applying to a scottish university as an irish citizen?

APW1995

I know Scottish students can get into Scottish unis for free, and have recently discovered (think it was probably common knowledge to everyone else lol) that if you have an EU passport outside of the UK then you can also get into Scottish uni for free?

Currently I’m an English citizen with an English passport but my grandparents are Irish, meaning I can apply for citizenship by decent and then try to apply to Scottish unis hopefully getting the tuition free. I haven’t contacted any unis to confirm this is all possible so I thought I would start here and ask if anyone else has actually successfully done this.

I prospectus for Glasgow university and it was talking about this opportunity, however it said for those who LIVE in eu countries outside of the UK bla bla bla .. I live in London so could this effect my chances?

Also, I read that I would have to apply for grants to the EU as obviously the uk wouldn’t give me grants as I would be applying as a foreign student.. So how easy is this?

I hope I'm asking this in the right place aha, basically to sum up;

1. Can I get into Scottish uni for free as an Irish citizen
2. Do I have to live in Ireland to do this
3. What do I do about grants

And 4... I'm only beginning to apply for citizenship now, and I probably won’t have it by the time I apply in September/October as it usually takes 6 months to finalise... does this mean the whole plan would be useless because I have to be a full Irish citizen with an Irish passport at the time I apply before I even get an offer?

thanks.

(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 1

Ecosse_14

19

It's based on where you live, and since you live in England, you'll probably have to pay the full fees. Contact SAAS or relevant unis for advice though :smile:

Reply 2

venenecinema

16

Original post by Ecosse_14

It's based on where you live, and since you live in England, you'll probably have to pay the full fees. Contact SAAS or relevant unis for advice though :smile:

Sorry for the bump but that's false information. Students living within the UK holding both and Irish and UK passports, whether it be through Grandparents or through parents, are eligible for free university education in Scotland.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-17900220

Reply 3

Ecosse_14

19

Original post by venenecinema

Sorry for the bump but that's false information. Students living within the UK holding both and Irish and UK passports, whether it be through Grandparents or through parents, are eligible for free university education in Scotland.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-17900220

Edit: I didn't think I was going mad. See reply below.

(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 4

oxymoronic

19

Original post by venenecinema

Sorry for the bump but that's false information. Students living within the UK holding both and Irish and UK passports, whether it be through Grandparents or through parents, are eligible for free university education in Scotland.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-17900220

No, they're not from 2013 entry as the rules have changed and your article is out of date. This is what Ecosse would have been referring to with his response.

The rules for 2013 entry onwards mean that people who are UK nationals living in the UK (excluding Scotland) who also happen to have a passport for somewhere else in the EU will not be able to get free tuition at a Scottish university unless they have exercised their right to live in a non UK EU country for a period of time prior to their application.

In the case of the OP they are living in London and will not have been living in Ireland (or elsewhere in the EU) prior to application so therefore will be treated as an English domiciled student applying to university in Scotland.

http://www.saas.gov.uk/student_support/funding_update.htm

Reply 5

acerspades

I have a quick question. I live in England and have my whole life. I applied to uni, putting my citizenship down as Irish because I have an Irish and not a UK passport, even though I have dual citizenship. I simply did it because it was easier to prove I had Irish citizenship than UK citizenship, and it didn't affect fees or anything.

I just received a fee status questionnaire from Edinburgh, and it asks me why I think I should be entitled to pay fees at the home-EU rate. Should I just say why I put down my citizenship as Irish?

Reply 6

splodge88

Original post by APW1995

I know Scottish students can get into Scottish unis for free, and have recently discovered (think it was probably common knowledge to everyone else lol) that if you have an EU passport outside of the UK then you can also get into Scottish uni for free?

Currently I’m an English citizen with an English passport but my grandparents are Irish, meaning I can apply for citizenship by decent and then try to apply to Scottish unis hopefully getting the tuition free. I haven’t contacted any unis to confirm this is all possible so I thought I would start here and ask if anyone else has actually successfully done this.

I prospectus for Glasgow university and it was talking about this opportunity, however it said for those who LIVE in eu countries outside of the UK bla bla bla .. I live in London so could this effect my chances?

Also, I read that I would have to apply for grants to the EU as obviously the uk wouldn’t give me grants as I would be applying as a foreign student.. So how easy is this?

I hope I'm asking this in the right place aha, basically to sum up;

1. Can I get into Scottish uni for free as an Irish citizen
2. Do I have to live in Ireland to do this
3. What do I do about grants

And 4... I'm only beginning to apply for citizenship now, and I probably won’t have it by the time I apply in September/October as it usually takes 6 months to finalise... does this mean the whole plan would be useless because I have to be a full Irish citizen with an Irish passport at the time I apply before I even get an offer?

thanks.