Tallaght based Sinn Fein TD Seán Crowe TD responding to reports in the media that Education Minister and Labour TD Ruairi Quinn proposes is to cut grants for Masters Degrees  said that the clear message it will send  to people with low and or on middle incomes is that post graduate degrees are no longer open to you.

Seán Crowe TD  is the Sinn Fein party spokesperson in Leinster House.

Deputy Crowe said:

“The average fees for Masters degrees are now in excess of 6000 euros. Many universities are developing such degrees to cover the shortfall in government funding for higher education. 

“There is increasingly limited  or no real  prospect of university scholarships or fee reductions on these programmes.  Even with a local authority grant a student will still need to raise up to 10,000 euros to cover their living costs while undertaking crucial up-skilling at postgraduate level.

“At the same time Employers are already highlighting a shortage of people with post-graduate qualifications in many areas.

“Ending these grants will say to those on low to middle incomes that postgraduate degrees and the jobs associated with them are no longer open for you.

“This is a disgraceful position to be advanced by any Education Minister but from a Labour minister it is quite simply appalling.”