Tipperary school praise one of it's student's commitment to education and social justice

Ursuline sixth year student Lisa O’Connor and her friend from Rockwell College, Louis Ryan, were invited to a meeting with Minister for Higher Education Simon Harris in Dáil Éireann to discuss the inequities around the HPAT required for entry into Medicine.

This happened as a result of an email sent by Lisa to Minister for Education Norma Foley and Minister for Higher Education Simon Harris.

Tipperary Deputy, Michael Lowry, helped Lisa and Louis with arrangements for the meeting in Leinster House on Wednesday, March 1.

They discussed the exorbitant costs placed on students and their families by the requirement to sit the HPAT exam in order to gain access to first year medicine.

As Lisa pointed out to the Minister it is not only the sitting of this extra exam that requires money, but the preparation for it is extra expenditure with the purchase of grinds, access to past HPAT papers and the MedEntry packages, which are essential to study for the HPAT exam.

Lisa rightly pointed out that medicine, already an elitist profession, has become virtually unobtainable for the children of ordinary working families or those who come from lower socio economic backgrounds.

They also asked Minister Harris why the HPAT is run by a private company based in Australia, who have no stake in the Irish education system.

As an immediate solution Lisa and Louis asked that funding be made available to Post Primary Schools so that students interested in studying for the HPAT could avail of these resource packs in fifth and sixth year.

Lisa and Louis believe it was a very productive meeting with Minister Harris who listened to their concerns and took note of their suggestions.

Well done to Lisa on trying to bring about important educational change and for taking the initiative to do something concrete about a very obvious social injustice.

Contributed to School Days in the Tipperary Star.