Students take legal action after cancellation of course
The High Court is hearing a legal challenge taken by two students from Athlone Institute of Technology over the cancellation of their course.
Their degree course in audiology was scrapped just before their second year was due to begin because of placement and funding issues.
Megan Munnelly and fellow audiology student Diarmuid O'Connor took the case after their course was axed earlier this month.
They were among 21 students at Athlone IT who were told the degree course was going to be dropped after just one year.
From the outset, the college said it "envisaged that it would meet the standards of two professional bodies: the Irish Academy of Audiology and the British Academy of Audiology"
Its failure to do so has resulted in funding being pulled from the Higher Education Authority and no hope of filling third-year placements.
The decision to pull the plug has left the students in academic limbo and many say they will now have to travel abroad to finish their studies.
A full legal challenge is due to be heard in the High Court today.
