Jane Cowan: What the next government needs to do to make life better for students
I remember my first tentative steps through my college campus.
Scrambling to read a map, trying to find the right lecture theatre for my induction. I walked up and down the same staircase three times, trying to get to the right room.
But eventually, I settled in. I got to grips with bibliographies, societies, deadlines, even the rambling library. I am now in my third year of study.
I feel so lucky to be a student in Ireland. The current Government has got a lot right for students: Increasing the income threshold for students to qualify for Susi grants; increasing funding for some PhDs; once-off reductions of €1,000 in student fees.
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But there is more to be done by the next government in order to support people in higher education, because, as we all know, the benefits of high quality, accessible higher education reach far beyond the bounds of any college campus.
Firstly, student accommodation urgently needs attention. Put simply, accommodation for students is inaccessible.
If you are lucky enough to qualify for university-operated accommodation, you are not guaranteed affordability.
While university-operated accommodation should aim to provide affordable accommodation for students, accommodation on the UCD campus, for instance, can cost up to €12,000 for the nine-month long academic year.
But university-operated accommodation is also extremely limited.
Universities themselves routinely advise students to seek accommodation privately, as they don’t have the capacity to meet demand.
This means that many students must rent rooms owned by vulture funds and private investors.
In Dublin, this style of accommodation starts at about €300 per week.
The reality is these kinds of costs are inhibitory.
Students are turning down university offers because they cannot afford their education. Even if you qualify for a Susi grant, it is not enough to cover the exorbitant costs of accommodation.
This must be addressed by the next government. We need more student accommodation to be built.
It must be affordable for the regular student. We just want options that allow us to access university.
That someone’s postcode is not within commuting distance to a university, should not be the reason people are unable to meet their potential.
Secondly, government support for PhD students in our universities should be increased.
PhD students conduct important research that has real world impacts in healthcare, infrastructure, education, and beyond.
The ‘Innovate for Ireland’ programme, launched by Simon Harris in 2022, providing €28,000 in funding for PhDs under this programme, was a welcome advance.
However, the vast majority of PhD students, according to the Postgraduate Workers’ Organisation, earn below a living wage, even when undertaking full time research.
If our next government wants to encourage people to undertake PhD research, government funding in this area must be expanded. It is through this kind of research that advances are made in society.
I urge the next government not to underestimate the value of this work.
That undergraduate study depends on PhD students to assist in teaching cannot be overlooked.
Also, inflated grocery prices mean many students struggle to feed themselves day to day. They show up to lectures hungry, write exams without having eaten breakfast.
Subsidised meals are standard practice in universities in some countries.
Finland has been providing subsidised meals to third level students for over 40 years.
I can only see advantages to the introduction of similar practices in Ireland.
Not only would this make college a little easier on students, it would also provide an opportunity for socialising and community.
Students and universities would reap the benefits of the implementation of a subsidised meal scheme, in academic engagement and performance.
Lastly, student mental health services are struggling. We all know mental health difficulties are rampant among students. Our counselling services do not have the resources to cope with demand. Students spend months on waiting lists.
The transition to university is a massive shift. University is often a student’s first experience of adulthood.
Coping with those changes, often requires support.
Once they get from the waiting list to see a therapist, the number of sessions they are given is capped.
This limit varies between universities. In NUI Galway, students receive just four sessions with the student counselling service.
In UCC, students generally receive up to six sessions. For students who are really struggling, this does not go far enough.
The waiting lists mean that issues often get worse while students wait for an appointment with a counsellor.
Increased expenditure in this area would massively improve the quality of student lives and their ability to excel in university.
Our next government has the power to shape the university experience for those in higher education.
But the impact of implementing these changes will reverberate beyond campus walls and student populations.
It will be felt in Ireland generally, when innovative research improves healthcare, or when transport infrastructure is advanced.
I have got less than two years left at undergraduate level. I hope I leave higher education with the knowledge that the university experience is changing, that financial barriers will be properly addressed, that students will have somewhere to sleep, that students won’t have to sacrifice their health or wellbeing for a degree.
The most difficult part of college should be navigating the library and sitting exams, not being able to access it in the first place.