GRANTS intended to help the poorest students get through college are being paid so late that Limerick students are dropping out or seeking help from the St Vincent de Paul, it has been claimed.
The V de P regional president, Michael Murphy, is hoping to arrange a meeting with representatives of the University of Limerick and the Limerick Institute of Technology to discuss why some student grants take months to come through. “It’s very difficult for people in college to make ends meet without having to hang in there waiting for money which they qualify for and are entitled to,” said Mr Murphy.
“Students are coming to us for help because grants are not being paid until November in some cases. I am hoping to sit down with the two third level institutions and see what can be done”.
He explained that grants are processed by two principal bodies, the local authorities and the Department of Social Protection.
“How prompt or late the grant is depends on who you’re dealing with and where you live. Pick a date,” Michael told the Limerick Post.
The Students Union in the University of Limerick has been a port of call for students desperately trying to hang in until their grant cheque arrives.
“Mature students especially are having a very difficult time,’’ said UL Students’ Union Welfare officer and deputy president, Tara Feeney. “Students are dropping out of college because of this. I had a girl come to me last week because she literally didn’t have money to eat and she had been in that situation for some time”.
Ms Feeney said that some grants hadn’t been paid up to the start of December, despite the fact that students applied promptly after being offered a college place.
“Another problem is the change to distance qualification. To qualify for a maintenance grant before, people had to live 24 kilometres from the college. That’s changed now to 45 kilometres”.
The union has an emergency fund but can only loan money to students- the fund itself is not large.
“People have such a struggle to get here in the first place and especially if they are in fourth year, they want to hang in to finish, but these delays are forcing people to drop out,” concluded Tara.