The International Education Division (IED) is responsible for the development and implementation of internationalisation strategy for the University and supports faculty and departments in the advancement of their strategic proprieties for international education. Our priorities include; non-EU student recruitment, the growth and development of the Study Abroad, Erasmus and non-EU exchange Programmes, as well as student support and pastoral care. Student numbers have increased again for 2013/14, with over 2,400

international students welcomed to the campus. Significant non-EU growth was seen from Brazil, India, China and the Middle East. The Study Abroad programme also grew welcoming 150 students from the Science without Borders programmes to the Faculty of Science and Engineering. These students will spend one academic year at UL before returning to Brazil to complete their undergraduate studies. The Graduate School also welcomed research students under this programme.The Erasmus programme continues to grow and is again the largest in Ireland. This year UL received over €1m in Erasmus funding and is the first Irish institution to reach €1m. Over 30% of our undergraduates spend a semester overseas on a study or work placement. This significant level of international engagement enhances employability and ensures that students have the opportunity to become fully engaged global citizens. A recent Erasmus impact report (September 2014) stated that the unemployment rate of an Erasmus student five years after graduation is 23% lower. The same report also indicated that the share of employers who considered experience abroad to be important for employability has nearly doubled between 2006 and 2013, from 37% to 64%. To celebrate and highlight the rich network of cultures on campus, IED organises an International Festival each autumn semester. This year, the programme celebrated international food, dance and film, with HE Mr Afonso Jose Sena Cardoso, Brazilian Ambassador to Ireland on campus to introduce the renowned Brazilian film Central Station. The international week also launched our first university-wide Study Abroad Fair. International education staff and 30 international students showcased the wealth of study abroad opportunities available to UL students and staff in 40 countries. An Erasmus+ workshop was led by Gerry O’Sullivan, HEA, highlighting engagement and funding opportunities for staff.IED has entered the final year of a five year activity plan (2010-2015) which has resulted in significant growth in outgoing student mobility (60%) and also in non-EU students recruited to undergraduate and taught postgraduate programmes (94%). This level of growth is well ahead of national and most international norms and reflects a university-wide, positive engagement in internationalisation. We

are now working on a Strategic Plan for Internationalisation for the period 2015-20 and are currently in a consultation process with UL Faculties and support services. The IED team would like to thank the University community for the continued support in promoting UL internationally and the great student care afforded to international students on campus. This work is rarely sufficiently recognised and is invaluable in attracting high quality students to UL and raising our profile overseas. We all look forward to working with you throughout 2014/15!

International Education DivisionIssue 5 2014Newsletter

Yvonne Crosse, IED, Pádraig Curran and Niamh Masterson, UL stu-dents who studied at the University of Jyväskylä, Finland in 2013-14 as part of the UL Erasmus programme , Dr. Patricia O’Flaherty, Erasmus and Exchanges Manager, UL and Gerry O’Sullivan, Erasmus+ National Agency Ireland

HE Mr Afonso Jose Sena Cardoso, Brazilian Ambassador to Ireland and his wife Mrs Solange Cardoso with Brazilian students(L-R) Diego Augusto Rodrigues Tavares, Augusto Ponso Alues, Victor Dorfeld Bi-chuette, Raphael Augusto De Oliveira Sautos. Front row (L-R) Patricia Ortiz, Louise Landi, Daniela Oliveria Guerra, Brazilian Embassy

Josephine Page, Director of IED

Welcome to the International Education Division Newsletter

UL International Student Ambassadors, Raj Shah, Marian Jones-Brooks and Kelly Milford pictured with An Taoiseach Enda Kenny TD and Amanda Glennon, IED, at Education in Ireland’s Student Ambassador award ceremony which was held in Dublin

UL International Student Ambassador, Kelly Milford, pictured receiving her Cer-tificate of Recognition from Ruairí Quinn

International students honouredUL Welcomes George J. Mitchell Scholar

UL Education in Ireland International Student Ambassadors, Marian Jones Brooks (USA), Kelly Milford (USA) and Raj Shah (India), were honoured for their work in promoting Ireland as an education destination at an event held in Dublin. Marian, Kelly and Raj were honoured alongside their fellow Education in Ireland Student Ambassadors by the then Minister for Education and Skills Ruairí Quinn T.D. and An Taoiseach Enda Kenny T.D. at the event which was held in Farmleigh House.Minister Quinn presented the Student Ambassadors with Certificates of Recognition and thanked them for their contribution in promoting Ireland as a study abroad destination. Minister Quinn said: ‘I want to thank the Education in Ireland Student Ambassadors for their great effort in promoting Ireland through social media. Education in Ireland’s online presence is significant and growing at an exceptional pace. In January 2012 we had 42,000 interactions with the Education in Ireland brand, as of April 2014 this has increased to over 1 million and we know that your activity on social media has had a lot to do with this’.An Taoiseach Enda Kenny T.D. also acknowledged the great work of the Student Ambassadors. Speaking at the event, An Taoiseach Enda Kenny T.D. said: “I would like to commend the success of the Student Ambassador Programme and the valuable work of promoting Ireland to international students, the importance of which has been recognised by the Government’s Action Plan for Jobs. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the university and college presidents who are here today but, most of all, to thank the outstanding group of young people from around the world who are playing a crucial role in developing cultural and diplomatic links with other countries and building Ireland’s reputation as an education destination”.

UL International Student Ambassadors honoured

The University of Limerick has been awarded over €1 million in funding, the highest amount allocated to any Irish third-level institute, by Erasmus+, the new EU programme for Education, Training, Youth and Sport. The majority of the funding will finance grants for students who undertake a study or work placement abroad while the rest of the funding will be used to support students with a disability and those from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds. 5 % of the funding will also be made available to UL staff who wish to visit partner universities in order to teach, train, exchange good practice and enhance relations between third-level institutions across Europe.Professor Paul McCutcheon, Vice President Academic and Registrar said: ‘This funding will greatly support our commitment to student and staff mobility. The University of Limerick has the largest and most successful Erasmus programme in Ireland with 1 in 3 undergraduate students spending a semester overseas on study or work placements, which adds greatly to their student experience. Moreover, it is known that time spent abroad directly enhances students’ employability, which is reflected in the fact that the University of Limerick has the highest graduate employment rate in Ireland.’The funding was awarded to UL based on last year’s mobility numbers. Almost 600 UL students travelled abroad on study or work placements last year, the highest figure in Ireland. The Erasmus+ programme aims to boost skills and employability and also support the modernisation of education, training and youth systems in Europe. The seven-year programme has a budget of over €14 billion which will help to support more than 4 million people to study, train, work or volunteer abroad. Students who would like to carry out their postgraduate study abroad will benefit from a new loan guarantee scheme, run by the European Investment Fund, under the new programme. Erasmus+ will also provide funding for educating and training staff, youth workers and for partnerships between universities, colleges, schools, enterprises and not-for-profit organisations.

UL awarded over €1 Million in Erasmus funding

Celebrations and Awards

Twins, Agyant and Avdhey Tiwari from India who both received MSc in Software Engineering pictured following the Conferring Ceremony

Yun Li who graduated from UL with an MSc in International Management & Global Business.

Melfy Alrashidi, Alharbi Rashed, MSc Software Engineering, and Alshammari Munif from Saudi Arabia pictured following the Conferring Ceremony

During the three days of the winter conferring ceremonies, 155 international students hailing from 19 countries were among the graduates including twins Agyant and Avdhey Tiwari from India who both received an MSc in Software Engineering

Winter Conferring

Professor Paul McCutcheon, UL Vice President Academic and

Registrar pictured with some of the students who were presented

with scholarships at the ceremony

Dr Ita Richardson pictured with a very happy bunch of Science and Engineering students who were presented with the Faculty of Science and Engineering Scholarships at the ceremony

Master of Science in Nursing Studies students pictured with Faculty after receiving their scholarships

Dr Philip O’Regan, Dean of Kemmy Business School, UL pictured with recipients of the Kemmy Business

School scholarships

The International Education Division at the University of Limerick honoured the academic achievements of their international students at a ceremony recently. Over 100 international students, including students from Brazil, Canada, China, India and USA, were honoured at the event and presented with scholarships, including Faculty of Education and Health Sciences scholarships,

Kemmy Business School scholarships, Faculty of Science and Engineering scholarships and Study Abroad Progression scholarships.Professor Paul McCutcheon, Vice President Academic and Registrar, and members of UL Faculty presented the scholarships to these high achieving studentsSpeaking at the ceremony, Prof Paul McCutcheon said: ‘These scholarships honour the

academic achievements of our international students and reflect the high standards that they have achieved. We are privileged that these international students have chosen to study in the University of Limerick.”Also in attendance at the event were UL Faculty and staff, including staff from the International Education Division.

Over 100 International Students honoured at UL

iGeneration scholarship recipients, Aleksandre Zibzibadze and Elene Mindadze pictured with Prof Paul McCutcheon, UL Vice President Aca-demic and Registrar

UL graduate, Irakli Gilauri (3rd left, front row) pictured with UL Faculty and staff during a recent visit to UL

A graduate of UL, Irakli Gilauri, has established a new scholarship programme in partnership with the University of Limerick. The iGeneration Foundation (IGF) Scholarship programme is available to undergraduate students who are citizens of Georgia. The IGF Scholarship will be awarded to two Georgian students each year and is aimed at academically-qualified, yet socio-economically challenged, students and covers full tuition fees, living costs and a monthly stipend. This September, UL was delighted to welcome the first students as part of this new scholarship initiative. Aleksandre Zibzibadze and Elene Mindadze are both studying at the Kemmy Business School where Aleksandre is studying for a BA in International Business and Elene is studying on the BBS with Japanese programme.Speaking about the motive behind the scholarship, Irakli Gilauri, Founder and Chairman of the IGF Scholarship programme said: ‘I strongly believe that the education that I received at the University of Limerick made a tremendous contribution in shaping my life and developing my career. I want Georgian students to experience the same opportunities that I did as a student at UL in the mid-90s.’Gilauri obtained a Bachelor of Business Studies (BBS) degree at UL and now holds the top position of CEO of Bank of Georgia. Gilauri recently visited UL with a number of delegates from the iGeneration Foundation and met with UL Faculty and staff, including Professor Paul McCutcheon, Vice President Academic and Registrar, Dr Philip O’Regan, Dean of Kemmy Business School and Josephine Page, Director of the International Education Division. Professor McCutcheon welcomed the new IGF Scholarships: ‘We are delighted to have the opportunity to partner with Irakli on the iGeneration Foundation Scholarship programme. The iGeneration scholarships will afford Georgian students the opportunity to study at UL and receive the same first class education as Irakli did when he studied here as an undergraduate student. The iGeneration scholarships will help to provide students with the best start to their academic journey at UL, an internationally renowned university which prides itself on its talented, high calibre graduates.’

UL Graduate establishes new scholarship programme at UL

new agreements and PartnershiPs

new PartnershipsAARHUS UNIVERSITY HumanitiesDenmark

Kozminski University BusinessPoland

Universidade Catolica Portuguesa EngineeringLisbon, Portugal

EM Strasbourg Business School BusinessFrance

Jagiellonian University PsychologyPoland

École nationale supérieure d’architecture ArchitectureParis-MalaquaisFrance

Adelphi University All FacultiesUSA

Cruzeiro Do Sul University All FacultiesBrazil

Kyorin University All FacultiesJapan

FOM Hochschule Fur Oekonomie All FacultiesGermany

Renmin University BusinessChina

Carleton University BusinessUSA

international student Numbers 2013/2014Programme of study

number of international students at ul 2013/14

Visiting Students: Erasmus, Exchange, Study Abroad and Summer School programmes

1,112

Full-time Undergraduate and Taught Postgraduate students

1,292

Students on academic placement overseas

391

Total International Mobility 2,795

Students enjoying a campus tour as part of the UL Saudi Arabia Open Day

Professor Paul McCutcheon, Vice President Academic Registrar and Ellen O’Connor, both UL, pictured with Faculty and staff from the University of Science and Technology Beijing (USTB) who visited UL recently. Also in the picture are students from USTB who are currently studying at UL.

Pictured above are Emily Gregory, USA, (former) Mayor of Limerick Cllr. Kathleen Leddin, Emmi Mantyla, Finland, Laura Moloney, International Education Division, UL and Kaisa Nevalainen, Finland. Cllr. Leddin visited UL during the Spring Orientation programme and welcomed the new students to Limerick.

Attending the Diwali celebrations at UL were Sameeu Arshad and Hari Kishan

Priyanka Vegad and Swathi at the UL Diwali celebrations

An event celebrating Malaysian culture was held at the University of Limerick in November. The event was held at the Irish World Academy and guests were treated to a night of traditional Malaysian Music, Song and Dance. The event was attended by UL staff and students, members of the Malaysian community in Limerick and the wider Limerick community. Mr Azhan Yasin, Malaysian Embassy Consular was also in attendance at the event.

The University of Limerick celebrated Diwali; the festival of lights at an event held in November. Over 60 Indian students were joined in the celebrations by UL faculty and staff from the International Education Division. Students wore traditional Indian dress and guests were treated to Indian food, music and dance. At the event, guests were invited to light diyas (tea lights) which signifies the triumph of good over evil which is at the heart of Diwali. Dr Sean McGrath, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Electronic and Computer Engineering addressed the students and spoke of the importance of the Indian Community at the University of Limerick. Commenting on the event, Rama Mogalapu, student and Indian cultural advisor at UL said ‘We celebrated Diwali in UL, just like at home as a family, starting with lighting diya’s and sparklers, prayer, delicious Indian food and loads of fun. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the International Education Division for their support and for celebrating Diwali with us and making it memorable for a lifetime.’Diwali is one of the most important festivals in India and has become an annual event at UL.

The University of Limerick continues to increase in its popularity amongst US students studying abroad. For the academic year 2012/2013, UL saw a 15% increase in the number of US students. This increase is reflective of the year-on-year upward trend in the number of US students studying at UL. ‘The study abroad experience is pivotal to the college experience for US undergraduates’ said Josephine Page, Director of International Education at UL. ‘UL’s ability to respond to the needs of this student cohort in terms of access to courses across all disciplines, the modular structure of the UL degree, outstanding student support and guaranteed campus housing have significantly contributed to the continuous growth of the study abroad programme at UL. Recent programme innovations allow students to avail of in-service learning ‘practicums’, summer programmes in non-traditional disciplines such as Engineering and Nursing as well as the traditional suite of traditional Irish studies programmes.’Growth in the number of US students can be seen across all of UL’s study programmes

with the largest growth seen in the number of US students enrolling in UL’s Postgraduate programmes, which witnessed a 70% increase. Josephine Page added: ‘Ireland is an increasingly attractive destination for graduate students, our one year taught master’s degree combined with the high cost of education in the US, have resulted in a 70% increase in US, taught postgraduate students at UL from 2012 to 2013. The International Education team, working in collaboration with the IUA and Education in Ireland, plan to continue this growth into 2014 and beyond.’ According to a recent Open Doors Report, an annual survey on study abroad trends conducted by the Institute of International Education, Ireland saw a 9% increase in the number of US students coming to study in 2011/2012 which places Ireland as the ninth most popular study destination overall for US students. Education in Ireland expects this upward trend to continue in 2013/2014. The academic year 2012/2013, also saw UL welcome more than 2,200 overseas students, the largest number in the University’s 40 year history.

A celebration of Malaysian culture at UL

UL Continues to increase in popularity for US students studying abroad

Diwali celebrations at UL

news and Events

The University of Limerick welcomes the largest cohort of International Students in its history this year with 2,500 students representing over 100 countries attending the University, who are estimated to contribute in the region of €19million to the mid-west region. The €19million figure is based on student spending estimates of between €7,000 and €12,000 in one year and does not include tuition fees paid to the University of Limerick.Josephine Page, Director, International Education Division said: “International students make a very significance impact to our region in terms of our economy, tourism but also in the cultural links built which will continue for years to come.”Officially welcoming the students to UL, Professor Don Barry, President said: “UL is proud of its long tradition in welcoming visiting students to Limerick. We have one of the largest Erasmus exchange programmes in Ireland; we have been welcoming study abroad students for the past 20 years and have made many academic links and partnerships with universities right across the globe.”Among the international students visiting UL this year are those taking part in Study Abroad programmes, Erasmus and International Exchange programmes and full-time degree students.

UL also welcomes 150 Brazilian students taking part in the Science without Borders programme. Josephine Page added: “I think the reason we excel in this area is because so many of our students are encouraged to partake in international study themselves and so we welcome international students as we’d like our students to be welcomed abroad. 30 % of UL undergraduate students spend a semester abroad, this is through Erasmus, non-EU exchange or Cooperative Education.”UL has links with over 400 universities in 38 countries and welcomes over 2,500 international students each year. International students currently account for 13.5% of the total student number and this continues to increase year-on-year. 1 in 3 undergraduate students at UL spend a semester overseas – last year saw almost 600 UL students travel abroad on study or work placements making it the largest and most successful Erasmus programme in Ireland. In a recent International Student Barometer™ survey, UL was voted as the number one university in providing the Best Student Experience, Best Student Support and Warmest Welcome in Ireland. Across the four surveyed categories of ‘Living’, ‘Support’, ‘Arrival’ and ‘Learning’, UL was voted as having the best overall Living Experience in Ireland and the 5th in the world.

International Students at UL will bring €19million to the mid-west region

Amanda Glennon (1st left) UL pictured with a delegation of North Ameri-can College Counsellors who visited UL recently

Maria Cooney, IED, pictured during a promotional trip to Malaysia Amanda Glennon, IED, pictured with Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton at the EI trade mission to India.

Erasmus Partner Week visitors pictured at Poulnabrone Dolmen

UL welcomed over 30 visitors from 18 European universities during its Erasmus Staff Week which was held in April. The visitors attended seminars and workshops facilitated by UL Faculty and staff. They were also treated to the sights and delights of Limerick and local attractions including the Cliffs of Moher and the Poulnabrone Dolmen.

Staff from IED and UL travelled abroad over 30 times in 2013/2014 to promote UL as an attractive international destination for third level education. International Education Fairs and conferences were attended by IED staff and UL Faculty in our key markets of Europe, China, India, Middle East and the USA.

Staff Trips

UL was delighted to welcome a delegation of North American College Counsellors on campus as part of the annual College Counsellors visit to Irish Universities. The counsellors spent a day at UL, touring the campus and meeting with faculty and students. They were also treated to a performance by students at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance. The purpose of the visit is to give individuals a first-hand experience of Irish universities, familiarise interested individuals with the Irish University system, application process, tuition costs, as well as outlining the advantages of an Irish University education for North American students. Hosting an annual counsellor visit is an important way to build an awareness of and interest in UL amongst high school counsellors, while also strengthening established links with American High Schools and Colleges

US High School Counsellors visit UL

Erasmus Partner Week

ul Promotes