Mayor of Dublin hosts international students

Students from countries including China, India, Kazakhstan, Russia, the United States and Zimbabwe attended a welcome reception at the Mansion House this month. The gathering was an initiative taken through the Lord Mayor of Dublin's International Student Scholarship and the Dublin Regional Higher Education Alliance.

Lord Mayor Emer Costello thanked them for having made Dublin their city of choice and reminded them that they are now citizens of Dublin.  In her address to over 100 students attending, she stressed that 'the importance of international students to our future cannot be overstated.'

'Economically you will provide much of the talent, ideas and opportunities which will develop our economy. Culturally and socially we have much to learn from you, and in that learning we can ensure that our society becomes more global in colour and understanding, more tolerant of diversity in all its forms and more open to the richness of the world.'

However, the Lord Mayor also criticised government immigration policy as blocking international students from coming to Ireland and contributing to the economy.

She said the Government rejected almost 40 per cent of applications from Chinese students and nearly half of applications from Turkish students who wanted to study at Irish third-level institutions, even when they had been accepted for entry to courses.  Britain, in contrast, accepted 95 per cent of applications from Chinese students and 90 per cent of Turkish students, she said.

'While vigilance at our borders and entry points is essential, we should be able to develop a rational way of welcoming international students who have been accepted for entry into university and higher education courses.'