Laptop on Loan Scheme

The Laptop on Loan scheme is for students who are socioeconomically disadvantaged or live in an area of urban or rural disadvantage where not many people from that area go on to third level education by tradition or for financial reasons.

You may be classified as disadvantaged if:

• You attended a DEIS school
• Your household or family income is under a certain threshold.
• You are facing financial barriers
• You are a first-time mature student
• You have a disability
• You are a member of the Traveller or Roma community
• You are a lone parent
• You have previously been in the Care of the State/Tusla.

All of these factors, either individually or in combination, mean that you may have significant additional social and financial barriers making it difficult to access and succeed in higher education.

The Laptop on Loan scheme considers a combination of socioeconomic factors, you must meet the following criteria to recive a laptop from the Laptop on Loan scheme:

You household/family income under a certain income threshold.

AND

You must be attending a full-time or part-time course undergraduate course that:

(a) takes minimum of two years to complete,

AND

(b) awards a major higher education and training award at level 6 or above on the National Framework of Qualifications.

• Fill in the online application Please note: You need to be a registered student to access the application form.
• You will receive a follow up on your application with an email asking for the required documentation to assess your application.
• If you are approved you will get an invitation to collect a laptop at the library. We will meet you to set up the laptop, fill out a short loan agreement, and make sure the laptop is up and running before you go!

Applicants can complete an application for the Laptop On Loan scheme here.

Please note: You need to be a registered student to access the application form.

If you are applying just for the Laptop on Loan scheme you will need to provide the following:

A copy of the letter from SUSI stating your family income (i.e. the full three pages of your SUSI letter)

OR

If you have been awarded a SUSI grant and have a letter stating your grant remains the same as last year you will need to submit your family income details as they will not be on the SUSI letter.

Family income details may include the following documentation:

• P21(s) for 2022 and/or Employment Detail Summary (formally known as a P60)
• Department of Social Protection Statement for 2022

Follow this tutorial to get your Employment Detail Summary.

If you have applied to the Student Assistance Fund and supplied the documentation for that Fund the same documentation will cover the Laptop on Loan scheme.

You will be expected to:

• Sign the Laptop on Loan form and Responsibility and and Liability Agreement.
• Regularly check your student email for updates from the Laptop on Loan Scheme co-ordinator.
• Keep within the rules and regulations of your institution.
• Agree to any assessment set out by your institution for your course.
• Agree to the department managing confirming that you are engaged/registered with your course .

Applications are accepted from registered students all year round.

There are two grounds for appeal:

1. You believe there was an “administrative error in assessment” i.e., there was a mistake when your application was being reviewed that lead to you not being awarded the loan.
2. You believe “insufficient weight was given to an aspect of your application” i.e., all your circumstances were not considered when your application was being reviewed, or something important was not considered about your personal situation.

Yes. The university has funds to support students experiencing financial hardship. For financial assistance information in the Athlone campus click here. For financial assistance information in the Midwest campuses click here.