Six new degree programmes in medicine, pharmacy and dentistry will begin to come on stream from next year in a move that is likely to ease CAO points pressure in key high-demand courses.
CAO entry points for many of these programmes are currently in excess of 600 points and, in many cases, places have been awarded by lottery in recent years due to the volume of applicants achieving high grades.
Minister for Further and Higher Education Patrick O’Donovan confirmed that funding of €130 million has been unlocked from the National Training Fund will help address critical workforce shortages across the country.
The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) will receive support for a new bachelor of dental surgery, which will provide 20 new dentistry places for Irish or EU students from next year onwards.
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Atlantic Technological University, South East Technological University and University of Galway will each introduce new pharmacy programmes, doubling the number of pharmacy training programmes in Ireland. At full rollout, these courses will provide more than 150 additional pharmacy graduates per year.
University of Galway will also introduce a “rural and remote graduate entry” stream for medicine, aimed at addressing the shortage of general practitioners in rural Ireland. At full rollout, this will provide 48 additional medicine places per year.
University of Limerick (UL) will launch a direct-entry medicine programme, building on its experience as a provider of graduate-entry medicine.
At an event to mark the announcement in UL on Friday, Mr O’Donovan said the new places have the potential to “revolutionise our higher education landscape” and “provide more opportunities for students to follow their passions in healthcare and medicine”.
He said there was also potential for further expansion to meet the healthcare needs.
“I’m pleased to say we are not finished: this is only the first round of development,” he said. “My officials are working with the Higher Education Authority and the higher education sector to progress further expansion to meet the needs of the public sector and the nation.”
Higher Education Authority chief executive Dr Alan Wall said the announcement demonstrated the ability of the higher education and research system to “respond swiftly and effectively to evolving national priorities and skills needs”.
The new programmes form part of a broader blueprint to expand veterinary and healthcare education and aim to ensure a steady pipeline of qualified professionals to meet the needs of Ireland’s growing population.
In recent years, the Government has significantly increased capacity in health and social care programmes.
This expansion includes a 2022 agreement with Irish medical schools that introduced 60 additional places for Irish and EU students, with a goal of 200 additional places annually by 2026.
A 35 per cent increase in training places was also announced earlier this year in areas such as speech and language therapy and occupational therapy, with new courses in universities such as University of Galway and University of Limerick.
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