Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship Programme for International Students – Open

Background

The Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship Programme is an established national initiative, funded by the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, and managed by the Council.

The Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship Programme is unique in the Irish research landscape and complements other channels for funded postgraduate education in the Irish ecosystem. Among its features are:

• individual, prestigious awards for excellent research in the name of the applicant;
• an objective selection process using international, independent expert peer review;
• funding across all disciplines, from archaeology to zoology; and
• awards for bottom-up, non-directed research, with the exception of those funded by our strategic funding partners.

Pioneering proposals addressing new and emerging fields of research or those introducing creative, innovative approaches are welcomed. Proposals of an interdisciplinary nature are also encouraged as it is recognised that advancing fundamental understanding is achieved by integrating information, techniques, tools and perspectives from two or more disciplines.

The Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship Programme is highly competitive, with an average success rate of 18% over the past five years. Successful awardees under the programme are recognised as demonstrating world-class potential as future research leaders.

Strategic funding partners

A number of government departments and agencies partner with the Irish Research Council to support the Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship Programme as a mechanism to deliver on shared national objectives. The Irish Research Council’s strategic funding partners for 2023 are:

• Environmental Protection Agency
• Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth
• Department of Foreign Affairs
• Met Éireann

What we offer

• a stipend of €18,500 per annum;
• a contribution to fees, including non-EU fees, up to a maximum of €5,750 per annum; and
• eligible direct research expenses of €3,250 per annum.

How to apply

Potential applicants should read the call documentation – see file attached below, carefully to ascertain whether or not they are eligible to apply. Indicative versions of the applicant and supervisor forms are provided for information purposes only. All participants must create and submit their forms via the online system. See link to apply down below this page.

Key dates

Please note that the timings provided here are indicative and may be subject to change.

If you do not find the answer to your query in the call documentation, you should contact the research office in your proposed institution which will provide information and clarification on the call. Research offices can send any queries they are unable to clarify to postgrad@research.ie.

For reasons of transparency and fairness to all applicants, we will not enter into written or telephone correspondence with any individual about the assessment process or their eligibility to apply.

Documentations

Guides to the Online System

Frequently Asked Questions

General Application Feedback

Participating Institutions in Ireland – Eligible higher education institutions (HEIs) and research-performing organisations (RPOs)

The current policy of the Irish Research Council is that in order to be considered an eligible higher education institution for the purpose of applying to our funding programmes (at postgraduate, postdoctoral and principal investigator level) an institution must be:

1. A third-level institution within the meaning of Section One of the Higher Education Authority Act, 1971 and/or in receipt of public funding as approved by the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science for the purposes of the Free Fees Initiative.
2. In receipt of public funding from the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science for the purpose of higher education and research.
3. In compliance with the HEA Statement on Athena SWAN Charter in Ireland (July 2019).

These institutions are:

• Atlantic Technological University
• Coláiste Mhuire Marino
• Dublin City University
• Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies
• Dublin Dental Hospital
• Dundalk Institute of Technology
• Dún Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design & Technology
• Mary Immaculate College
• Maynooth University
• Munster Technological University
• National College of Art and Design
• National College of Ireland
• National University of Ireland, Galway
• RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences
• Royal Irish Academy
• Royal Irish Academy of Music
• South East Technological University
• Technological University Dublin
• Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest
• University College Cork
• University College Dublin
• University of Dublin, Trinity College
• University of Limerick

In recognition of the contribution of publicly funded research performers to Ireland’s research base, the research-performing organisations (RPOs) which are eligible to apply to the Irish Research Council’s postdoctoral and principal investigator-led funding programmes are:

• Economic & Social Research Institute
• Marine Institute
• Teagasc
• The Discovery Programme

CLICK HERE TO APPLY FOR OVERSEAS POSTGRADUATE SCHOLARSHIP

Further information in relation to applying to be an eligible research-performing organisation is available here.