Ireland’s Taoiseach Enda Kenny, TD, and Education Minister Ruairi Quinn, TD, are this afternoon officially launching a new academic collaboration called the 3U Partnership between NUI Maynooth, Dublin City University (DCU) and the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RSCI).
The idea of the partnership is to tap into the academic, research and education expertise at each of the institutes in order to forge more research and innovation opportunities, particularly around biomedical research.
New academic programmes are also being set up, especially at master’s level in areas such as health tech and humanitarian logistics. Plus, NUI Maynooth, RCSI and DCU will also be looking to attract more interactional students to come study in Ireland.
Speaking at the Aviva Stadium this afternoon Taoiseach Kenny touched on how the three institutions have very complementary and distinct fields of expertise. “Through collaboration we can achieve scale that allows us to compete more effectively on the global stage,” he said.
The Taoiseach spoke about how the partnership would lead to increased competitiveness for major research awards and to allow for innovation at the intersection of disciplines.
Biomedical research
Firstly, a 3U Biomedical Research programme will be set up to harness the expertise of over 750 researchers across the three institutions and develop leading-edge research in areas like cancer, diabetes and neurology.
Already researchers at the three institutes are carrying out research into Alzheimer’s, muscle wasting diseases, lung and breast cancers and medical imaging.
The aspiration will be that 3U Biomedical Research will work with industry to bringing biomedical research solutions to market faster.
As well as this NUI Maynooth, DCU and the RCSI will also work to grow international student numbers, especially reaching out to students in areas such as India, Middle East, China and North America. An international foundation and induction programme is to be set up for all incoming students from abroad.
New courses
Each of the three institutes will also be introducing new national and international study programmes, particularly at postgraduate level, to play to their strengths.
Among the new courses that are being devised, these include master’s degrees in healthcare technology, humanitarian logistics and emergency management and global health.
In terms of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM), the three institutes will also be working together with the aim of coming up with new means of teaching methods and approaches to the STEM subjects at third level.
“This launch is a public statement of our commitment to working closely together over the coming decade, developing our institutions together in order to deliver for our region and our country, and enhance our global presence,” said NUI Maynooth president Professor Philip Nolan.
