the student in question should contact the relevant local authority, Dublin City Council, in order that his eligibility for a maintenance grant might be determined.
Under the EU Socrates Programme, an ERASMUS measure provides for the awarding of student mobility grants to students as a contribution to cover certain costs — travel, language preparation and differences in the cost of living — incurred while carrying out a three to 12-month period of recognised study abroad. Further details on these grants, and the conditions attaching thereto, can be obtained from the office dealing with international programmes in Trinity College Dublin.