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Education Minister Ruairi Quinn today announced he is is allocating an extra €3 million to the Student Assistance Fund, which is available to third level students who are experiencing severe financial hardship or who may have to drop out of college for financial reasons.

This will bring to €11 million the amount of money available to the Fund in 2012/13. With the extra money, the Fund is expected to assist in the region of 16,000 students this academic year.

Higher Education institutions are reporting a significant increase in demand for this Fund. Last academic year, approximately 13,000 students were given financial assistance. This year, universities, Institutes of Technology and other third level institutes are reporting an average increase in applications to the Fund of 67% to date.

The Minister said:

I am acutely aware of the severe financial difficulties facing many families and students this academic year.  In light of this and the delays to the processing of some student grants, the Department of Education & Skills requested the Higher Education Authority (HEA) to examine if there was an increased demand from students to access the Student Assistance Fund. 

I recognise that the problems with SUSI, the new grant awarding body, is one of the factors driving students to seek help, but there are others such as the withdrawal of other sources of funding like those from societies or partnerships and the increased numbers of students in poverty, and I hope the increased money now available to the Fund will go some way to alleviating student hardship.