Britain leaving the EU will have an impact on its relationship with Ireland but it will also affect the young people studying in this country.
The Union of Students in Ireland has had its say on the effect that this result will have for students across the country.
Employment prospects
According to the USI, one in twelve Irish graduates emigrate to the UK for work.
It could now take years to broker new trade agreements between the UK and the EU. This will cause years of uncertainty for British and Irish trade, which will have a knock-on effect for employment and enterprise prospects for young people.
Fees
Students from Northern Ireland who are studying in the Republic of Ireland may face increases to their fees. They will have to pay non-EU fees for college registration, which are significantly higher. Kevin Donoghue, President of the USI, said that he hopes that new agreements can be set up to prevent such a rise in costs.
Erasmus Programme
There has been a huge growth in the amount of international studies for postgraduates, as well as the number of students participating in the Erasmus programme. This could now be stunted by new visa rules.
Erasmus is an EU initiative which means that anyone studying in Northern Ireland will no longer be eligible for the programme, which enables students to travel as part of their college course.
“The Erasmus programme is one of the EU’s most successful social policies to date,” Donoghue said.
“The huge advantages to the internationalisation of higher education institutions will be heavily eroded both in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland as more visa and border controls come into play.”
Funding cuts
Donoghue also stressed that funding for higher education grants for research from the EU will be cut if Britain is not longer part of the EU.
This will affect Irish students who apply to these research programmes.
“Things will be more difficult in these areas now that they were,” he said.
Although Donoghue said that these changes could take two years to come into effect, he concluded that the result is ‘disappointing’ and ‘depressive.’
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