Final year students fear course will not be accredited

DOZENS of student teachers fear not being able to get jobs as their course at the University of Limerick is still not accredited.

The Teaching Council is considering a submission from UL to approve its Bachelor of Arts (Education) in Modern Languages.

Almost 20 students, the first entrants to the course in 2007, fear their qualification may not be recognised for teaching work after they graduate next summer. Around 50 students are enrolled in the programme’s first, second and third years.

UL Students Union education officer, Aoife Finnerty, said there is major concern that students will have completed four years of study and the course has not been accredited.

“Our big concern is that these students can get jobs when they leave college and that they have the best possible chance of getting work. The standard of education on the course is incredibly high, but that means nothing if they’re not allowed to teach,” she said.

The Teaching Council said it recently received UL’s submission with final information relating to its accreditation request.

A UL spokesman said the college expects accreditation to be approved in the coming months: “The delay in accreditation is not due in any way to a lack of quality in the programme but because the innovative structure of the programme meant there was a great deal of work to be done in clarifying how the programme meets the technical requirements for registration as a teacher.”