In the media

University officials have been accused of misleading an Oireachtas committee over the way they run their financial affairs. Senior officials from colleges including University of Limerick, DIT and University College Cork appeared before the Dáil’s Public Accounts Committee on Thursday to answer allegations over unauthorised severance packages, conflicts of interest and poor corporate governance. In one episode, officials at the university of Limerik paid severance packages to two staff due to ‘employment relationships breaking down’, but then went on to re-employ both individuals as consultants.

Academics say the use of the electronic device is difficult to police in crowded exam halls. There has been an increased number of breaches of exam regulations, up from 56 last year to 83. Trinity College recorded 42 breaches of exam regulations this year, along with 10 incidents of cheating. This has prompted a number of UK colleges introduced blanket bans on wristwatches of any kind.

Although steps have been taken by the Irish authorities, such as the enactment of legislation penalizing essay mills, officials believe that universities need targeted funding to help protect the quality and integrity of teaching and learning. Reports show that 10% of students may have used contract cheating services and they can be difficult to detect as they can go undetected by plagiarism detection software.

Between 2019 and 2021, Trinity College had 445 cases of suspected cheating, 143 cases of plagiarism and another 154 cases of cheating. In 2022 there were 33 cases of suspected exam cheating and 138 cases where a student plagiarised work for their assignments. The University said the data did not include supplemental assignments that were in progress at the time, meaning the figures could still rise slightly.