IRISH STUDENTS WHO have had to leave Ukraine in the middle of their studies will be able to continue their studies in Ireland, the Minister for Further and Higher Education has said.
Simon Harris today met with the Irish Universities Association (IAE) to discuss the higher education sector’s response to the situation in Ukraine.
The sector has agreed it will provide places for Irish students who have had to leave Ukraine in the middle of their studies. The majority of these students were studying medicine or dentistry.
The Irish Universities Association (IUA) has put in place a working group with the deans of medicine, the Medical Council, the department and admissions officers to “ensure that Irish students returning from the Ukraine can continue their education and integrate the relevant programme at the right level”.
A quick update from my meeting with @IUAofficial today. My Department, the Government and our sector will do everything we can to support and welcome students from #Ukraine and to also provide supports in terms of English language classes in communities pic.twitter.com/xxvhVhFEzp
— Simon Harris TD (@SimonHarrisTD) March 14, 2022
Harris and the IUA also agreed a central point of contact was required for people coming from Ukraine seeking to enter higher education here, which will be put in place in the coming days.
Speaking after today’s meeting, Harris said there will be “a variety of responses required by our sector”.
“The most pressing will be the ability to access English language supports. This is crucial to ensuring people have the ability to understand the information being presented to them, and to help them embed in Irish society,” he said.
“We will also need to provide employment opportunities for people and offer people the chance to engage in further education.”
He said the “immediate priority” when it comes to higher education is to ensure Irish students fleeing Ukraine can continue their studies here.
“My Department has contacted them all and they are deeply traumatised by what has unfolded. We will work to extend supports and care to them,” Harris said.
“The IUA universities have confirmed they will provide places necessary and we look forward to working with them on that.”
It comes after Irish medical student Racheal Diyaolu arrived safely back in Ireland after fleeing Ukraine.
Racheal was in her first year studying medicine in the northeastern city of Sumy before the university was forced to close.
She said last week that an announcement from Harris that returning students can continue their studies in Ireland is “such a relief”.
“Going out to another country again, I don’t know how that would go down with the family,” she said.
Harris also said that the department and the IUA universities will also work collectively to ensure Ukrainian people can access higher education here too.
“I will continue to engage with colleagues across the sector to ensure we can offer an effective response to the worst humanitarian crisis of our lifetime,” he added.
On Sunday, Taoiseach Micheál Martin told the BBC that Ireland has so far accepted 5,500 people fleeing Ukraine and may take in more than 100,000.
He said Ireland’s priority is the humanitarian response to what he termed “the worst displacement of people since World War Two”.
“Our primary impulse is to assist those fleeing war,” he said.
“The Irish people are very seized by a series of atrocities that are going on. What we’re witnessing on our screens every evening is really shocking people and there is huge human empathy there to help the women and the children.”
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