The Union of Students in Ireland and the Higher Education Authority Working Group has recommended that students are more involved in the decision making processes in higher education. USI said that for appropriate developments and progress to be made in higher education students should be involved in the decision-making process because it affects them more than anyone else. The HEA has published a report today of the Working Group on Student Engagement in Higher Education. The Working Group was established by the HEA in 2014 to develop a set of principles to assist higher education institutions in enhancing […]
General: Last week USI held the Student Achievement Awards Ireland in Dublin Castle with loads of awards handed out to incredible student leaders. Tag yourself in the photos! USI have been nominated for 3 awards at the Social Media Awards Ireland for: Best Non-Profit/Organisation Twitter account, Best Business Twitter Campaign and Zero Budget Social Media Campaign. See the full list of nominations here: http://sockies.ie/2017-nominations/ USI President and Vice President for BMW Region attended the NUS Conference. Policy and Campaigns: This week the USI encouraged students to engage in a campaign to call for Ibrahim Hallawa’s release from imprisonment in Egypt. On […]
For the Government to rule out any possible introduction of an income contingent loan scheme and to reduce the Student Contribution Charge by a minimum of €250 and invest €1.26bn into higher education over the next decade. Budget 2018 can reduce the financial burden on families until the deliberation of the Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills has concluded. The Student Contribution Charge jumped from €1500 to €2000 in Budget 2011 and continued to increase in increments of €250 until it reached €3000 in 2015. A decrease in fee level would come at a relatively small cost to the state […]
Today sees the launch at University College Dublin Students’ Union, Waterford Institute of Technology Students Union, University College, Cork Students’ Union, St Angela’s College Sligo Students’ Union and Queen’s University Belfast Students’ Union of Ireland’s first LGBT ally campaign. [tabgroup] [/tabgroup] Who should I contact about the campaign? The USI Equality and Citizenship Officer for 2012-2013 is Laura Harmon. Laura can be contacted at laura.harmon@usi.ie for any questions on the […]
Mr Leo Varadkar T.D. Minister for Social Protection Department of Social Protection, Government Office Store Street, Dublin 1 9th August 2016 Dear Minister, We write with reference to the now well-publicised decision of your department to refuse the Back to Education Allowance (BTEA) to Erica Fleming, a homeless single parent who is currently raising her daughter in a hotel. As you know, education has a transformative quality. Education takes people out of poverty and dependence and gives them options in multiple fields of employment. Education quite literally changes lives. We are asking that Erica have the opportunity that […]
