April Northern Ireland and Great Britain Students Retain EU Status at NUI Galway

Fees for Postgraduate Courses to Remain at EU levels for current and incoming students 

NUI Galway today announced that students from Northern Ireland and Great Britain who enrol for postgraduate taught courses for the 2019/2020 academic year will be treated in the same manner as EU citizens for the duration of their course regardless of the nature of Brexit. UK students enrolling on a full-time taught postgraduate course in 2019 will also be considered eligible for the Taught Masters Scholarship Scheme, a scholarship valued at €1,500 awarded to EU students presenting a first-class honours (or equivalent) in a Level 8 primary degree.  

The University is keen to address student concerns amid continuing uncertainty around the nature of Brexit. NUI Galway will adopt this approach in 2019 so that all students treated as EU, once in the system, will continue to be so treated for the full duration of their studies. The University is also working with the rest of the system to try to ensure a common approach for students coming in from 2020 onwards.

Speaking on the matter, NUI Galway Registrar and Deputy President, Professor Pól Ó Dochartaigh, said: “As our University campuses span the west of Ireland and include the border region in Donegal, we are extremely mindful of the impact of Brexit on this island. We are committed to playing our part to equip students and researchers with the tools needed to understand and address issues emerging from this rupture to the EU block, as the European project faces its biggest challenge in a generation. 

“As an increasingly uncertain process continues, our Northern Irish and Great Britain students will at least have certainty on their educational status, and we look forward to supporting them in engaging with this new European landscape in the coming years. We would encourage students both in the North and in Great Britain to look to NUI Galway to pursue the next stage of their education. For many Northerners in particular, who might currently be studying in Great Britain, this is the perfect opportunity to come back to Ireland for postgraduate study.” 

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