The Many Roads to Further & Higher Education

It has never been more exciting, diverse, and accessible for a person to take another step along their education journey.  It is also no longer an exclusively young person’s journey with more mature students deciding that the time is right for them to upskill, retrain or enter a completely new career.

June 2022, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science Simon Harris TD has announced the expansion of third-level education to include additional college places and new apprenticeship programmes.  With an extra 1056 college places being offered through the CAO for the 2022/2023 academic year, sixteen new apprenticeship programmes in development, and the Post-Leaving Cert course levy of €200 to be abolished in September 2022.

It has never been more exciting, diverse, and accessible for a person to take another step along their education journey.  It is also no longer an exclusively young person’s journey with more mature students deciding that the time is right for them to upskill, retrain or enter a completely new career.  Indeed, many of our team continue their studies part-time, all to ensure the highest possible standard of member experience for you.  We are also parents, with children in college, and we understand the financial commitment that means.

At Blanchardstown & District Credit Union we support you, our members, throughout your journey, from school to college and into first jobs, or the part-time mature student looking to retrain, upskill or change career paths completely.  Our special rate Education Loan is there to help with all the costs associated with going to college, registration, equipment, accommodation, and living costs.  Talk to a member of our team about your plans, FREEPHONE 1800 215 215.

Where do I start?

Visit Qualifax –Ireland’s National Learners Database, a one-stop shop for prospective learners with comprehensive, annually updated information about further and higher education and training options in Ireland and outside of Ireland.  Articles and links provided to assist students, job seekers, parents, guidance professionals and graduates to make informed choices about education, training, and career pathways.

Generation Apprenticeship – a growing and vibrant option for people to Earn & Learn with sixty-two career options available from international finance to construction, to engineering, to healthcare, to biopharma, to hospitality.

If you wish to enter or return to third-level education and you are over 23 years of age you may be considered a mature student.  Irish third-level colleges have set aside places for mature students.  Full more information visit Citizen’s Advice on supports available.

Apply for a SUSI grant (Student Universal Support Ireland) – this is a student grant, based on eligibility, which can cover college registration fees and living costs for each academic year.  Check out more at SUSI.ie

Disability Access Route to Education (DARE) aims to improve access to college for school-leavers with a disability or specific learning difficulty by allocating some third-level places to them on a reduced points basis.

The Higher Education Access Route (HEAR) is an admissions scheme for students from socially disadvantaged backgrounds.  The aim is to encourage quality access for everyone to further and higher education.

Are your existing qualification from outside Ireland and you would like to check their equivalent in Ireland?  Check out NARIC – a searchable Foreign Qualifications Database with over 1400 qualifications from more than 150 countries.

On our Doorstep, we are fortunate to have a vibrant campus within Dublin 15 in TU Dublin Blanchardstown.  Check out the broad range of courses on offer.

For a full list of colleges in Ireland  

You have found your course, what is next?

So, why not check out our Loan Calculator for a loan amount and term that suits your budget and begin your education journey with the support of Blanchardstown & District Credit Union.

Blanchardstown and District Credit Union Limited is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. Reg. No.:291CU