If you are moving to Ireland in order to study at a third-level college, you will need to explore the full range of options available to you.

The third-level education sector in Ireland consists of universities, institutes of technology, and colleges of education - collectively known as higher education institutions or HEIs. Third-level qualifications are Levels 6-10 in the National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ). The Framework is a system of 10 levels which allows national and international educational qualifications to be compared.

Universities

Universities in Ireland are state-funded, but they are generally autonomous. University students qualify with Ordinary Bachelors degrees (Level 7) or Honors Bachelors degrees (Level 8). You can choose from 4 universities in Ireland. These include:

• The National University of Ireland (NUI), which is the umbrella university covering University College Dublin, National University of Ireland, Galway,University College Cork, and National University of Ireland, Maynooth. The NUI also has recognised colleges including the National College of Art and Design and the Royal College of Surgeons.
• The University of Dublin, which is generally known as Trinity College Dublin (TCD)
• The University of Limerick (UL)
• Dublin City University (DCU)

Institutes of technology

Colleges of education

There are several colleges of education in Ireland, providing specialised training for primary school teachers.

Private colleges

In addition to the state-funded colleges, there are a number of fee-paying third-level educational institutions offering courses, mainly in professional vocational training and business. Some of these colleges are linked to universities or professional associations and their qualifications may be accredited accordingly. Others offer Higher Education and Training Awards Council (HETAC) accreditation. It is important to check out the accreditation on offer before you choose your course.

Picking a course

The Central Applications Office (CAO), which is based in Galway, operates a centralised applications procedure for all third-level colleges. The CAO website has a listing of all of the third-level courses on offer through their system. You can also check the Qualifax website for lists of higher education courses. If you have identified some courses that are of particular interest, you can obtain more detailed information about them from the relevant colleges.

Information kindly provided by the Citizens Information Board