Eligible EU/EEA, Swiss and UK students pay no tuition for a first undergraduate degree at a public institution in Ireland – only a Student Contribution of at most €2,500 a year (2026/27); non-EU fees are usually €9,850–25,500. Programmes are taught almost entirely in English at 7 universities, 5 technological universities and other public institutions. See how CAO applications work and what Dublin costs.
How long: normally 3–4 years; structured PhD programmes take 4 years. There are also practice-based and industrial PhDs and professional doctorates. Universities award their own degrees; graduate schools support doctoral candidates.
Your status: doctoral candidates are classified as students, so they do not have employee rights such as social insurance and a pension. Funding comes from research grants and university scholarships – the national funder is Research Ireland.
How to get in: usually a master's degree or a high honours bachelor's degree; some start with a research master's and transfer to the PhD.
Where to look: doctoral positions and calls are published on the websites of universities and their doctoral schools and on EURAXESS. Programmes in Ireland in our database: Ireland – 348 doctoral programmes (as of November 2026) »
Sources: Eurydice – national description of third-cycle (PhD) programmes (updated 10 October 2026). As of October 2026.
Sources: European Commission – Study in Europe (education.ec.europa.eu/study-in-europe), Eurostat, official national study and residence portals and authorities, Eurodesk, enic-naric.net, studentnews.eu. As of September 2026.
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