Latest news with #UniversityOfLimerick
Irish Times
28-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Minister hails ‘exciting' degree where students spend two years working in industry
A new biopharma degree where students spend half their time on campus and half completing paid work experience has been hailed by the Minister for Higher Education as an 'exciting step forward' for how third level education is delivered in Ireland. The new BSc/MSc in immersive bioscience and biotherapeutics at University of Limerick (UL) is due to be launched on Thursday. The development comes at a time of debate in higher education circles about whether the sector is too reliant on industry-sponsored research and education in order to plug State funding gaps. UL has described the degree as a new venture. designed in collaboration with international companies such as Eli Lilly and Analogue Devices, which seeks to 'cultivate the leading scientific minds of the future'. READ MORE The companies will contribute to curriculum design, participate as guest contributors and host students on industry residencies. The first intake of students will be in September 2026. It follows a similar model to UL's immersive software engineering programme, now in its third year of operation. Students will receive a bachelor and master of science degree in four years, with two years spent learning on campus and two years working in biotech industries. UL says students will have the 'competitive advantage of two years of experience working in industry when they graduate'. Minister for Higher Education James Lawless welcomed the launch of the 'iBio' programme. 'This innovative, industry-led and learner-focused course recognises that not all learning happens in lecture halls,' he said. 'Through immersive, hands-on experiences, both on campus and in the workplace, students will graduate with not just a degree, but two full years of real-world industry experience.' The programme, he said, offered 'more choice, more relevance, a modern model of education that's fit for the future and supports the vision of education driving Ireland's economy.' Acting UL president Professor Shane Kilcommins said the new degree represented a 'giant leap forward' in the delivery of undergraduate scientific education. Students, he said, will be 'embedded in the knowledge community where they are active and interactive partners in the learning process.' Prof Jakki Cooney, iBio course director, said the course was all about developing a passion for the science of disease and medicines, about being creative and curious about the world, embracing challenges and working in teams using scientific data to solve complex problems. 'We are offering a new way to learn the science and biology of medicine making and discovery,' she said. The Government has acknowledged that there is a funding gap of more than €300m facing Irish higher education and has pledged to address this over successive budgets. Meanwhile, research by into funding of Irish universities found that industry funding of third level is increasingly becoming the norm. The paper highlighted potential risks such as the erosion of support for academic endeavours that may not be perceived as having commercial value, as well as challenges in preserving the integrity of academia in a landscape increasingly driven by market-driven priorities.
Irish Times
27-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Senior official at UL resigns after university overpaid €5.2m for student housing
A top University of Limerick official has resigned his post, a year after the institution was rocked by a botched property deal in which it overpaid €5.2 million for student housing. Andrew Flaherty was chief commercial officer of UL since October 2020. He had responsibility for commercial activities, buildings and estates when UL went ahead with a €11.9 million deal in 2022 in which it paid significantly above market price for 20 student homes. The arrangement led to the resignation last June of then UL president Prof Kerstin Mey and heavy criticism by the Comptroller & Auditor General , the public spending watchdog. Mr Flaherty had been on administrative leave since June. READ MORE [ University of Limerick proposes moving school of medicine to Dunnes Stores site Opens in new window ] In a statement emailed on Tuesday evening to UL staff and students, university chancellor Prof Brigid Laffan said he had left the institution with immediate effect. 'The chief commercial officer has tendered his resignation from employment with University of Limerick with effect from 27 May 2025,' she wrote. 'The university has accepted that resignation. The chief commercial officer has also resigned from all directorships and offices associated with or connected to the university.' A biography of Mr Flaherty on UL's website said he previously worked in companies such as Generali, Utmost Pan Europe, GE, Aer Lingus, Chill, Genworth and ESAT Digifone. In July last year, UL's then chief officer Prof Shane Kilcommins started High Court defamation proceedings in a personal capacity against Mr Flaherty and his wife Audrey Flaherty. Prof Kilcommins is now acting president of UL. At the time the court proceedings were initiated, both Prof Kilcommins and Mr Flaherty sat on the 14-member UL executive committee, which advises the university president. According to legal records, the case remains before the courts. In a report last September, the C&AG found fault with the student housing deal and another UL property transaction in Limerick city that resulted in combined financial losses of more than €8 million. The C&AG report said UL's €5.2 million overpayment when buying the student homes resulted in a 'significant loss in value for money'. There were 'significant' due diligence failures, even though UL had adopted new procedures because of problems with a separate Limerick city deal in 2019. The report also concluded it was 'difficult to see' how the 2019 deal that led to a €3 million loss 'represented value for money'. The student housing deal at Rhebogue, 3km from the UL campus, was previously the subject of a special report for UL's governing authority that found the settled €10.9 million price rose by more than €1 million when the final contract was signed only nine days later. UL has also been under scrutiny over the purchase of a city centre property which it later admitted 'significantly overpaying' for. The university bought the former Dunnes Stores property at Honan's Quay for more than €8 million in 2019. It later wrote down the value of the site by €3 million in its financial accounts. In a message to staff on Tuesday , Prof Kilcommins said a 'concept proposal' for the possible redevelopment of the Honan's Quay site was discussed. This involves relocating UL's existing school of medicine to a 'fully redeveloped, high-quality facility' at the city-centre site.
