Ireland in the last six years has been receiving a lot more Indian students than it used to. As a result of the outreach programmes all over the globe by Education in Ireland (EII) national brand under the Ministry for Education and Skills, the country has witnessed an exponential hike in the number of international students.
Senior Education Advisor of EII, Barry O'Driscoll who was in Bengaluru for a pre-departure briefing, held for students who would soon be in Ireland for their higher education, told The Hindu the brighter aspects of considering Ireland as a study option. “About 300 students and parents will be here tomorrow to get information regarding the visa process, accommodation options, procedure for opening a bank account, residency card etc. Ireland has seen quite a number of committed students from this city in the past,” remarks Barry, who had just returned from a briefing session in Delhi.
Currently, Ireland receives about 5000 students every year out of which 90 percent of them apply for master’s degree. “The advantage of doing a master’s in Ireland is that the postgraduates will get a two-year stay-back option. This is a rare opportunity as this period provides ample time for postgraduates to look for jobs in Ireland and other European countries,” he informs. “Graduates too will get a year to stay back after their bachelor’s,” adds Education Advisor of EII, Wendy D’souza who had accompanied Barry.
Popular streams that are attractive to Indian students mainly fall under Engineering, Computing and Business. “As the best part of Ireland is its Universities’ engagement with the industry, there are high chances of students getting absorbed in one of the 1000 companies which have their operations in Ireland,” says Barry. “Not to forget Galway city, a hub for pharma companies,” mentions Wendy, adding that there are plenty of courses and research centres that are working in the specialised fields of biology and medicine such as Biotechnology, Food Science, Immunology, Microbiology, Neuroscience, Agricultural Sciences and the like.
Totally there are about eight Universities across the country with 14 institutions offering programmes in Information and Technology and four specialised colleges offering degrees in their respective fields -- Hotel Management, Art and Design etc.
The criteria for admission is students’ score in their class 12/ degree along with an Internationally accepted English qualification test. “Students get scholarships up to 50 percent based on merit,” informs Barry.
To Indian parents, he notes: “Ireland is a hospitable country and international students have had pleasant experience here. Hence, safety has never been an issue.” In fact, “there is no need to panic about food too. There is ample Indian food available in Ireland, which also includes vegetarian.” adds Wendy.
