Surveys

Suirbhé Náisiúnta na Macléinn 2025

PGR National Student Survey 2025

The 2025 PGR survey opened in University of Galway on the 11th February 2025 and closed on the 4th March, 2025. 

Key results of the national survey are available here and of the University of Galway results here.

• Graduate Studies presented your feedback to university staff and to your student representatives.  

• Graduate Studies provided your feedback to Colleges, who were tasked with producing Action Plans, with such plans published below. Colleges and Schools were encouraged to consult with postgraduate research students in the preparation of their Action Plans. 

University-wide initiatives/supports are as follows: 

• Continued collaboration with the Students Union on selection of PGR representatives across Colleges and Schools. 

• Advocacy at a national level for improved financial support of funded PhDs, and for changes to visa and IRP card processes to better support international doctoral students.  Agreement in January 2025 to support an increase in stipends to €25k pa for internal scholarship holders to align with national funder stipend levels.  

• Continued support of the Hardiman Scholarship scheme allocating scholarships to 20 PhD awardees in 2025, including an award ring-fenced to support a PhD applicant with a disclosed disability and an award co-funding collaborative research with the EU Joint Research Centre(s). 

• Introduction of Research Masters International Merit Scholarship to provide a fee reduction scholarship for funded Masters, in approved cases where the funder does not cover the full international fee. 

• Implementation of QA214 paid family leave for doctoral students. 

• Supported PGR student dissemination of research through the Galway Threesis, and National  & International 3MT competitions, organised in collaboration with the Researcher Development Centre and Research Office. Hosted MA Thèse en 180 secondes at University of Galway in 2025, an annual competition organised by the Irish University Association and French Embassy, where students can demonstrate their research success in French. Supported the Mo Thráchtas i mBeagán Focal event organised by the Higher Education Authority.

• Awarded write-up bursaries over the summer to support PhD completion, with agreement to increase, for summer 2026, the write-up bursary to €1300/month. 

• Collaborated with the Students Union in organising a summer ‘re-orientation’ barbeque for continuing PGR students in August 2025, to enhance University wide research community engagement and wellbeing.

• Collaborated with Campus Living and Global Galway to obtain an on-campus bed allocation for selected (by lottery) international PGR students. 

• Increased opportunity for collaborative activities by fostering knowledge sharing, mobility and exchanges across partner universities e.g. Enlight knowledge exchange and approval of a Framework for Joint PhDs with Enlight partners. 

• Enhanced orientation, induction and communication with PGRs to include more explicit signposting to student supports & services and to clarify how to engage with personal and professional skills development in conjunction with Researcher Development Centre. 

• Expanded the workshops, seminars and courses offered by and through the Researcher Development Centre, with increased staffing allocated to the RDC and engagement with Colleges, to support PGR personal and professional skills development. 

                                                  College/School Action Plans 2025-26

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