Funding/scholarships for non-research Masters?

kmoon

From what I can tell, funding and scholarships are only available for research Masters courses via the IRC, and that all other (non-research) Masters courses are effectively ruled out. Is this correct?

I am looking to do an MBA this autumn. Since it is not a HDip, I do not qualify for the back-to-education allowance. Since I am voluntarily leaving employment, obviously I do not quality for any jobseeker's allowance or benefit. Finally, my salary last year breaches the threshold for grant eligibility.

Does anyone know of any other avenues (apart from the school's own scholarships) that I might explore in order to help offset the cost of the MBA? Any bodies or institutions that look favourably on postgraduate business education and which are open to funding or partially funding suitable candidates? Any contribution, even of the order of a couple of thousand euro, would be a massive help.

(For what it's worth, I acknowledge that all things "business" and finance-related are not exactly held in high regard these days, and one might rightly argue that someone doing an MBA should not expect any financial support. I feel it's worth exploring nonetheless.)

Many thanks

Tree

IRC is for research masters. For taught masters, you can apply through SUSI for up to €2k towards tuition costs (depends on how much you earned in teh previous year).
Other than that, credit unions are often very friendly for student loans.

Ravelleman

Frequently employers will pay part or all of the fees associated with doing an MBA.