A new university oversight body, a review of the student number cap and the regeneration of Derry’s university ecosystem are among the priorities of the Northern Irish higher education sector now that power-sharing has resumed in the province.
The collapse of the devolved government in May 2022 because of the Democratic Unionist Party’s (DUP) opposition to post-Brexit trade arrangements, left universities in limbo amid a deepening funding crisis and educational migration.
Stormont’s inability to address the country’s student number cap has limited opportunities for young people and damaged the regional economy, Ian Greer, vice-chancellor of Queen’s University Belfast, told Times Higher Education.
“At the moment, current government policy is forcing a third of our young people to seek higher education outside Northern Ireland as the current cap on numbers limits choice,” said Sir Ian.
