Ireland universities eager to fund, recruit Indian students

Institutions in Ireland are looking to not only recruit Indian students but also set up new funding exclusively for Indians. Bhavya Dore reports.

Institutions in Ireland are looking to not only recruit Indian students but also set up new funding exclusively for Indians.

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A large educational delegation from Ireland, including officials from 16 universities and other government officials is visiting the city, with a view to promote the country as a higher education destination.

Officials from Trinity College Dublin (TCD) said they would be freshly setting aside 250,000 Euros worth of funds annually especially for Indians, for both undergraduate and post-graduate studies.

University College Dublin (UCD) has set aside more than 200,000 Euros worth of scholarships exclusively for Indians, while Dublin City University has a new corpus of funding worth 20,000 Euros for Indians.

UCD and TCD have both been ranked within the top 150 universities in the world in the latest QS rankings released in September.

There are around 850 Indians in Irish universities at present, and the government aims to double that in the coming few years.

"We are really making a push for engagement with India," said Patrick Prendergast, president and provost of TCD. The

institute already has a tie-up with the Tata Institute of Fundamen-tal Research at Navy Nagar.

"We are looking for high achieving students…and hoping to reduce obstacles for those who wish to come and study," said Una Condron, international marketing manager for UCD.

Enterprise Ireland, the umbrella body leading the universities in a trip through the country, has already visited Bangalore and Delhi.

Institutions are also promoting education in Ireland on the back of the fact that students will be able to stay on after they graduate and work in the country.

"India is a key priority," said Julie Sinnamon, executive director, global business development at Enterprise Ireland, a government body. "Bringing Indian students to study in Ireland and creating collaborations is a very important aspect of our visit."