gov.ie - Education (www.gov.ie)

Education is compulsory for children in Ireland from the ages of six to sixteen or until students have completed three years of second-level education.

The Irish education system is made up of:

• Early Childhood
• Primary
• Post Primary
• Further Education and Training
• Higher Education 
• Qualifications Recognition Professional
• Educational provision for students with special educational needs
• Provision for disadvantaged students

State-funded education is available at all levels, unless you choose to send your child to a private institution gov.ie - Education (www.gov.ie)

Technological University of Dublin established 1/1/19 with the merger of the Dublin Institute of Technology, the Institute of Technology Blanchardstown and the Institute of Technology Tallaght.

Munster Technological University was established 1/1/21 with the merger of Cork Institute of Technology and Institute of Technology Tralee.

Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest was established  1/10/21 with the merger of Athlone Institute of Technology and Limerick Institute of Technology.

QQI is the state agency with responsibility for quality assurance of education and training of further and higher education and training providers in the state in the context of post-school provision.

The Irish Register of Qualifications (IRQ) lists quality-assured, recognised qualifications offered by universities, technological universities, institutes of technology, private HE colleges, education and training boards, and private FE providers delivering courses leading to QQI Awards. 

The Register is managed by QQI in association with the providing institutions. The register will allow domestic and international authorities to confirm which qualifications are on the NFQ, which courses lead to these qualifications and the associated awarding body.

A key function for QQI is to organise and oversee independent quality reviews of each of Ireland’s public higher education institutions. QQI is currently mid-way through the current review cycle, CINNTE, which runs from 2017 to 2023.   

An independent mid-cycle review commissioned by QQI has found that all seven institutions reviewed between 2018 and 2020 have established and implemented quality assurance (QA) arrangements based on effective governance structures. 

Mid-term Report Card on Higher Education Quality Assurance (qqi.ie)

Further Education covers education and training which occurs after second level schooling but which is not part of the third level system. The providers of Further and Adult Education and Training include a wide variety of schools, organisations and institutions (public and private), who are involved in the delivery of continuing education and training for young school leavers, job seekers, the employed and adults returning to education. 

For awards recognised on the National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ), view the Irish Register of Qualifications.

• The Education and Training Boards Act 2013 was passed in 2013 and  provided for the dissolution of Vocational Education Committees (VECs) and established the 16 Education and Training Boards (ETBs) involving the merger of some of the 33 existing VECs. 
• The Further Education and Training Act 2013 was signed into law in July 2013. The Act provides for the establishment of SOLAS and the dissolution of FÁS. The legislation also provides for the gradual transfer of FÁS training centres and training staff to the newly formed Education and Training Boards.

• Arising from the commencement of the Education and Training Boards Act, the 16 ETBs were established on 1st July 2013. 
• Upon establishment, the ETBs had responsibility for the delivery of primary, post primary and further education in line with their predecessor VECs.  The transfer of former FÁS training functions would occur on a phased basis.

SOLAS was established on 27 October 2013, bringing about the dissolution of FÁS. SOLAS will work with the ETBs to support the development of appropriate further education and training programmes and curricula and the sourcing of further education and training interventions from the private, public and not for profit sector.

Certification in the Further and Higher Education and Training Sector is usually in alignment with the National Framework of Qualifications – an awards framework of 10 levels which is aligned to the European Framework of Qualifications. 

A state agency of the Department of Education and Skills quality assures institutions of further and higher education and training, validates educational programmes and makes awards to learners.

The main providers of further and adult education and training are the Education and Training Boards (ETBs).  

Full-Time Programmes in Further Education

• Post Leaving Certificate (PLC) Courses and apprenticeship
• Vocational Training Opportunities Scheme (VTOS)                                     
• Youthreach

Part-Time Programmes in Further Education

• Back To Education Initiative (BTEI)                                                          
• Adult Literacy                                                                             
• Community Education

Technological University of Dublin established 1/1/19 with the merger of the Dublin Institute of Technology, the Institute of Technology Blanchardstown and the Institute of Technology Tallaght.

Munster Technological University was established 1/1/21 with the merger of Cork Institute of Technology and Institute of Technology Tralee.

Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest was established  1/10/21 with the merger of Athlone Institute of Technology and Limerick Institute of Technology.

Privately funded higher education colleges offering validated programmes leading to awards of Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI) can be identified using this link:

Irish Register of Qualifications

QQI Policy and Criteria for the Academic Recognition of Foreign Qualifications

Holders of a foreign qualification who wish to have it recognised in Ireland, or if you have been presented with a foreign qualification and wish to understand it in the context of the Irish qualifications system, you can refer to the NARIC Ireland Foreign Qualifications Database here. 

Statements for hundreds of qualifications from many countries can be downloaded from our database at your convenience. These comparability statements are designed to help individuals understand their qualification in the context of the Irish education system and may help employers, institutions and other bodies with recognition decisions.

The comparability statement offers advice including a comparable award and level on the Irish National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ) and a description of the learning outcomes associated with the given level on the NFQ.

Guides to using the database in a number of languages can be viewed here.

If a particular qualification is not included in the NARIC Ireland database, a query can be submitted using this link NARIC Award Queries

It can take up to 12 weeks for us to respond to a query, although where possible, we will respond sooner. Once a decision has been reached, an email will be sent with a response to the query including a link to the database, where relevant.

There are a number of regulated professions in Ireland. Anyone wishing to practice in one of these professions, should contact the relevant authority.  A list of Professional Bodies is available here and a list of Registration bodies for certain employments - DETE (enterprise.gov.ie).

Recognition advice provided by NARIC Ireland does not represent right of access to employment, a regulated profession or education and training. Recognition decisions for the purposes of accessing further education and/or employment are made by education institutions, professional recognition bodies and employers.

Criteria for Recognition
Our research work and our advice is informed by criteria related to the education and training and qualifications systems of the country of origin and specific details of the relevant foreign qualification

The qualifications database website lists more than 1,400 qualifications and an individual regardless of  their status can access a Comparability Statement for their academic qualifications free of charge from the relevant pages. 

This Comparability Statement compares the foreign qualification to an award type and level on the Irish national framework of qualifications. An employer or higher education institution can review this information in the context of their requirements.

We have developed a user-guide in a number of languages for understanding the information contained in the comparability statements . 

Recognition of foreign qualifications | Quality and Qualifications Ireland (qqi.ie)

COVID 19 arrangements: The Irish Leaving Certificate 2021 

On 17 February the Irish Government announced that the written Leaving Certificate 2021 examinations will be held in June with related components also proceeding as far as possible subject to public health advice. A corresponding process of grades accredited by the State Examinations Commission (SEC) has been made available to students who opt to receive them Read the announcement.

Students have the option of whether to sit the examinations, receive SEC Accredited Grades, or both, on a subject by subject basis. Students have the option of registering to sit examinations in any number of subjects, while also receiving SEC Accredited Grades in any number of subjects.

On results day, students will get the better of the two results if they opted to both sit examinations and receive SEC Accredited Grades.

It is intended that the results of both the examinations and the SEC Accredited Grades processes will issue to students within the required timeframe for progression to higher and further education in Ireland.

For more detail see A Guide to State Examinations and Accredited Grades For Leaving Certificate 2021.

More details are also available from the State Examinations Commission which is responsible for the development, assessment, accreditation and certification of the second-level examinations of the Irish state: the Junior Certificate/Cycle and the Leaving Certificate. The State Examinations Commission is a non-departmental public body under the aegis of the Department of Education www.examinations.ie is the official state examinations.

A verification service is available for a fee at 

Verification for an evaluation service | Quality and Qualifications Ireland (qqi.ie)

Verification of awards made by institutions which are designated awarding bodies in their own right will be available from these institutions.