Limerick asylum seeker Anna Kern awarded scholarship to study at the Royal College of Surgeons

An asylum seeker, who was at the centre of controversy surrounding access to third-level education, has described how being in university is a “dream come true”.

Anna Kern, 19, who is originally from Ukraine, went to school at Coláiste Nano Nagle in Sexton Street, Limerick, and received 575 points in her Leaving Cert.

However, the 19-year-old could not afford to accept her place in physiotherapy at the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin as the rules concerning college admission for asylum seekers meant she faced the full €17,000 a year tuition fee.