UCC nursing students 'strongly' advised to hold off buying 'required' iPads 

UCC students' union has flagged the issue with School of Nursing, which is currently requiring all first-year students to have access to their own personal Apple device, with costs of more than €700

The UCC School of Nursing is currently requiring all first-year students to have access to their own personal Apple device, either an iPad or an iPad mini, iOS 12 or higher, and an Apple pen.

University College Cork (UCC) is standing over its decision to require first-year nursing students to have access to an iPad as necessary for the course.

It comes as incoming nursing students were “strongly” advised by their students’ union to hold off purchasing the iPads required by the college after concerns were raised over the new course requirement.

The UCC school of nursing is currently requiring all first-year students to have access to their own personal Apple device, either an iPad or an iPad mini, iOS 12 or higher, and an Apple pen.

This is thought to be the first higher-education course to tell students they are required to have access to a specific, branded piece of tech prior to beginning their course. A 64GB iPad mini and Apple pen currently cost more than €700 if purchased directly from Apple.

It is understood that the UCC school of nursing requires the device as it plans to use an assessment tool for students’ clinical placements which is not available yet on Android.

Students' Union advice

In a statement, the UCC student’s union said it was “strongly advising” all first-year nursing students to hold off on purchasing an iPad for the academic year until several issues it flagged with the school are “ironed out.” 

 “We will continue to engage with the school [of nursing] and university on this matter over the coming week before first years commence on September 26.” 

A spokesman for UCC said the university is “acutely aware” of the challenges currently faced by students.

“The School of Nursing and Midwifery is committed to making provision to support students who do not have the means to purchase this device themselves.

"Any student who qualifies for UCC’s Laptop Loan scheme will be supplied with the required device for their programme on a long-term loan. Students should contact the School of Nursing and Midwifery for support.” 

Students will not be required to make any other hardware purchases for the duration of their course, the spokesperson added.

Device availability

Dr Ann Marcus-Quinn, an expert in technical communications and lecturer at the University of Limerick, said this is the first time she has heard of a third-level course stipulating the mandatory purchase of a specific brand to its students.

The use of iPads and tablets in second-level schools has grown exponentially since 2010 when iPads were first released. Junior Cycle reform has seen ICT fully embedded in the curriculum, and “tasks that require technology have been put into the heart and soul of it", she said.

However, schools haven't been given devices for all students, so many students are asked to provide their own.

“Technology is not necessarily a bad thing, but just because it is available doesn’t mean it needs to be front and centre. Because one school does it, it starts to creep and that’s the real issue," said Dr Marcus-Quinn.

In a ‘post-covid’ world, many schools now require students to have access to a personal digital device, even if this isn’t listed in the school policy, she added.

“I can see that filtering into both primary school and third level."