Degree changes - Students to bear brunt of college costs

EDUCATION Minister Noel Dempsey seems to be on somewhat of a mission to introduce third-level fees in some shape or form.

The latest guise under which the controversial subject of third-level fees is being cloaked is the apparent abolition of the present degree system for medicine and other health disciplines, to be replaced by postgraduate courses.

Easing the pressure on students is a commendable aspiration, but this latest ploy would also considerably ease the financial burden on the Government by transferring it to the students and their families.