University of Limerick

The University of Limerick through the implementation of a central screening system have made access to third-level through the Higher Education Access Route (HEAR) and the Disability Access Route to Education (DARE) easier for applicants and more efficient for processing third-level institutions.  HEAR and DARE are two supplementary admission to schemes for individuals from socio-economic disadvantaged backgrounds and for individuals with a disability / specific learning difficulty seeking to study at Third-level. Applications are made through the Central Applications Office (CAO) with the admissions schemes operating at sectoral level with 16 institutions participating in HEAR and 13 institutions participating in DARE. The schemes are co-ordinated by the Irish Universities Association (IUA) and all 7 universities are members of both schemes.

In 2011, the University of Limerick secured a contract with the IUA to develop and implement a central screening system for the participating institutions in the HEAR and DARE schemes. With numbers applying to both schemes on the rise the need for advanced management systems became vital.  Lewis Purser, Director (Academic Affairs) at the Irish Universities Association commented “The objective was to ensure greater reliability and efficiency in the processing of all data linked to receiving and assessing applications, through a shared service available to all participating colleges. Following consultation, the University of Limerick offered to host, design and operate this service on a pilot basis, with other institutions contributing to the cost of this through the overall project budget. From the IUA perspective, this was an ideal solution, bringing together UL’s internal strengths in undergraduate admissions, widening participation and data systems to deliver this service”. The CAO is now shadowing the UL process, in order to take it on entirely in 2013, thus allowing for further expansion and efficiencies in the years to come.

The project was a joint initiative between the Student Affairs Division (Admissions Office) and the Information Technology Division, consisting of Joachim Barnett (Project Leader), Ben Lenihan (Technical Development and Support) and Denis Murphy (Institution Support). The central screening system used the latest technologies for document retrieval, assessment, workflows and integrated with CAO systems. It facilitated secure remote access by participating institutions to complete the screening process from within their own institutions. In 2011, the central screening system processed over 7,000 applications. Applicants who were screened as eligible, having met the criteria of the supplementary admission schemes, qualified for consideration under targeted entry routes in operation at all of the participating institutions to which they applied.

Further information on HEAR and DARE is available from www.accesscollege.ie