University of Galway has announced a reduction to the fee for repeat examinations. Following collaboration between the University’s Students’ Union and Dean of Students Professor Ciara Meehan, a joint proposal has been approved to reduce the cost of resitting examinations by one third – bringing the rate from €295, down to €195. The lower rate will be in effect for students who are repeating exams in summer 2024. It will be a flat rate, regardless of how many exams a student is required to retake, and a special waiver scheme is available for those in need of financial support. University of Galway’s Dean of Students, Professor Ciara Meehan, said: “The reduction in repeat exam fees comes following collaboration the University and the Students’ Union. We are conscious of the costs associated with education and the cost-of-living pressures on young people nowadays. Everyone involved in education wants our students to excel and to achieve their best, and while we do not want to see any student have to repeat their exams, we also know that the fee reduction will have a meaningful impact.” Students’ Union President Dean Kenny said: “We're absolutely delighted with this decision, which comes off the back of a significant amount of effort from multiple Student Union executives. Our repeat fee has long been a contentious issue for our students, particularly through the Covid-19 pandemic, and while this €100 reduction is not a silver bullet, it's going to help a lot of students out this year and into the future. I'd particularly like to commend University management and the Dean of Students for working with us on this, and to the student body for continually making their feelings known. Comhaltas na Mac Léinn, Ollscoil na Gaillimhe will always support eventual abolishment, and it's now over to the incoming SU executive to keep the pressure on University management and ensure that further reductions remain a top priority."   Ends

Tá an Teanglann seolta go hoifigiúil ag Ollscoil na Gaillimhe. Seomraí ateangaireachta comhdhála agus áis teagaisc í an Teanglann agus léiríonn sí seasamh na hOllscoile mar phríomhinstitiúid na hÉireann chun oideachas a chur ar ateangairí. Is léiriú iad na háiseanna ar an éacht atá déanta i ndáil le hoiliúint, oideachas agus taighde ar an ateangaireacht in Éirinn agus ní fhéadfaí iad a fhorbairt murach an comhoibriú leis an gCoimisiún Eorpach, an Roinn Turasóireachta, Cultúir, Ealaíon, Gaeltachta, Spóirt agus Meán agus Ollscoil na Gaillimhe. D’oscail Ard-Stiúrthóir Ateangaireachta an Choimisiúin Eorpaigh (DG SCIC), Genoveva Ruiz Calvera, An Teanglann go hoifigiúil. Dúirt Genoveva Calvera: “Is mór an onóir freastal ar shearmanas oscailte na teanglainne ateangaireachta agus a fheiceáil go bhfuil toradh ag teacht ar an gcomhoibriú atá le fada an lá idir an Ard-Stiúrthóireacht SCIC agus Ollscoil na Gaillimhe agus céimithe óga ateangaireachta i mbun ateangaireacht Ghaeilge d’Institiúidí an AE cheana féin.” Dúirt Thomas Byrne T.D., an tAire Stáit le freagracht as an nGaeltacht: “Is cúis áthais dom go raibh sé ar chumas mo Roinne, i gcomhar leis an gCoimisiún Eorpach, an maoiniú a chur ar fáil do na seomraí oiliúna ateangaireachta comhdhála seo in Ollscoil na Gaillimhe. Is mór an t-éacht é áiseanna den scoth a bheith ar fáil do mhic léinn chun ceird na hateangaireachta comhdhála a fhoghlaim agus níl aon amhras orm ach go meallfaidh na seomraí oiliúna ateangaireachta seo go leor mic léinn chuig an MA san Ateangaireacht Chomhdhála; dá thoradh sin beidh soláthar de chéimithe oilte ateangaireachta a bhfuil líofacht acu sa Ghaeilge agus i dteangacha eile ar fáil le dul i mbun róil thábhachtacha san Eoraip.” Bhí an méid seo a leanas le rá ag an Ollamh Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh, Uachtarán Ollscoil na Gaillimhe: “Is ócáid thar a bheith tábhachtach é seoladh na Teanglainne Ateangaireachta Comhdhála seo don Ollscoil agus d’Éirinn trí chéile agus is léiriú maith iad ar luach an bhairr feabhais agus ar an deis atá againn na caighdeáin is airde san oideachas a chur ar fáil. “Ba mhaith liom aitheantas a thabhairt don tacaíocht fhíorluachmhar ón gCoimisiún Eorpach agus ón Rialtas don tionscadal seo chun na chéad ateangairí eile a oiliúint don Eoraip agus níos faide i gcéin. Leis an deis seo is féidir ár gcuid mac léinn a chumasú mar cheannairí na todhchaí i réimse na hateangaireachta comhdhála agus cuireann sé béim ar thiomantas an ilteangachais agus na caighdeáin is airde ateangaireachta a chur chun cinn san AE agus níos faide i gcéin.  “Cuirimid fáilte mhór roimh an Ard-Stiúrthóir Genoveva Ruiz Calvera chuig an Ollscoil. Ó tharla í a bheith anseo linn is léiriú é ar an tábhacht a bhaineann lenár gcomhoibriú agus an tiomantas atá againn araon oideachas agus cleachtas ateangaireachta teanga a chur chun cinn.”  Dúirt an tOllamh Rebecca Braun, Déan Choláiste na nDán, na nEolaíochtaí Sóisialta agus an Léinn Cheiltigh: “Trí iarrachtaí comhoibríocha agus tionscnaimh nuálacha, tá Ollscoil na Gaillimhe tiomanta i gcónaí do thodhchaí an oideachais ateangaireachta teanga a mhúnlú agus cumarsáid thraschultúrtha a chur chun cinn ar scála domhanda. Tá ríméad orainn na deiseanna a chuireann na háiseanna ateangaireachta comhdhála ar fáil dár gcuid mac léinn a fheiceáil, chomh maith le caidrimh a fhorbairt agus a chothú le heagraíochtaí ar nós an tAE agus na NA agus le daoine gairmiúla san earnáil.” Dúirt Susan Folan, Ateangaire Gairmiúil Comhdhála agus Stiúrthóir Cláir an MA san Ateangaireacht Chomhdhála: "Deimhníonn an áis nua seasamh Ollscoil na Gaillimhe mar an t-aon institiúid in Éirinn a thairgeann sainoiliúint d’ateangairí comhdhála. Trí na seomraí nua seo beimid in ann cruinnithe ilteangacha a reáchtáil le hateangaireacht i 6 theanga dhifriúla ag an am céanna. Nascann an teicneolaíocht ár gcuid mac léinn le hoiliúnóirí gairmiúla agus le taighdeoirí ateangaireachta ar fud an domhain as croílár an champais. Tá gairm fhuinniúil dhomhanda roimh chéimithe tar éis taithí a fháil ar sheomra ranga fuinniúil agus cuimsitheach.” Tá trí sheomra ateangaireachta sa Teanglann agus sé bhoth san iomlán. Tá dhá chonsól chaighdeánacha ateangaire i ngach both agus tá siad feistithe leis an teicneolaíocht is nuaí. Is féidir na trí sheomra a nascadh le chéile do chruinnithe móra, le clúdach teanga níos fearr, agus freisin bíonn oiliúint chianda chomhuaineach (RSI), atá tagtha chun cinn sa mhargadh ó aimsir Covid níos éasca dá bharr. Tá an Teanglann deartha ar mhaithe leis an eispéireas tumfhoghlama, chun oideachas ateangaireachta agus an teagasc hibrideach a chur chun cinn. Tá idir oiliúnóirí na hOllscoile, ar gairmithe cleachtacha iad go léir, agus ateangairí atá ag obair in institiúidí comhpháirtíochta idirnáisiúnta amhail an Coimisiún Eorpach, Parlaimint na hEorpa, Cúirt Bhreithiúnais na hEorpa agus na Náisiúin Aontaithe ag obair sa Teanglann, rud a chuireann leis an eispéireas foghlama agus a chinntíonn go bhfuil sé ábhartha do chásanna i saol an lae inniu.  Tá an áis á húsáid acu siúd atá i mbun an MA san Ateangaireacht Chomhdhála, ar a mbíonn 15 mhac léinn in aghaidh na bliana faoi láthair. Is as Éirinn, Ceanada, an Spáinn, an Cholóim, an Iodáil agus an Fhrainc na mic léinn ar an gclár Máistreachta i mbliana, le raon teangacha dúchasacha na dtíortha sin, chomh maith le Gearmáinis agus Béarla. Is féidir freastal ar theangacha eile ar an gclár freisin, ag brath ar éileamh. Críoch

University of Galway has officially launched its new state-of-the-art conference interpreting suites and teaching facility An Teanglann, marking its position as the lead institution in Ireland for educating interpreters and translators. The facilities mark a significant milestone in the advancement of language interpretating training, education and research in Ireland and their development was made possible thanks to collaboration of the European Commission, the Department for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sports and Media and University of Galway. Director General for Interpretation at the European Commission (DG SCIC), Genoveva Ruiz Calvera, officially opened An Teanglann. Ms Calvera said: “It is an honour to attend the opening ceremony of the interpreting suite and to see that the long-lasting cooperation between DG SCIC and University of Galway is bearing fruit with young interpreter graduates already providing Irish interpretation for the EU Institutions.” Thomas Byrne T.D., Minister of State with responsibility for the Gaeltacht, said: “I am delighted that my Department, in conjunction with the European Commission, has been able to provide the funding for this hugely impressive conference interpreting training suite at University of Galway. Having state-of-the-art facilities available for students to learn the craft of conference interpreting is a great achievement and I have no doubt that the addition of the conference interpreting training suites will attract many students to the MA in Conference Interpreting and will lead to a steady stream of skilled interpreting graduates with proficiency in Irish and in other languages who are available to take up important roles in Europe.” Professor Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh, President of University of Galway, said: “The launch of these Conference Interpreting Suites represents a momentous occasion for our University and for Ireland as a whole and they are a strong symbol of our value of excellence and the opportunity for the highest standards in education. “I would like to acknowledge the invaluable support of the European Commission and the Government for this project to train the next interpreters for Europe and around the world. It is enabling the empowerment of our students as future leaders in the field of conference interpreting and underscores a commitment to promoting multilingualism and the highest standards of interpreting in the EU and beyond.  “We warmly welcome the Director General Genoveva Ruiz Calvera to our University, whose presence underscores the significance of our collaboration and the mutual commitment to advancing language interpreting education and practice.”  Professor Rebecca Braun, Dean of the College of Arts, Social Sciences and Celtic Studies, said: “Through collaborative efforts and innovative initiatives, University of Galway remains dedicated to shaping the future of language interpretation education and advancing cross-cultural communication on a global scale. We are delighted to see the opportunities that the conference interpreting facilities presents for our students, as well as for developing and sustaining the relationships with organisations such as the EU and the UN and professionals in the sector.” Susan Folan, Professional Conference Interpreter and Programme Director for the MA in Conference Interpreting, said: “The new facility confirms University of Galway’s standing as the sole institution in Ireland offering specialised training for future conference interpreters. These new suites allow for multilingual meetings with interpretation in six different languages simultaneously. The technology links our students with professional trainers and interpreting researchers all over the world from right here on campus. Graduates are entering a dynamic and global profession having experienced a dynamic and comprehensive classroom.” An Teanglann is made up of three interpretation suites, with a total of six booths, each of which has standard two interpreter consoles and is equipped with the latest technology. All three suites can be connected to allow for larger meetings, with greater language coverage, and also allow for remote simultaneous (RSI) training, which has become a market reality post-Covid. The suites are designed to facilitate immersive learning experiences, further advancing interpreter education and hybrid teaching, which involves University trainers, who are all practising professionals, and interpreters working in international partner institutions such as the European Commission, European Parliament, European Court of Justice and the United Nations, which enriches the learning experience and ensures relevance to real-world scenarios.  The facility is being used by those studying on the MA in Conference Interpreting, which currently takes 15 students a year. Students on the Masters programme this year come from Ireland, Canada, Spain, Colombia, Italy and France, with a spread of languages native to each country, as well as German and English. The programme has capacity to cater for other languages, depending on demand. Ends