Mayo is set to benefit hugely as a university county – ATU leaders

Two leading officials of the new Atlantic Technological University (ATU) have given an assurances that that Mayo will benefit hugely from its new status as a university county.

Dr. Orla Flynn, President Designate, ATU, and Dr Seán Duffy, Executive Project Lead, Connacht Ulster Alliance (CUA), held a media briefing today in which they cited 'access and opportunity' as being central to the work of the new university.

On the specific question of the Mayo campus in Castlebar, Dr. Duffy said the facility will have a significantly positive impact as it will focus on the needs of the county.

“It will lead to further investment in the Castlebar college, to be known as ATU Mayo going forward, as well as investment in the county in general.

“By working together, we can stem the flow of students moving outside the region to pursue their third level education studies because of our position to offer so much more. It's important that that flow is counter balanced.

“Significantly, too, there will be greater possibilities to work with local industries.”

Dr. Flynn said the university is covering a geographical region bigger than Wales.

“A united approach will be the key to our success, rather than competing against one another. In respect of Mayo, the areas of health sciences, tourism and cultural studies are so important.

“And we will be working closely with Enterprise Ireland and the IDA in terms of up-skilling workers to meet new opportunities,” she stated.

With more than 21,000 registered students, the vast majority of whom are in full-time undergraduate study, ATU is making good on its mission to become a leader in higher education in Ireland through its continuously developing academic offering and collaborative partnerships in the private sector.

The ATU is one of Ireland’s largest universities with eight campuses across the west and north-west, meaning students can enjoy the benefits of a large-scale technological university, such as access to emerging technologies and research-driven teaching, with the excellent quality of life provided by the natural amenities along the Wild Atlantic Way.

ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ATU

• More than 21,000 students are currently enrolled at the ATU.

• Nearly 3,500 new students enrolled in 2021. Of that number, almost 70% entered an honours bachelor degree programme.

• Some 43% of the ATU’s 5,000 graduates in 2021 came from courses in science, mathematics and computing, as well as engineering, manufacturing and construction. A further 29% came from the arts, humanities, social sciences, business and law.

• Nearly 1,400 international students from 93 different countries are studying at the ATU –more than 40% from Asia and another 35% from the European Union.

• Some 463 students are engaged in research across a range of areas.

• Contract research income accounted for €13m of the ATU’s budget in 2020 – this represents a 74% increase in the past three years.

Staff

• The ATU has more than 2,250 staff.

• There is a near 50-50 gender balance among the ATU’s academic staff.

Courses

• The ATU offers 600-plus full and part-time programmes from pre-degree to doctoral level, either on campus, online or blended learning.

• The most popular field of study is engineering, manufacturing and construction, which accounts for more than 20% of new entrants.

• While the ATU offers a range of courses in science, engineering and computing, we also lead in many other disciplines; the arts, architecture, fashion design, environmental science, film and documentary, forensic science, furniture design, agriculture and marine, animation, sport and leisure, culinary arts, tourism and marketing.

Funding

• The ATU relies on State grants for almost 40% of its annual funding. Fees account for a further 28%.

Economic Value

• The ATU contributes more than €700m per annum to Ireland’s Gross Value Added (GVA), and more than 3% to the GVA of the north and west.

• Every €1 spent by the ATU is worth an extra €4 to the Irish economy.

• The ATU directly and indirectly sustains more than 3,000 jobs annually.

Geography

The ATU has eight different campuses across four counties – Galway, Mayo, Donegal and Sligo.

The campuses are:

• ATU Galway City

• ATU Connemara

• ATU Mountbellew

• ATU Mayo

• ATU Sligo

• ATU Sligo, St Angela’s Campus

• ATU Donegal, Letterkenny

• ATU Donegal, Killybegs.