Third-level education in Ireland includes all education after second-level, encompassing higher education in universities and colleges and further education on Post Leaving Certificate (PLC) and other courses.
The degree-awarding institutions which can grant awards at all academic levels are the University of Dublin, National University of Ireland (Cork, Dublin, Galway and Maynooth), University of Limerick, Dublin City University, Technological University Dublin, the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Munster Technological University, Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest, Atlantic Technological University and South East Technological University, as well as St Patrick's College, Maynooth (Pontifical University). Quality and Qualifications Ireland, a State agency, can grant awards in other institutions directly, or delegate the authority to do so.Final report on alignment of St. Patrick’s College, Maynooth awards made in Ireland to the National Framework of Qualifications www.nqai.ie, September 2011. The King's Inns of Dublin has a limited role in education specialising in the preparation of candidates for the degree of barrister-at-law to practice as barristers. Medical schools in Ireland also have particular regulation. There were seven establishments of higher education within Ireland ranked among the top 500 universities worldwide by the Times Higher Education Supplement in 2023.Times Higher Education Supplement Top 500 Universities Worldwide 2023
Framework EQF level EHEA cycle NFQ level Major award types 1 1 Level 1 Certificate 2 Level 2 Certificate 2 3 Level 3 CertificateJunior Certificate 3 4 Level 4 CertificateLeaving Certificate 4 5 Level 5 CertificateLeaving Certificate 5 6 Advanced Certificate Short cycle within 1st Higher Certificate 6 1st 7 Ordinary Bachelor's degree 8 Honours bachelor's degreeHigher diploma 7 2nd 9 Master's degreePostgraduate diploma 8 3rd 10 Doctorate degreeHigher doctorate
Governance, funding and quality assurance Higher education policy is overseen by the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science. The Higher Education Authority (HEA) is the statutory planning and development body for higher education and research in Ireland, and is the funding authority for universities, institutes of technology and other designated higher education institutions.
The Higher Education Authority Act 2022 replaced the Higher Education Authority Act 1971 and provided for changes to the functions and governance of the HEA, including oversight of designated institutions of higher education. Designated institutions under the Act include established universities, technological universities, institutes of technology, the National College of Art and Design and certain other authorised providers.
Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI) is the state agency responsible for promoting the quality, integrity and reputation of Ireland's further and higher education system. QQI also validates education and training programmes offered by providers within its remit.
Tertiary pathways The National Tertiary Office was established within the Higher Education Authority in 2022 to develop joint further and higher education degree programmes. The office is jointly managed by the HEA and SOLAS. These tertiary programmes allow students to begin in further education before progressing to higher education to complete a fully accredited degree.
The development of tertiary pathways forms part of the Government's policy for a more unified tertiary system, intended to allow further education and training, higher education, and research and innovation to work more closely together.
Teaching and learning policy The National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education operates under the auspices of the HEA and advises on teaching and learning enhancement in Irish higher education. In 2025, a new national Strategy for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education was launched to guide HEA policy, investment and sectoral engagement over the following three to five years. The HEA also published a national policy framework on generative AI in higher education teaching and learning in December 2025.
Institutions Irish higher education institutions include universities, technological universities, institutes of technology, colleges of education and specialist institutions. Since the Technological Universities Act 2018, most former institutes of technology have amalgamated into five technological universities, with Dundalk Institute of Technology and Dún Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology remaining as institutes of technology.
The Irish universities include the University of Dublin, better known by the name of its sole college, Trinity College Dublin, the four constituent universities of the National University of Ireland, two universities established in 1989, five technological universities formed by the amalgamation of Institutes of Technology and a professional medical institution. Some colleges are constituent colleges of universities, while others are designated institutions of the State agency Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI), which succeeded the Higher Education and Training Awards Council. The latter include the remaining Institutes of technology in Ireland in Dundalk and Dún Laoghaire, Colleges of Education, and other independent colleges. Some colleges have "delegated authority" from QQI, this allows them to confer and validate awards in their own name.
Some institutions such as the University of Limerick, Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin), and Dublin City University (DCU) have completed a process of modularising their courses (others are still in a transition phase), mostly using the ECTS. The Bologna process and applied research are the current concerns of national educational policy, additional concerns include the structures of the National University of Ireland. In 2019 TU Dublin amalgamated three institutions in the Dublin region (Dublin Institute of Technology, Institute of Technology, Blanchardstown, and Institute of Technology, Tallaght), and in 2021 Munster Technological University amalgamated two institutions in the Munster region (Cork Institute of Technology, and Institute of Technology, Tralee), while the Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest was formed by the merger of Limerick Institute of Technology and Athlone Institute of Technology. The Atlantic Technological University, through the merger of Galway Mayo Institute of Technology, Institute of Technology, Sligo and Letterkenny Institute of Technology and South East Technological University with the merger of Institute of Technology, Carlow and Waterford Institute of Technology in 2022.
The Marks & Standards document, offered by most institutions, can be consulted for information on the range and criteria set down for awards, while programme specifications offer additional information. In contrast to practice in the rest of the education system, entry tends to be highly competitive for school leavers; the so-called "Points Race" administered by the Central Applications Office (CAO). In 2001 the percentage of school leavers transferring to third level exceeded 50% for the first time, while as of 2005 it was in excess of 55% and expected to grow at approximately 1% per annum for the next decade.
There are over 25 third-level courses at graduate and postgraduate level offered through the Irish language. Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge is the Irish language Department of the University of Galway and it has different off-campus centres throughout the Gaeltacht regions. Dublin City University has an Irish language department called Fiontar. University College Dublin (UCD), TU Dublin, and Atlantic Technological University (ATU) also offer similar courses.
All but two of the eleven universities in Ireland offer "open" (omnibus entry) Bachelor of Arts degrees through the CAO where the student can choose their specialisation after their first year of study. The two universities that do not offer "open" (omnibus entry) arts degrees, Trinity College Dublin and DCU, do still offer Bachelor of Arts degrees in specific areas of study such as Drama Studies, Journalism, Latin, History, Japanese, and International Relations.
In one, Trinity College Dublin, the applicants wishing to read an Arts degree may apply to the college to read a combination of two subjects, such as French and Philosophy – which the student may continue to read jointly or with focus on one. DCU's de facto omnibus entry arts degree is offered by St. Patrick's College of Education (a college of DCU) and is titled "BA in Humanities". All Hallows College (a college of DCU) offer BA in humanities, theology pastoral care, and English.
Entry into higher education institutions is normally done through the CAO. In this way, students wishing to enter university apply to the CAO rather than the individual university. Places in courses are usually awarded based on results in the Leaving Certificate Examination or any international equivalent. Each university has a minimum entry requirement, usually requiring a pass grade in either English or Irish, as well as maths. Some also require a pass grade in a modern continental European language (French, German, Spanish or Italian). Each individual course has further entry requirements, for example, science courses usually require a certain grade in one or two sciences. The student must also achieve the number of points required for the course under the points system. However, universities also have systems in place for accepting mature students, and students who have successfully completed a Post Leaving Certificate or Further Education course.
Entry into third-level is generally very high in Ireland (as it also is in Northern Ireland), and among young adults (those aged 25 to 34), 41.6% of them have attained third-level degrees—the second highest level in the EU after Cyprus, and substantially ahead of the average of 29.1%.Measuring Ireland's Progress – 2007 Broken down by gender, approximately 43% of women and 40% of men Ireland attend third level education.
International students Ireland's higher education system includes a substantial international student population. According to HEA statistics, there were 44,535 non-Irish domiciled enrolments in publicly funded higher education institutions in 2024/25, including 32,940 non-EU enrolments. The most common non-Irish domiciles were India, the United States and China.
Participation and enrolment In 2024/25, there were 278,880 student enrolments across all modes of study in Ireland's publicly funded higher education institutions, an increase of 4.9% from 265,905 in 2023/24. Undergraduate enrolments accounted for 212,345 students, while postgraduate enrolments accounted for 66,535 students.
Undergraduate fees Under the "Free Fees Initiative" the Government pays the tuition fees of students who meet relevant course, nationality and residence requirements as set down under the initiative. These requirements include:
Holding EU nationality, or being a national of a member country of the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom or Switzerland, or having been granted official refugee status. Having been resident in an EU Member State for at least three of the five years preceding entry to the course. Not undertaking a second undergraduate course.
Students are required to pay a student contribution charge. The charge replaced the former registration fee, which had been criticised as an unofficial fee.