With Brexit being one of the most talked about subjects in Britain, Irish students are left wondering where they stand in the eyes of their neighbours. Up until now Irish nationals qualified for a home fee when applying for universities in the UK. So after Brexit loomed closer and closer, Irish students began to worry about their future.
In a recent conference at London that was discussing relations between the UK and Ireland; the universities minister Sam Gyimah made a statement saying that universities are committed to maintaining the home fee for Irish students as well as the ability to opt for loans for their payment. If the Irish student is eligible for a position, then they will be given as much support and the same rights as a British national. There are currently about 10,000 students studying in Britain that have Irish citizenship who have been studying at the same cost with the help of loans. Even though the Irish have been comforted when it comes to payment, students from Germany, Italy and France fear that they will have to pay the full international fees and will not be eligible for loans from the government. This fear is also felt by the universities themselves who are scared that they will lose prospective students from the EU who cannot afford the fees.
Mr Gyimag also stated that the decision to let Irish students eligible for these benefits will be reciprocated by Ireland where British citizens will also be able to avail of education at home fee with the option of taking a loan. The conference also had researchers, ministers and educators from across Ireland and the UK who came together to find an answer to the relationship between Ireland and the UK. The conference focused on keeping the relationship alive and making it better once the UK leaves the EU. Partnerships between the two countries will be maintained as well. The statements made by Mr Gyimag were taken well by the rest of the people attending and he described Ireland as a powerful economy from which Britain could learn a lot.
Courses that have limited options in Ireland are particularly popular with a lot of Irish students practising nursing, pharmacy and physiotherapy in the UK.
Louise Richardson who is the vice chancellor of the University of Oxford while also being Irish-born has also said that she welcomes the commitment that has been made in regard to rights for Irish students.
The fear from universities regarding students of the EU still persists but improvements are being made every day. Multiple universities and educators have said that limiting themselves to just British students would reduce the links between countries as well as good relationships.