Council grant for pgde in Education?

Fausto Miño

Hi all, a county council grant application form (for another course) is making me ask the question, is the pgde in education considered a progression from a degreee and thus eligible to receive the grant? i.e. has anyone got the grant going from degree to h.dip/PGDE?
I ask as on the grant application form, the pgde is placed between level 8 and level 9, with no actual placing attributed to it
thanks!
Fausto

buster13

i completed the pgde and got the full grant along with my fees being paid for

Dionysus

Fausto Miño wrote: »

Hi all, a county council grant application form (for another course) is making me ask the question, is the pgde in education considered a progression from a degreee and thus eligible to receive the grant? i.e. has anyone got the grant going from degree to h.dip/PGDE?
I ask as on the grant application form, the pgde is placed between level 8 and level 9, with no actual placing attributed to it
thanks!
Fausto

This post: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=61561868#post61561868 - was very informative. Apparently, the PGDE is not given a level on the NQAI system (http://www.nfq.ie/nfq/en/). In fact, I rang up the NQAI and spoke with a man there and he confirmed precisely what this poster said: the PGDE is not actually graded. Very, very surprising indeed.

I would be quite certain you'll have no problem getting the grant.

Nead21

there should be no reason why you wouldnt get a grant if you qualify. the PGDE is considered to be progression in your education. as the title suggests, its post-graduate

Lord TSC

Yeap, you should get it. Just remember to feel pity for those of us who are doing it after doing another post-graduate degree

Dionysus

Teamshadowclan wrote: »

Yeap, you should get it. Just remember to feel pity for those of us who are doing it after doing another post-graduate degree

Tell me about it. €6,550 the PGDE will cost me this year. Well, actually, I've reduced it by €1000 simply through my partner officially paying for it. If a taxpayer whom you know - it doesn't have to be yourself or your parents - officially pays your fee they are entitled to a reduction on the Tuition Fee on the standard rate of 20% up to a maximum of €5000. Ergo, if you do it this way your fees will be €5000 - 20% = €4000 + €1550 = €5550.

It's still a very hefty amount, but at least it's something. I rang up Revenue to confirm this and they gave me the details of what must be done to qualify:

A letter on headed paper from your University stating name, duration, amount of fees paid, name and address of person who paid the fees, and the student's name.

The taxpayer should bring that into Revenue and they (you) should be sorted.


You also may be due back taxes. While on the phone to Revenue I asked them and they said that I was due €1000 in over paid taxes from 2007 and they'd send the cheque out immediately. Nice surprise!

ateam

Teamshadowclan wrote: »

Yeap, you should get it. Just remember to feel pity for those of us who are doing it after doing another post-graduate degree

Or those of us who worked hard and saved for the fees :-(

Síle28

Dionysus, thanks for the info. I heard something about that and am going to try to have my dad claim tax back on the fees I will pay for the PGDE this year. I obviously have to wait until I have paid the fees and then do it or do I have to wait until the end of the tax year? Also, does the money have to actually come out of his account for it to qualify or can it come from my account but I put his name as person who paid fees on the letter you mentioned? (I can't claim back on my own tax as I have been working abroad all year).

Fausto Miño

Thanks for your replies!:)
Fausto

Dionysus

Síle28 wrote: »

Dionysus, thanks for the info. I heard something about that and am going to try to have my dad claim tax back on the fees I will pay for the PGDE this year. I obviously have to wait until I have paid the fees and then do it or do I have to wait until the end of the tax year?

Hi Síle,

In UCD anyway, the fees are in two instalments; the 1st instalment is for €3,005 (you've already paid a deposit of €260) and is due before the 3rd September 2009. The 2nd instalment is for the remainder (€3,285?) and that is due in January.


I didn't want to put you (or myself) amú go I rang Revenue once again.

1. First, I underestimated the amount of tax I/you will get back: it is 20% of the fees up to a total Tuition Fee of €5000 per annum. However, because the fees are paid in 2 instalments, and each of those instalments is in a separate tax year, you will get back 20% of the entire Tuition Fee of €6,550. So, we should be due back €1,310 out of the €6,550 fee. That's the good news.

2. The taxpayer can make the claim by going into PAYE Anytime (registration can be done here: http://www.revenue.ie/en/online/paye-anytime.html) and filling in the relevant Free Tuition Form, which is here: http://www.revenue.ie/en/tax/it/leaflets/it31.html

3. The Revenue official whom I spoke with earlier in the week was, according to the woman today (and the Revenue.ie website here: http://www.revenue.ie/en/tax/it/reliefs/tuition-fees.html) mistaken: while you do need to get the above receipt from the university, Revenue does not however need you to send it to them. That receipt will only be necessary if they do a spot-check. So, in answer to your question it seems that in practical terms the claim to Revenue can be made immediately, before you've paid the fees, but assuming you are paying the instalment next week or the week after (otherwise it's fraud, of course).

4. The Revenue refund the tax on your fees via tax credits which are issued to the taxpayer's employer. To answer your other question, the Revenue lady said that 'lump sum' tax credits are paid at the end of the year by the employer. However, she intimated that the definition of "lump sum" was a matter for the employer and often an employer could pay it before then if requested to by the employee. So, I took from this that you can make the claim asap and check with Revenue that they have "coded in" the tax credits to the employer and then contact the person in salaries and see if you can recoup it immediately.

Síle28 wrote: »

Also, does the money have to actually come out of his account for it to qualify or can it come from my account but I put his name as person who paid fees on the letter you mentioned? (I can't claim back on my own tax as I have been working abroad all year).

No, just put his name on it/ apply under his tax details and you'll be absolutely fine. I'm getting a credit union loan as I can't afford the fees but getting my partner, who is paying tax this year, to officially pay it. She'll then give me the refund and I'll be able to put it towards the 2nd instalment.

Síle28

That's all very useful information Dionysus, thanks very much. I'm actually abroad now coming home shortly to do the course so getting info from here isn't as easy as it might be in Ireland so much appreciated! Any reduction on the huge fee is great! Best of luck with the year, should be a busy one!

Fausto Miño

Teamshadowclan wrote: »

Yeap, you should get it. Just remember to feel pity for those of us who are doing it after doing another post-graduate degree

Yea, thats a factor too, I would like to start a masterswhich i have been accepted to this september in a language, so when pgde time comes around in september 2010 I could have this language as a teaching subject (if the teaching council recognize it, and they wont tell me yes or no)
But...
this will preclude me from doing pgde and getting fees and grant, so Ill do the pgde first, then maybe that masters in 2011.
Cos its not like ill be walking into a job anyway

so I feel for you doing the pgde after a post graduate course, but think long term

Dionysus

Síle28 wrote: »

That's all very useful information Dionysus, thanks very much. I'm actually abroad now coming home shortly to do the course so getting info from here isn't as easy as it might be in Ireland so much appreciated! Any reduction on the huge fee is great! Best of luck with the year, should be a busy one!

You too, Síle!

seven seas

Hi Guys,

I am seriously thinking about the PGDE course on 2010.

I have already completed by BA degree and aslo a post graduate course in systems analsyis.

I am now 32 a mature student bit the biggest factor for me will be the fees as I am flat broke.

Is there any way I can get fees paid and a grant if I qualify? I have alreday completed a post graduate course so I am not sure what this means.

I will need some helo with the fees and am wondering what avenues I have to persue to help with these costs

I would appreciate some feedback

Cheers

Nead21

as you have already completed a postgrad, you wont be entitled to get a grant/get fees paid to complete another one

allyatsea

Hi guys, just a little question: Is it really necessary to have someone else pay for the fees for you? Is it not possible to get tax back on fees that you pay for yourself?