Where to apply for a grant?

Jaunte

Hello the mature students forum! I've just transitioned into being a MS myself- well, I will be when I go back to college in September.

Being as I'm now the grand age of 23, I believe I qualify for a grant on my own income, yes? Before I apply, I need some advice from the people who've been through this, please. Bear with me now, as I lead you quickly though My Life So Far.

I spent 3 years in NUIG in an honours degree programme (Physics.) Unfortunately I didn't do as well as I'd hoped in 3rd year (icky health problems didn't help) and I didn't qualify to progress to the final year. Well and good, I got my Ordinary L7 degree and went to work. This was in 2006.

I've been looking to go back and do an add-on year to get my honours degree. Luckily for me, this year NUIG lowered the 3rd to 4th year requirements on the course I had been on, and agreed to retroactively apply this to me, so this September I'll be back in NUIG, right where I left off. I just got official confirmation this morning, so I'm very today.

So now the questions about grants. I didn't qualify for one when I was in college first, but I do now- per the income threshold anyway.
Q1- Should I be applying through my Local Authority or the VEC? This is from mygrant.ie: "If you are pursuing a Degree or a Post-Graduate course, you should apply to your local authority, whereas if you are a Trainee, pursuing a Post Leaving Cert (PLCs), Cert or Diploma, you should apply to your Vocational Education Committee (VEC)." This would indicate I should apply to the Local Authority. However, when reading the conditions for both schemes, I seem to qualify for both. I think. So which should I apply for? If I'm eligible for both, is one preferable to, or less hassle than, the other?

Q2- I've been living in Galway for 2 years, so that's where I'll be applying. The problem is, I'll be moving to London next month, until August. Is this going to disqualify me under the residency condition of the grant schemes? Both schemes state: "...in the case of an independent mature candidate, the candidate herself/himself, shall have been ordinarily resident in the administrative area of the Local Authority/Vocational Education Committee from 1 October." Does this mean I would have to be resident in Galway continuously from October to September? Or, as mygrant.ie puts it, "Basically, you have to apply to the authority in which you were living on the 1st of October of the previous year to the year of entry to your course." - in which case I would be covered, as I'm still in galway at the moment.

A related question to this would be- If I still qualify even though I'll be living abroad for a few months, I'll have to use my parent's address to receive post from whoever I apply to while I'm out of the country. This could create awkwardness, as I'd be applying in Galway yet giving an address in Sligo. I can just hear the questions...

Q3- When do they start accepting applications?

Any help anyone can give me would be great, sorry for the extremely complicated post, but then this is a headwrecking subject.

R

Ronan H

Hi Ruby, I was going to suggest MyGrant.ie but you have already found that. I'm not sure about the residency thing but AFAIK you should be eligible this time round because you didnt have a grant the first time. In my own situation I got a grant first time round but now as a mature student I didnt qualify because I got one before, so in some respects thats the opposite of your situation and hence I cant see any reason why you wont get it this time round. Everyone is entitled to free third level fees are they not? I have been studying the welfare system in Ireland in college recently and thats what I can make out about the education system anyway...

Unless the residency thing affects you then I should think you will be OK...

HTH.

Head

Hey RubyOneNiner,

I can't reply in detail right now but I'll get back to you later with a decent reply

Dónal

RubyOneNiner

RubyOneNiner wrote: »

Hello the mature students forum! I've just transitioned into being a MS myself- well, I will be when I go back to college in September.

Hello!

Being as I'm now the grand age of 23, I believe I qualify for a grant on my own income, yes?

Just to answer this first, the present regulations allow you to apply as an independent candidate (i.e. on your own money) if you were 23 on the 1st of January in the year you start your course. So just being 23 isn't everything. Plus you've got to fulfill certain other residency requirements like not living/relying on your parents, that type of thing.

Before I apply, I need some advice from the people who've been through this, please. Bear with me now, as I lead you quickly though My Life So Far.

I spent 3 years in NUIG in an honours degree programme (Physics.) Unfortunately I didn't do as well as I'd hoped in 3rd year (icky health problems didn't help) and I didn't qualify to progress to the final year. Well and good, I got my Ordinary L7 degree and went to work. This was in 2006.

I've been looking to go back and do an add-on year to get my honours degree. Luckily for me, this year NUIG lowered the 3rd to 4th year requirements on the course I had been on, and agreed to retroactively apply this to me, so this September I'll be back in NUIG, right where I left off. I just got official confirmation this morning, so I'm very today.

Congrats at your decision to return to education!

So now the questions about grants. I didn't qualify for one when I was in college first, but I do now- per the income threshold anyway.
Q1- Should I be applying through my Local Authority or the VEC? This is from mygrant.ie: "If you are pursuing a Degree or a Post-Graduate course, you should apply to your local authority, whereas if you are a Trainee, pursuing a Post Leaving Cert (PLCs), Cert or Diploma, you should apply to your Vocational Education Committee (VEC)." This would indicate I should apply to the Local Authority. However, when reading the conditions for both schemes, I seem to qualify for both. I think. So which should I apply for? If I'm eligible for both, is one preferable to, or less hassle than, the other?

First things first - I run mygrant.ie in my spare time and I'm not a semi-state body - it's run privately so the information on it should not be taken as 100% official, although it's a very good place to start (I think, anyways). So, there may be errors on my part due to a variety of reasons which is why everything you are reading should, really, be checked by someone official such as your local authority. But I'll give you my opinion on what you should do

If you're going back to NUIG to do an honours degree you would apply to your local County Council for funding. This is due to change to the VECs next year (2009) according to recent press releases by Mary Hanafin, but if you're going back there shouldn't be a problem (I've seen it written that the local authorities are still covering the grant schemes for 2008/9). The general rule is that, at the moment, the Councils deal with the Unis and the VECs deal the ITs as well as the other areas.

Q2- I've been living in Galway for 2 years, so that's where I'll be applying. The problem is, I'll be moving to London next month, until August. Is this going to disqualify me under the residency condition of the grant schemes? Both schemes state: "...in the case of an independent mature candidate, the candidate herself/himself, shall have been ordinarily resident in the administrative area of the Local Authority/Vocational Education Committee from 1 October." Does this mean I would have to be resident in Galway continuously from October to September? Or, as mygrant.ie puts it, "Basically, you have to apply to the authority in which you were living on the 1st of October of the previous year to the year of entry to your course." - in which case I would be covered, as I'm still in galway at the moment.

Yes, you normally have to show proof of where you lived last October. Being away for a few months isn't a major issue normally but since it's for nearly half a year it's worth checking with the Council. I'll give you some more details of people to talk to who aren't the Council just in case you don't want to give personal details when discussing scenarious.

A related question to this would be- If I still qualify even though I'll be living abroad for a few months, I'll have to use my parent's address to receive post from whoever I apply to while I'm out of the country. This could create awkwardness, as I'd be applying in Galway yet giving an address in Sligo. I can just hear the questions...

Potentially an issue but again something that can only be asked to your Council.

Q3- When do they start accepting applications?

Any help anyone can give me would be great, sorry for the extremely complicated post, but then this is a headwrecking subject.

R

The details of each year's grant scheme is released in June, and that includes how much people would be getting in grant payments as well as the income limits (which normally rise). Mary Hanafin has promised to release the details of this much much earlier this year, so it might be released in the coming months. If you check back here I'll probably throw something together with information on what to do for 2008/9 when it's released.

And just to answer Head's query...

Head wrote: »

Hi Ruby, I was going to suggest MyGrant.ie but you have already found that. I'm not sure about the residency thing but AFAIK you should be eligible this time round because you didnt have a grant the first time. In my own situation I got a grant first time round but now as a mature student I didnt qualify because I got one before, so in some respects thats the opposite of your situation and hence I cant see any reason why you wont get it this time round. Everyone is entitled to free third level fees are they not? I have been studying the welfare system in Ireland in college recently and thats what I can make out about the education system anyway...

Unless the residency thing affects you then I should think you will be OK...

HTH.

Head

Yeah, I assume you know that you'd be entitled to free fees for the Honours year since it's an extension of your Ordinary Degree? Of course, if you get a grant you would get it paid either way!

It's best to check with the Council when you give them a call your specific situation by the way, because you've been out of education for awhile so there might be a possibility that you would be assessed on your own income + your parents since you started college. I'm very unsure about this, by the way, but it is a possibility. Either way, check it out.

Oh yes, I promised more contact details... here are the Student Support Unit, who are run by the Dept. of Education to answer queries just like this. They don't personally admin the grant scheme (the Councils/VECs do) so you can talk to them if you have a query instead of worrying that talking to someone in the Council will mean they will take your details down if you say something you don't or... well, just in case.

The Student Support Unit,
Department of Education and Science,
Portlaoise Road,
Tullamore,
Co. Offaly
Tel: (0506) 21363 or (01) 8734700
E-mail: StudentSupportUnit-Tullamore@education.gov.ie

So that's about it. As I said above, it's best to get the official line on this. Check out http://www.studentfinance.ie/ as well - the HEA released it recently enough, and it is an official interpretation of the grant scheme, but as always the Council are the ones who will make the decisions.

Congrats on going back to education!

Dónal

Jaunte

Guys, thank you so much for all this advice. I really appreciate having some feedback on this issue, it's so complicted.

I think I should qualify- I fulfil the age and independence requirements, and although I'm returning to the same course I did graduate, so I'll argue that this fourth year should be treated as a separate course and so I should be assessed on 2007.

Anyway, since I'm in a grey area I think I'll simply go to the council offices this afternoon and ask them to spell it out for me. Failing that, I'll get on to the Student Support people, and the SU too. In essence, I'm going to make a fuss until I get what I want

(Someone in the council office has probably just inexplicably shivered... )


Thanks again, I'll let you know what happens!

R