'Fourth Level' education refers to postgraduate education. All Irish universities provide a wide breadth of postgraduate degree programmes characterised by a commitment to high standards that also accommodate student needs.

Key elements of 4th Level Ireland are:

• Core Masters and PhD programmes.
• Feeder pathways which will enhance access to the best of university education.
• New programmes of lifelong learning and skills development.
• Strong links to external stakeholders, with opportunities for placements in relevant economic sectors.
• Investment in the arts, humanities and social sciences to promote the research, scholarship and creativity to complement scientific, technological and commercial advances.
• Taught elements in generic skills & advanced disciplinary courses.
• Teaching/tutorial experience.

Why study at postgraduate level?

• A postgraduate degree gives you the opportunity to study at an advanced level, and to make a contribution by conducting original research.
• Completing a course of postgraduate study is a challenging and character-forming experience, which confers skills, experience and a sense of achievement valued by employers and students.
• As more people have the opportunity to study for a degree, so competition for jobs becomes fiercer. To get an edge over the competition many are undertaking postgraduate courses in some relevant specialist study.

NUI Galway has embraced the challenge to deliver state-of-the-art fourth level education through the provision of an extensive range of postgraduate programmes. Innovative and flexible programmes developed with the needs of a rapidly changing employment environment in mind, are provided by staff with international reputations committed to the delivery of high quality teaching and research supervision in modern facilities.

University College Cork has a clear commitment to excellence in both research and teaching. Over 200 postgraduate programmes are offered, ranging from Higher Diplomas to doctoral research programmes. Many of the taught programmes are offered on a part-time basis and the university is committed to increasing flexibility in its programmes by introducing modular and distance learning programmes.

Trinity College Dublin is the top Irish university for research with some 1,600 students (11% of the total student body) reading for a research degree. Trinity is now ranked in the top 20 European Universities (13th) and 49th in the World by international employers.

Postgraduate Research at Dublin City University cuts across the traditional boundaries between academic disciplines and involves collaboration with national and international partners and interaction with a broad range of funding agencies, institutions, non-governmental agencies and private companies.

National University of Ireland, Maynooth is one of Ireland’s leading research-intensive higher education institutions, named as University of the Year in the Sunday Times, and attracting the strongest per capita flow of research funding among the Irish Universities in 2008. One fifth of NUIM's students are postgraduates studying in one of three faculties across the Arts, Humanities, Sciences and Engineering.

The University of Limerick offers over 90 taught postgraduate programmes and an extensive range of graduate research opportunities across four faculties - Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences, Business, Education & Health Sciences, Science & Engineering. Taught programmes range from graduate diplomas to professional doctorates and a number of programmes are offered on a part-time basis.

The Irish Universities Association (IUA) works closely with the international offices of the seven universities on a number of issues including international student recruitment, marketing of the university sector internationally, joint participation at student fairs and exhibitions.

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