Munster tech university plan gets mixed reactions

The proposed establishment of a technological university by three colleges in Cork, Kerry and Limerick has drawn mixed reactions.

The plan announced yesterday by Cork Institute of Technology (CIT), Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT) and Institute of Technology Tralee (ITT) would see them come under a new title of the Munster Technological University (MTU), with a combined total of 24,000 students.

But a former mayor of Waterford has claimed this and other groupings in the Dublin and border, midlands and west (BMW) region are vying unfairly with Waterford Institute of Technology’s joint bid with Institute of Technology Carlow (ITC) for TU status.

Cllr Mary Roche, an independent member of Waterford City Council, said every other region already had a university.

“The only region in the country that doesn’t have a university and suffers from a lack of a university is the South-East. I’m not one to point fingers, but it does seem to me that there’s a certain amount of malice afoot in what the other ITs are doing,” she said.

“They have never supported the upgrading of WIT, and now Carlow, into a university of the South- East, Ms Roche said.

The TU sector is being set up on foot of the Government higher education strategy, published a year ago. A Higher Education Authority (HEA) spokesperson said the awarding of TU status would not be about geography but about the quality of courses provided.

Kerry Fine Gael TD Brendan Griffin, former vice-chairperson of ITT, said the proposed MTU could play a pivotal role in economic recovery for Kerry and the southern region.

“While a merger with CIT and LIT would present some difficulties and challenges for ITT, I believe that benefits would far outweigh any drawbacks,” he said.

Dr Maria Hinfelaar, president of LIT, said it was not intended to cut jobs or move people between campuses, but instead to allow all three colleges provide more with the same resources.

The criteria and the formal application process were signed off by the HEA at a meeting yesterday. They will not be published until later this month, but it is expected that a TU will have to offer more focus on technological links and relationships with industry than traditional universities.