Public Service Excellence Award for UCC

Ms Cliona Hannon, Chair of the DARE HEAR Strategic Development Group pictured receiving a Public Service Excellence Award from An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, TD

Ms Cliona Hannon, Chair of the DARE HEAR Strategic Development Group pictured receiving a Public Service Excellence Award from An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, TD

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At a ceremony in Dublin Castle, An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny T.D. presented a Public Service Excellence Award to two college admission schemes, the Disability Access Route to Education (DARE) and the Higher Education Access Route (HEAR).

 

The awards, which seek out improvements and innovative activities from the public sector, recognise the success of the DARE & HEAR schemes in increasing the numbers of students entering third level with disabilities or from disadvantaged backgrounds.

University College Cork was one of the founding members of these college admissions schemes and provides invaluable expertise and support to the schemes operation. In UCC, students who enter through the HEAR scheme receive supports from the UCC PLUS+ office and students who enter through the DARE scheme receive supports from the Disability Support Service. The schemes are administrated by the CAO in conjunction with the admissions offices of each of the participating institutions and support given by the academic colleges and other student support services 

Since the schemes were opened up to all secondaryschool students nationwide in 2009 UCC has seen an 85% increase in the number of HEAR acceptances into the University. The number of acceptances of a UCC college place through DARE has risen by over 300% from 2009 to 2011. 

Mary O’Grady, Acting Director of Access, welcomed the recognition given to HEAR and DARE through the public services excellence award and said, “That entrants to UCC via these supplementary admission schemes have achieved academic success in their undergraduate degree programmes on parity to their peers”.

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