Ireland
Ireland, Irish Éire , a country of western Europe occupying five-sixths of the westernmost major island of the British Isles, is an island in the North Atlantic. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles, the third-largest in Europe, and the twentieth-largest on Earth. Ireland is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially named Ireland), which covers five-sixths of the island, and Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom. In fact, its nickname is the Emerald Isle.
Why Ireland for students
Ireland is a beautiful island, combining contemporary modern cities with an idyllic countryside, cityscapes steeped in history, and rich natural habitat.
Top Reasons to Choose Ireland as a Study Destination
- The Irish education system is one of the best in Europe (ranked among the top 20 for its higher education system by the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook in 2014.) It has close links to industry and is characterized by creativity, flexibility, and pragmatism.
- Many of Ireland’s institutions of higher education are internationally ranked, and with many strong programs (5000+) in a variety of areas (medicine, science, technology, engineering, business, law, languages, literature, history, philosophy, psychology, etc.), there is something for almost every student.
- Ireland is an English speaking country, which is one of the top reasons to choose Ireland as a study destination. Students coming to Ireland, find it comfortable to cope up with the course and also with the place.
- Ireland is famous as an international hub for high-quality scientific research. Many students from around the world, including India, visit Ireland to pursue research in various fields.
- For students interested in studying literature (or even just those that appreciate a good book), Ireland is a great destination. Famous authors like Yeats and Shaw called Ireland home.
- The advantage of studying in Europe is that it’s relatively easy to get from one country to the next. Take advantage of this by taking a long weekend elsewhere in the UK, or traveling the rest of Europe after your time in Ireland study abroad adventure concludes.
- Ireland is also regarded as a safe country to study and live in. The Global Peace Index ranked it as the 12th "most peaceful country" in 2013.
- Richness of culture, breathtaking scenery and friendly people make it an ideal study destination for any international student.
Ireland Education System
The Irish Education System is divided into three basic levels: Primary (for 8 years); Secondary (for 5 or 6 years) and the Third level which offers a wide range of opportunities from post-Secondary courses, to vocational and technical training, to full degree and the highest post-graduate level.
Programs available at Third Level Institutions
- One-Year Certificate: 1 year full-time course
- National Certificate: 2 years full-time course
- National Diploma: 1 year after National Certificate
- Bachelor's Degree: Normally 3 or 4 year course
- Graduate Diploma: Usually 1 year Masters Degree: Either by research or through a taught program-1 or 2 years duration.
Ireland's nickname is The Land of Saints and Scholars. That's because they have institutions, monasteries, and colleges that date as far back as 500 AD and, since then, Ireland has been able to form some of the best universities in the world, many of which are highly ranked among schools and institutions worldwide.
There are 8 Universities in IRELAND:
- Trinity College Dublin
- University College Dublin
- University College Cork
- Dublin City University
- University of Limerick
- National University of Ireland, Galway
- National University of Ireland, Maynooth
- Technology University Dublin
Distance and Time Difference
The distance between India and Ireland is 7826 km. It takes approximately 14h 51m to get from India to Ireland, including transfers. There is no direct flight from Delhi Airport to Dublin Airport. The quickest flight takes 11h 40m and has one stopover. Reaching Ireland is easy enough, you can either take a flight to its capital city Dublin or fly into London and then go from there.
Ireland time is 4:30 hours behind India The island of Ireland functions on Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). Ireland Time is in the Western European Time Zone. Western European Standard Time ( WET ) is the same time as Greenwich Mean Time ( GMT ).
Post Study Work Rights
This scheme exists to allow legally resident non-EU third level graduates to remain in Ireland in order to look for employment or apply for a green card/work permit. During their approved stay under the scheme, a student can work full-time (40 hours a week).
If you are enrolled as a full-time student, with an Irish, accredited degree, and have the Visa Stamp 2 you may qualify for the Third Level Graduate Scheme. The steps to the process is as following –
- Students can apply for a non-renewable extension of up to 2 years after course completion. This extension is granted for the purpose of finding suitable employment.
- Later on, you can apply for a green card (renamed Critical Skills Employment Permit) or work permit (renamed General Employment Permit).
A new visa stamp – Stamp 1G – is now granted to foreign graduates who are authorized to work under the Third Level Graduate Scheme (General Employment Permit). So if you are granted Stamp 1G you don’t need to separately apply for a visa extension.
General Employment Permit
The Irish General Employment Permit is a job offer based work permit that allows international students to work in Ireland for a period of 2 years. The General Employment Permit can be renewed for a further 3 years. The permit costs EUR 500 for a duration of 6 months and EUR 1000 for 2 years.
However, there are certain criteria and a procedure that needs to be followed before you are allowed to apply for a General Employment Permit:
- The candidate must have an existing job offer in Ireland before they begin the application process.
- The candidate must have all the appropriate skills, experience, and qualifications for the role.
- The jobs offered through a General Employment Permit is subject to a Labor Market Needs test, which means that they must be advertised to workers from within the European Economic Area before they can be offered to an immigrant.
- The employer must advertise the vacancy for a minimum of 4 weeks on the Irish Department of Social Protection Employment Services/EURES employment network,
- A General Employment Permit is not issued to companies where the granting of the permit would mean that more than 50% of the employees would be non-European Economic Area nationals.
Part-Time Work
Only students attending a full-time course of at least one year's duration are entitled to take up part-time employment (defined as up to 20 hours part-time work per week or full time work during college vacation periods). This was done just to ensure that a student does not misses his/her studies. Working during your studies can be a great way to supplement your income and you can gain valuable life skills. Before you start applying for jobs, make sure that your visa has a
Students holding a valid stamp 2 means they will be permitted to work for 20 hours per week during the academic session, and 40 hours per week during the months of May, June, July, August, and from December 15 to January 15. These are the vacation times in Ireland so the time allowed to work increases in the vacations
To be eligible to work part-time, you need to be:
- Registered with local police known as Garda National Immigration Bureau or GNIB
- Accepted to a course recognized by the Minister for Education and Skills
- Enrolled in a full-time course at or above NFQ Level 7
- Attending classes between 8 AM and 6 PM per week
- Enrolled in a course with at least one year’s duration