Third-level and retraining places for jobseekers
Introduction
If you are unemployed, you may want to continue your education or take part in a training course so as to develop your skills and improve your chances of getting back to work. There are several ways in which you can go back to education and either keep your social welfare payment or switch to Back to Education Allowance.
Several schemes have been aimed at providing third-level education for people who are unemployed.
- Since 2011, the Springboard initiative offers part-time higher education places.
- In previous years: the Labour Market Activation Fund offered a total of 11,500 training and education places in 2010 and the Back to College Initiative for Jobseekers offered 2,500 part-time college places in 2009 - see 'Schemes in previous years' below
Springboard
The Higher Education Springboard Programme was launched in 2011. It provides higher education places for unemployed people on a range of part-time courses from certificate to master's degree levels - Levels 6 to 9 on the National Framework of Qualifications.
The programme is aimed at people who have previously been employed in construction, manufacturing or other sectors of the economy where employment levels are unlikely to recover to pre-recession levels.
Details on the range of courses available and who is eligible are on bluebrick.ie.
Courses are offered in information and communications technology (ICT); the green economy; international financial services and qualifications for the bio-pharma-pharmachem and medical devices sectors. There are also some courses aimed at developing innovative business and entrepreneurship skills.
Most of the courses started in autumn 2011, with a further batch of courses starting in spring 2012.
Who is eligible?
In order to qualify for Springboard, you must:
- Be unemployed, with a previous history of employment
and
- Be getting Jobseeker's Benefit, Jobseeker's Allowance or One-Parent Family Payment at the time of starting a Springboard course
or
- Be signing for social insurance credits at the time of starting a Springboard course
and
- Be actively seeking and available to take up employment
If you are on short time working and getting a jobseeker’s payment, this counts as being unemployed for the purposes of Springboard.
Further information is available in a detailed set of Frequently Asked Questions.
Rates
Participants on a Springboard course do not have to pay any course fees or charges while they are unemployed.
There is no charge for courses under the Labour Market Activation Fund.
There are no tuition fees for courses under the Back to College Initiative and you are not required to pay a registration fee. Postgraduate students may have to pay a nominal charge.
How to apply
To apply for Springboard, you choose the course(s) you are interested in on bluebrick.ie and select the ‘apply now’ option. You will be asked to complete form UP51b and get it stamped at your Social Welfare Local Office.
Send the completed form UP51b to your Springboard course provider.
Schemes in previous years
Labour Market Activation Fund for 2010
The Labour Market Activation Fund for 2010 provided a total of 11,500 training and education places for jobseekers, ranging from Level 3 to Level 8 on the National Framework of Qualifications.
The places were mainly for people who are less skilled, who have worked in construction, retail and manufacturing, who are aged under 35 or who are long-term unemployed. The Fund is managed by the Department of Education and Skills, and the courses are run by a number of VECs, Institutes of Technology and other organisations who successfully tendered for funding.
To qualify for a place under the Labour Market Activation Fund for 2010, you must have been getting an unemployment payment for at least 3 months before starting the course. Time spent on training or education programmes counted towards this 3-month period. Course providers may also have minimum requirements.
While attending a training course under this scheme, you may qualify to keep your welfare payment for as long as you would normally be entitled to it.
If you attend a course of education you may qualify for a Back to Education
allowance.
Back to College Initiative for Jobseekers
This initiative offered 2,500 part-time third-level places to jobseekers for courses starting in September 2009.
The scheme is now closed to new entrants, but students already on the courses will be able to complete them.
The scheme was organised by the Department of Education and Skills, the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation and the Higher Education Authority (HEA).
People who had been getting Jobseeker's Benefit or Jobseeker's Allowance for at least 6 months on 1 September 2009 were eligible for these courses. People who had received statutory redundancy and had an entitlement to a relevant social welfare payment were also eligible.
Under the Part-time Option of the Back to Education Programme you are entitled to keep your jobseeker's payment while you are on the course. If you are getting Jobseeker's Benefit (JB) you will get it for the normal duration of your entitlement, either 9 or 12 months. When your JB finishes you should check if you are entitled to Jobseeker's Allowance.
If you took up a third-level place under this scheme you must continue to be available for and genuinely seeking work. If you get an offer of full-time work you must take up this employment offer. If you get a job before your course finishes you will not have to pay the course fees for that year.
The courses last from 1 to 4 years. As these are part-time courses you are not eligible for a third-level education maintenance grant or the Back to Education Allowance.
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Related Documents
- Looking for work: education and training
If you are unemployed there is a range of different education and training opportunities. These include courses specifically for unemployed people. - Continuing education and training
Find out about the various ways of continuing your education, furthering your training and acquiring new skills. - Grants and funds available for mature students
Information on grants and funds available for mature students in third-level education.
Contact Us
If you have a question relating to this topic you can contact the Citizens Information Phone Service on 0761 07 4000 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 9pm) or you can visit your local Citizens Information Centre.