As part of the announcement by the Minister for Education of 1,000 part-time postgraduate third-level places for unemployed workers University College Dublin is offering 70 funded places on one of its ICT courses.
Successful applicants of the Graduate Certificate in Information and Communications Technology will have €2,500 of the €2,750 fee funded by Higher Education Authority.
This particular course, says Dr Joe Carthy, head of the UCD School of Computer Science and Informatics, is unique: “This is the first negotiated learning course of its kind in Ireland.
“Students can select the modules they want to study to match and fill any particular skills gaps they may have to meet the challenges of regaining employment in the ICT industry,” he explained.
“After completing the course, the currently unemployed graduates will have gained new skills and knowledge in one of Ireland’s ‘high-value clusters of economic activity’ as identified in The Government’s Smart Economy framework.”
The modules encompass a wide and varied range of technology subjects from Artificial Intelligence to Sensor Systems to Adaptive Personalisation.
In order to apply those interested must be claiming jobseeker’s payment for the past six months or more, or confirm they are entitled to statutory redundancy from their most recent employment by providing a copy of form RP50.
The deadline for receipt of applications is 24 August 2009 and successful applicants can keep receiving their social welfare payments while completing the one-year course.
The Minister for Education said of the 1,000 funded postgraduate courses: “These postgraduate places are part of the Government’s labour market activation initiative specifically aimed at up-skilling and re-skilling workers for jobs in the sectors of the economy considered key to tackling the recession and driving economic growth.’
Pictured: Courtesy of John Ward via Flickr (Some rights reserved)
